Is this a software or hardware based modem?

[Trent Steel]

A friend of mine needs to get a modem. He wants one as cheap as possible. The best I found was
Intel 56K v.92 PCI Fax Modem - Retail
for under $20, closest price is $50 bucks. Now is it a hardware or software based modem.

Found it at http://www.a-computers.ca/ under Crazy specials.

[Surge1243]

For that price, I'm sure it is a software based winmodem. I couldn't click on the product link at the website so I'm not sure of the exact specs.

[glc]

Intel modem chipsets are lousy. If he wants a cheap modem, that's what he's gonna get - a cheap modem. If you gotta have a winmodem, get one that's got a Lucent/Agere chipset.

[juppy]

If he wants a good hardware modem, check out the USR 2977. Newegg has it for $39 right now. HERE'S THE LINK TO IT

[reboot]

Intel doesn't actually make the chips for Intel modems.
Intel just happens to own the company that makes the modems, and before that, it was under a different banner completely.
The heirarchy is thus:
Cirrus Logic originally, making chips, and marketing them to modem manufacturers.
Ambient bought Cirrus Logic about the same time as AMD and Intel had their big price war, sold out to Intel in 2001.
The chips are still made in the same factory, to almost the same specs as the original Cirrus Logic, but now come with the Intel name on them.

[jeresimo]

I'm just wondering here? With the advent of high speed CPU's and lots of RAM (now gone cheaper), does it really matter if we use Hardware based or software based modems if we use the same V.90 Specs? Will we really notice the difference if your dial up ISP has a faster featrures?

[reboot]

Softmodems will run as good as hard modems for average surfing, but latency and ping times are always higher.
If you're a gamer, you still need a hard modem to maintain a more stable connection, with lower ping times.