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Apple MA034Z/A External V.2 USB Modem
See it at Amazon.com for $49.99Average Customer Rating
(4.0 out of 5)
Amazon Customer Reviews
Most Helpful First | Newest First | + Share3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
Elegant package, but consider alternatives
(4 out of 5) by P. Sichel on Oct 16, 2009The Apple USB Modem is a controllerless or software modem based on the Motorola SM56 design. The advantages of a software modem are low cost, low power consumption, and compact design. The disadvantage is that modem processing is offloaded to a specialized driver that runs on the host computer. In this case, Apple has customized Motorola's driver to produce a generally solid product.
At the time of this writing, Apple has discontinued the Apple USB Modem (MA034Z/A) but they are still widely available for around US$50.
Testing Notes: Software modems require a driver that can pump real-time audio like data to the modem's transceiver regardless of any other system software that may be running. In my own testing, I've found it's important to connect the modem to a reliable USB Hub as close to the host computer as possible. Apple's USB Modem driver generally worked well but could fail under certain conditions like launching Disk Utility with external FireWire drives attached. I tend to prefer controller based modems for their greater stability, but the Apple USB Modem is certainly an elegant and compact unit.
The US Robotics USB Modem (USR5637) is a traditional controller based modem from a manufacturer with a solid product history. The modem includes its own control processor which understands AT commands directly, so only a basic USB serial driver is needed. In my testing, this modem worked well.
The USR5637 is widely available for around US$50.
Testing Notes: The manual included with the modem is unclear about the installation procedure. You'll need to install the software from the included CD first, and then plug-in the modem for it to be recognized by Mac OS X. In the Network Preferences panel, select USB Modem, click Advanced, and set the Vendor to "Other". This modem is about the size of a cell phone (significantly larger than the Apple USB Modem).
I had no trouble running both the Apple USB Modem and USR Modem at the same time. I'm the developer of Phone Amego which uses USB modems for landline support. Having run both modems continuously over an extended period, I prefer the USR modem for its stability. It's more modem for about the same price.
At the time of this writing, Apple has discontinued the Apple USB Modem (MA034Z/A) but they are still widely available for around US$50.
Testing Notes: Software modems require a driver that can pump real-time audio like data to the modem's transceiver regardless of any other system software that may be running. In my own testing, I've found it's important to connect the modem to a reliable USB Hub as close to the host computer as possible. Apple's USB Modem driver generally worked well but could fail under certain conditions like launching Disk Utility with external FireWire drives attached. I tend to prefer controller based modems for their greater stability, but the Apple USB Modem is certainly an elegant and compact unit.
The US Robotics USB Modem (USR5637) is a traditional controller based modem from a manufacturer with a solid product history. The modem includes its own control processor which understands AT commands directly, so only a basic USB serial driver is needed. In my testing, this modem worked well.
The USR5637 is widely available for around US$50.
Testing Notes: The manual included with the modem is unclear about the installation procedure. You'll need to install the software from the included CD first, and then plug-in the modem for it to be recognized by Mac OS X. In the Network Preferences panel, select USB Modem, click Advanced, and set the Vendor to "Other". This modem is about the size of a cell phone (significantly larger than the Apple USB Modem).
I had no trouble running both the Apple USB Modem and USR Modem at the same time. I'm the developer of Phone Amego which uses USB modems for landline support. Having run both modems continuously over an extended period, I prefer the USR modem for its stability. It's more modem for about the same price.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
OK, modem (Works in Boot Camp, too)
(3 out of 5) by David H. Chmielewski on Apr 7, 2008 (MN)This modem works OK. No speed demon, takes a while to dial. It does work in Windows XP with the modem drivers that Apple provides with your boot camp install. The modem is a Motorola SM56 in Apple packaging. You can use the driver that comes on your Leopard install disk DVD to install this modem on any Windows XP machine, you just have to drill down through the folders to find the right install program (turn off AutoRun, or cancel the Apple Boot Camp installer if you do not want the entire suite of Boot Camp drivers to install)
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
Great
(5 out of 5) by Ginger.al on Mar 27, 2008 (New York, NY)I'm using it with Leopard, and it worked fine, as advertised. I haven't try sending fax with it yet, will try it soon. But as far as receiving faxes, there were no problem. Very easy to set up. Recommended.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
Fantastic, great with a MacBook
(5 out of 5) by paul grandmaison on Mar 2, 2008 (Walpole, NH USA)Another reviewer has stated that this modem did not work with their MacBook Pro. I would think that it would as it works fine with my MacBook.
Installation was a snap. Just plug it in and it works. There is no extra drivers that need to be installed.
Another reviewer had mentioned an issue with there being interference with other cables. That is true, there is some of that sometimes, but usually it is not something you have to worry about. You should be aware that it could be a reason you are not connecting though, and move the cable away from other cables, or isolate it a little bit to begin with. I would certainly not let this influence your decision to get a Mac.
An example of where you might have interference would be if a USB cable going to your printer crossed over the modem cable next to the MacBook. If there was interference and you were unable to connect to the internet, just plug the cables into different ports or flip them over.
Installation was a snap. Just plug it in and it works. There is no extra drivers that need to be installed.
Another reviewer had mentioned an issue with there being interference with other cables. That is true, there is some of that sometimes, but usually it is not something you have to worry about. You should be aware that it could be a reason you are not connecting though, and move the cable away from other cables, or isolate it a little bit to begin with. I would certainly not let this influence your decision to get a Mac.
An example of where you might have interference would be if a USB cable going to your printer crossed over the modem cable next to the MacBook. If there was interference and you were unable to connect to the internet, just plug the cables into different ports or flip them over.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
Awesome modem, worth the price
(5 out of 5) by Nina Simon on Aug 26, 2007We recently moved to a very rural place, and this is the perfect solution while we work on the high speed problem. So easy to use, and the call alerts are great!