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News Archive for March, 1997

March 31

Ascend Communications plans to acquire Cascade for 3.7 billion dollars. Ascend, a K56flex partner, makes the hardware that many ISPs use to provide dialin lines for modems and ISDN. Cascade makes high-speed switching equipment. ZD Net has the story.

March 28

Hayes is offering an upgrade from any modem to a Hayes 56K modem for $99 plus $15 shipping and handling. The modem can be any speed, and is doesn't have to be a Hayes brand modem. If it is a Hayes, the upgrade is even cheaper. You can upgrade to an internal, external, or PC card model. The offer expires June 30, 1997. See the Hayes Web site for details.

 

Having trouble upgrading your U.S. Robotics Courier to x2? Derrick Garbell has written a Courier upgrade guide.

 

Which 56K protocol will be more successful: U.S. Robotics x2 or the Open 56K Forum's K56flex? Global Village doesn't have to worry. The company announced that they will make both x2 and K56flex modems. The Mac-only modems will look identical to the company's TelePort Platinum 33.6 modems and will support caller ID and distinctive ringing.

March 5

c|net reviewed U.S. Robotics 56K x2 technology and found the speed bump worth the $60 upgrade price. Their modem performance chart offers an idea of the speed increase you're likely to see with early 56K modems.

 

Motorola shipped 56K versions of their ModemSURFR and VoiceSURFR modems. An internal version of the ModemSURFR will sell for $159, with the external selling for $179. The VoiceSURFR will retail for $20 extra.

 

3Com and U.S. Robotics have merged in a deal worth 6.6 billion dollars. Industry spin is that the deal is a strategic move against networking giant Cisco. ZD Net has a story.