U.S. ROBOTICS ADDS SEVEN NEW PRODUCTS TO COURIER MODEM LINE; PRODUCTS OFFER
10 NEW FEATURES INCLUDING 21.6 KBPS CONNECT SPEED

New Courier Modems Offer Host of New Features Including V.32 terbo, HST
Cellular, V.17, Security; Products to Ship September 1, 1993

SKOKIE, Ill. -- August 23, 1993 -- U.S. Robotics, Inc. today announced a
major evolution to its Courier modem line; the company will ship new
Courier models beginning September 1 that include a battery of new
features, most notably the 19.2 Kbps V.32 terbo protocol and U.S.
Robotics' proprietary Adaptive Speed Leveling (ASL) technology, which
further boosts speed to 21.6 Kbps. The new features fall into three broad
categories: increased data rates, fax enhancements and high-end features.
The company is offering an upgrade program for current Courier high-speed
modem users, also beginning September 1.

U.S. Robotics Among First To Ship V.32 terbo 

Among the features included in the new modems is V.32 terbo, a new protocol
for 19.2 Kbps data transmission developed by AT&T; Courier modems will be
among the first shipping products to include V.32 terbo, which delivers a
33 percent increase in speed over the 14.4 Kbps V.32 bis standard. The
move to V.32 terbo is in keeping with U.S. Robotics' philosophy of
developing modems that support a variety of protocols and provide
compatibility with a wide range of modems from other vendors.

These products allow Courier customers to take advantage of increased data
rates, while still assuring them of a clear upgrade path to the
forthcoming V.fast standard. Additionally, the new modems provide Courier
customers the added benefit of proprietary technology that boosts connect
speed to 21.6 Kbps.

Proprietary ASL Increases Speed to 21.6 Kbps; DTE Interface Rate Jumps to
115.2 Kbps 

The Courier V.32 terbo modems include the company's proprietary Adaptive
Speed Leveling (ASL) protocol, boosting throughput to 21.6 Kbps, a 50
percent increase in speed over the current 14,400 bps V.32 bis standard.
This protocol allows users who are connecting two Courier modems to take
advantage of the 21.6 Kbps rate; V.42 bis data compression provides an
additional increase in throughput. An increased DCE to DTE
(modem-to-computer) interface rate of 115,200 bps and faster processors
accommodate these higher speeds.

Courier Modems Still Upgradable to V.fast (ITU-T V.34) 

The new Courier modems, like the current Courier high-speed models, will be
field upgradable to the forthcoming V.fast standard, which will likely be
named V.34. Availability will depend on ITU-T progress in finalizing the
standard; however, study group approval of V.34 is expected in June, 1994.
The standard will provide data rates of up to 28,800 bps.

Dale Walsh, U.S. Robotics vice president, advanced development, and a
member of the ITU-T committee developing the V.34 standard, points out
that V.32 terbo should not be confused with the V.fast standard. "The V.32
terbo protocol is really an extension of V.32 bis," said Walsh. "In fact,
when you compare the processing power necessary to run V.32 terbo and
V.34, the processors in V.32 terbo modems are more like the processors
used for V.32 bis -- they are certainly not capable of achieving the 28.8
Kbps throughput that will be available with V.34."

U.S. Robotics' upgrade to V.34 is performed via a daughterboard swap, which
takes a typical user about five minutes. Because the pending V.34 standard
requires two to three times the processing power of V.32 bis, both the
hardware and software must be upgraded to provide enough power and ensure
that there are no hardware bottlenecks that might impede the speed of
V.34.

Upgrades to New Product Available for Current Courier Users

Current Courier users may upgrade to the new models. Pricing will vary
depending on the modem model being upgraded. The upgrade program will
include both current-model Courier modems, which may be upgraded via a
daughterboard swap, as well as older-model Courier modems, which may be
exchanged for the new models. Courier 2400 bps modems are not included in
the upgrade program.

New Courier Enhancements: Fas, Data and High-End Features

The full list of features that will be added to the Courier line includes:

Data Rate Enhancements: 
-- V.32 terbo 
   Supports data rates of up to 19.2 Kbps. 
-- Adaptive Speed Leveling (ASL) for 21.6 Kbps throughput
   Exclusive to U.S. Robotics; proprietary protocol boosting
   connect speed to 21.6 Kbps 
-- Increased DTE interface rate of 115.2 Kbps 
-- HST Cellular 
   Proprietary protocol for high-speed cellular data transmission
   Available only in HST Dual Standard Courier models 

Fas Enhancements: 
-- V.17 
   14,400 bps fax capabilities
-- EIA Class 2.0 fax capabilities 
   Standard for fax communications; U.S. Robotics is the first 
   to provide support for EIA 2.0 
-- Call selection 
   Automatic detection of a fax or data call

Feature Enhancements: 
-- Dial-back Security
-- Link Security 
-- V.25 bis 
   Protocol for synchronous dialing

The Courier modems including these features will be shipping September 1;
model information and pricing follow.

Courier Products and Pricing

Model Name                                         List Price

Courier V.32 terbo                                    $695
Courier V.32 terbo/PC                                  645
Courier V.32 terbo Fax                                 795
Courier V.32 terbo Fax/PC                              745
Courier V.32 terbo Fax/PS/2                            745
Courier HST Dual Standard with V.32 terbo Fax        $1295
Courier HST Dual Standard with V.32 terbo/PC          1245

U. S. Robotics, Inc., (NASDAQ:USRX), is a leading designer, manufacturer
and marketer of data communications systems and products. Both corporate
headquarters and manufacturing operations are based in Skokie, Illinois.
U.S. Robotics owns and operates U.S. Robotics Ltd. in Slough, England,
U.S. Robotics, s.a. in Lille, France and P.N.B., s.a. based in Suresnes,
France. The company markets its products to business, industry, government
agencies and original equipment manufacturers.

U.S. Robotics, 8100 North McCormick Blvd, Skokie, IL 60076
800-DIAL-USR;  708-982-5010

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