Customer Reviews

Siemens SpeedStream PCMCIA 10/100 Ethernet Card (SS1012)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Look out - this card is for older versions of Windows only, not Windows XP. Although it's not obvious from the main page for this product on Amazon, Amazon is selling a 2001 version of the Siemens SpeedStream PCMIA 10/100 Ethernet Card (SS1012). As a result, there is no driver for Windows XP included. If you go to the Siemens website, you learn that there IS NO DRIVER for Windows XP for this product. Siemens later came out with a different version of the SS1012, and that different version does have a Windows XP driver. But for this older version sold by Amazon, only the earlier versions of Windows are supported. Wish I'd known that before I ordered this.

This ethernet card was extremely easy to set up and it seems to work flawlessly. Not all ethernet cards are created equal, some rival others while some are just ok. This card is at the top of the pack, offering ease of use and siemens quality construction. Although, it's a little more expensive than some other cards... I think the price is warranted!

Windows XP rarely requires a driver for plug and play devices unless there are specfic features the manufacturer wants you to be able to access that the standard Windows XP drivers do not deliver.

The Siemens SpeedStream SS1012 is plug and play. I am using it right now on a Windows XP laptop. I elected to use the Siemens orginal driver disk and selected the Windows 2000 driver.

You get a warning message that the "Windows Driver is not signed....". Just ignore and keep going.

The card is fine. Compared to high end cards on the market it is - old technology.

It will work, problem free, driver installs easily. I would recommend a newer card.

Cons

The card is rather large and the face will cover both PCMCIA slots. The speed is limited to 10/100 so if you have a Gigabit switch you won't be able to get the maximum speed for transfering files across your network. As far as internet connectivity is concerned, most people don't exceed come close to maxing out a 10/100 card using DSL or Cable, so unless you have a T3 line, this card will not be a bottle neck in you internet access.

Siemens is not in the PCMCIA business. The best bet would be a Linksys product. Net gear next, and the rest are a toss up.

Overall if you have this card or can get a GREAT deal on it and are in need of a PCMCIA NIC then this will work fine.

The previous reviewer must not be experienced with Windows XP so I would ignore those comments. I couldn't be typing this review with ease and speed if it were an issue since I use Windows XP Pro with the Siemens SpeedStream 10/100 SS1012 on a Toshiba Tecra 8000 pentium II with a mere 256 MB of ram and a lowly 8 GB hard drive.

Good luck, hope this helped.