Great modem... when it works
Written: Aug 15 '01
|
Product Rating:
|
|
|
Pros: Great performance when brand new
Cons: QC lacking; warranty service
The Bottom Line: Don't bother - the quality is no longer there so why pay for it.
|
|
|
| tc17's Full Review: 3Com U.S. Robotics Faxmodem 56K Analog Modem (81-0... |
Out-of-the-box, this modem is everything I expect of 3Com and USR. Great connect rates, great sustained throughput. You can even get the V.92 upgrade although that's just a toy until your ISP reciprocates.
Unfortunately for me, the honeymoon lasted about a month and then I started getting poorer connect rates, dropped connections, abysmal performance. I blamed everything except a USR modem; I tried different phone lines, different ISPs but nothing really changed. Out of frustration I subbed my old Zoom 33.6Kbps modem for the USR and all the connection problems vanished.
So, on to warranty service. First, you call on your own dime - no toll-free here folks - oh, and they're available 08:00-16:00 Mountain Time on workdays. Next you are put in a queue and given an estimated time for response - "6 to 8 minutes" ended up being more like 20. Then you feed the tech all the information you put on your warranty registration because they "don't have access to that information." Finally, if you're lucky, you get an SRO issued so you can send your modem back, at your own expense of course.
When I got my replacement modem, all was once again well... for another month and then the same connection problems re-appeared. So I'm now awaiting my third modem in four months - sure hope this one works a little longer but I'm not holding my breath.
In the past, I've never hesitated to buy 3Com gear and USR has had a pretty good reputation but it looks like they've got a quality control issue with these modems and you end up spending your own time and money to get those problems fixed. I think they are capable of doing a lot better.
Recommended:
No
Amount Paid (US$): 80
|
|
|
|
Epinions.com ID:
tc17
|
|
Reviews written: 1
Trusted by: 0 members
|
|
|
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.