ok… google hasn’t been a good friend today… and i’m just about to go in for a DSL modem. Only, i can’t figure out where a TE/4 modem connects to my comp. i understand that the USB modem would interface with my USB port, but where will a TE 4 modem connect to ?
and additionally, what would be the advantages/disadvantages of one over the other. The TE 4 is the more expensive option according to the package i’m getting…
No brand names or additional info about the modems has been mentioned on the service providers site.
Never heard of TE 4. Generally, you choose between a DSL modem which connects to one computer via USB, or one that connects to your LAN via ethernet. Maybe TE means “twisted ethernet”, referring to twisted-pair? Not sure what the 4 would be.
The advantages of the ethernet one are numerous. 1) you can use the modem from any computer on your LAN, 2) you don’t need USB drivers to use it, 3) you can put the modem farther away from the computer (i.e. out in the garage) without special hardware, 4) you can stick a hardware firewall and/or NAT router (which allows multiple computers to share a net connection designed for one computer) in between the modem and the rest of your LAN, 5) you can generally configure the router remotely, as opposed to having to use special software on the machine it’s connected to, 6) using USB for a DSL connection uses up a significant chunk of your USB bandwidth, and probably slows the PC down a little relative to using ethernet for the same thing.