Double the Lines
Having extracted all the capacity they can out of a single phone line, modem makers’ latest solution to the bandwidth bottleneck is based on the principle that two is better than one.
Diamond Multimedia Systems and 3Com both unveiled products last week that deliver more data in less time by using two phone lines instead of one.
Analysts said the devices offer an inexpensive way to get higher Internet access speeds until new technologies, such as cable modems, are more widely available.
“If the marketing is done well, this is something people will buy into,” said Abner Germanow, an analyst at International Data in Framingham, Mass. “It could be a substantial market.”
The devices offer speeds up to 112 kilobits per second, or double the 56-kbps speed limit of single modems. But the two companies are targeting different markets.
3Com’s product is priced at $745 and is designed for small companies or homes with multiple computers connected to the Internet.
Diamond’s product, the SupraSonic II, is aimed squarely at the consumer market and is expected to cost less than $200 when it hits store shelves early next year. The company said its current modems will be upgradeable.
Mike Reed, a marketing manager at Vancouver, Wash.-based Diamond, said the product is a logical choice for the 25% of U.S. households that already have two phone lines. The device is capable of diverting data traffic momentarily to handle incoming calls.
The dual-line device is cheaper than high-bandwidth alternatives, such as ISDN phone lines, which can cost $300 to install and more than $50 a month in subscription fees, Reed said.
But consumers who use Diamond’s device will have to pay for an extra line if they don’t already have one, and an extra account with an Internet service provider. Diamond’s dual-modem works only when connected to ISPs that use switches made by Ascend Communications. About 85 of the largest 100 ISPs use these switches, Reed said.
3Com’s device is the first new product to come out of the Santa Clara, Calif.-based networking company’s recent acquisition of modem-maker U.S. Robotics. The dual-analog device is not a modem but a router, meaning it functions as a traffic cop for data, enabling dozens of computers to connect to the Internet over the same two phone lines. That could help some small businesses cut costs by not having to pay for separate Internet accounts or even separate modems for each computer.
But 3Com officials caution that the device is best suited for companies whose employees are not heavy Internet users, because they will be sharing the same pipeline. Simultaneous downloads of large files by several employees would cause traffic jams, akin to too many cars entering a tunnel.
