Customer Reviews

Socket Communications CF Rugged DPC for Samsung SCH-850/2000/3500/6100/8500 Handsets

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

 

 

A wonderful tool for road warriors and IT support personnel if used within its limitations. Understanding those limitations will make the difference between your liking or hating this card, and will also set your expectations for what you should use this card for.

Limitations: this is a relatively low-speed communications device that is constrained by digital phone network capabilities and not the engineering behind the device itself. I use Verizon and have gotten reasonably good results in both speed and communications reliability when using this with a laptop. What is "reasonably good results"? I view it as communication speed in the 14.4-19.6kpbs range, which is much slower than we are used to for web browsing and downloading dozens of e-mail messages, some with massive attachments. If you are expecting the same speed as you get from your laptop modem, home DSL or office LAN you will be sorely disappointed. If you want a solution to getting last minute e-mail before getting on a plane and are using a web-based e-mail system (like Microsoft Outlook's web-based option or a mail service like Yahoo or Hotmail) this is an excellent tool. The difference between POP (post office protocol) mail that most of us use and the web-based variety is you have no control over the message download process with POP - it steams into your system until all messages have been downloaded. You get the spam and low priority stuff with the important messages. Web-based mail allows you to preview the messages and selectively download and read them. If you do not have web-based e-mail and expect to use this card with POP mail, you might be in for a disappointment. It takes forever to download mail at the relatively low speed at which this device operates.

Other issues include the cell site strength of your provider. I use Verizon and live in Southern California. My area has great service and coverage, except for in the late afternoon when the network seems to congest and calls drop. If you have problems with dropped calls with your provider this might not be the device for you.

How IT professionals can use this device. If you have a laptop or palmtop computer and get paged that is triggered by an event, such as a file system at 80% or, say, a database problem, you can hook this device into your phone/laptop and initiate a telnet session once you get into your network - regardless of where you are, troubleshoot and possible resolve the problem.

As an IT professional I personally view this device as an emergency tool, much like the jumper cables I carry in my trunk. I do not use it often, but when I need it I know I have a tool that will connect me to where I need to connect. Surfing the net with it, on the other hand, is not only agonizing, but expensive.

It installs easily and works right out of the box. You be the judge and make an informed decision based on limitations and utility. If you can live with the limitations and see the same potential for utility as I, then this is a 5 star device, which is how I'm rating it.

I decided to get this modem connection instead of a Modem flash card that requires a land line connection.

I'm rarely without my cell phone & thought that this digital phone card & cable would be of more use than a modem flash card.

I can not believe how much I use this product!!! It's amazingly easy to setup (my pocket pc did all the work for me!).

Whenever I'm at a client's office or delayed in the airport, I hook up my pocket pc and cell phone to surf the web, check email, download docs, and fax. It has saved me a lot of time and even my credibility at a client's office. I was able to get a revised copy of a document in the client's conference room... right then and there.

If you travel a lot or don't have access to a land line the majority of the time, then I would definitely get this product BEFORE you get a modem card!

This product is a true life saver. I was traveling to work when I forgot to send the regional reports to my office so I got my phone out and my pocket pc and of course my Socket CF modem connection and within minutes they were sent and my job was saved thatnks to Socket CF.

The card is perfect for the traveller. Great fax and web surfing access. A must have for the ipaq and 3500 user.

this refers to using this product with sprintpcs samsung 8500 phone.

I keep getting "no carrier detected" with this thing, and the phone does not show any message, on its screeen. The phone is samsung 8500.

The palm pc that I have connects with no problem at all with the normal modem, to the same ISP, same number.

Do you need to enable data on the phone through sprint? Do you need to pay for the wireless web from sprint to get this to work