HAYES 288 V.FC MODEM BREAKS MEGABYTE A MINUTE BARRIER WITH ITS 230,400 bit/s CAPABILITY - - - - - - - - - - Special $288 Introductory Offer for Sysops ATLANTA, GA, 1 November 1993 -- Hayes Microcomputer Products, Inc. today introduced to the global market Hayes OPTIMA 288 V.FC + FAX modem with data throughput capabilities to 230,400 bit/s (230.4 kbit/s) using data compression. Hayes OPTIMA 288 V.FC + FAX is a powerful solution for remote control, multi-media, remote LAN access, and the transfer of large data files and graphic images. Already shipping at time of announcement in the United States and Canada for the estimated retail price of US$579 and CDN$699, Hayes is making this product available to Sysops for the special price of $288, 50% off estimated retail. In addition, Hayes is also offering Sysops the opportunity to upgrade OPTIMA 96, OPTIMA 144, ULTRA 96 and ULTRA 144 products to OPTIMA 288 V.FC + FAX for US$199. These special Sysop offers are good through January. This external data + fax modem supports V.Fast Class (V.FC) for 28,800 bit/s (28.8 kbit/s) data transmission; ITU-T (formerly CCITT) V.42 bis data compression; ITU-T V.42 error-control; and Group 3 fax using V.17 for 14,400 bit/s (14.4 kbit/s) fax transmission. This product is fully compatible with the installed base of V.32 bis (14.4 kbit/s), V.32 (9600 bit/s) and V.22 bis (2400 bit/s) modems. In addition, the product will operate at 28,800 bit/s with future Hayes products implementing the V.34 (V.Fast) standard once it is approved. Hayes will make an upgrade to V.34 available, however, until the standard is finalized, Hayes can only estimate that the cost will be less than US$100. "We are pleased to offer the Sysop community a product with the highest data and fax speeds available today from Hayes at a very aggressive price," said Hayes President Dennis C. Hayes. "V.FC's widespread availability creates a new industry pre-standard for high-speed communications. This technology not only fills the gap between V.32 bis and V.34 but should enable Hayes to respond quickly when V.Fast becomes a standard." Hayes complements its high-speed modem with Hayes ESP Communications Accelerator, a 16-bit high-speed serial card with either single or dual ports. Hayes ESP enables Hayes OPTIMA 288 V.FC + FAX to achieve the full data transmission port speed of 230.4 kbit/s in environments such as Windows, where a typical PC serial port cannot adequately manage the very high speeds. Hayes ESP Communications Accelerator single port is available to Sysops for US$69. Hayes ESP Communications Accelerator dual port will be available in December to Sysops for US$89. Both Hayes ESP Communications Accelerators are half-card boards that incorporate a dedicated communications co-processor with built-in automatic flow control ensuring data integrity by eliminating buffer overrun errors experienced with even the 16550 UART at speeds of 115.2 kbit/s or higher. To maximize the PC's performance, Hayes ESP Communications Accelerators provide dual 1024-byte send/receive buffers and a 16-bit PC Bus interface. Approvals are currently underway for Hayes OPTIMA 288 V.FC + FAX in France, Germany, United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, China, Australia, Italy, Switzerland, Netherlands and Spain. Product will be available in these countries once approvals are received from the appropriate regulatory authority. Availability in other countries, including Latin America, is also planned. In addition, eight of the world's largest bulletin board systems and the three major North American mail hubs within FidoNet have joined Hayes in extensive V.FC modem testing. "We were pleased to have the opportunity to support Hayes in this testing. These 28.8 kbit/s modems are reliable products and users will certainly benefit from the speed," said George Peace, North American FidoNet Mail Zone Hub. "We can now perform mail exchanges twice as fast." OPTIMA 288 V.FC + FAX comes with Smartcom for Windows LE and Windows fax communications software. Smartcom for Windows LE includes a Phone Book feature to store phone numbers; Smart Buttons to automate communications; popular file transfer protocols; multiple terminal emulations; and a peruse buffer with print and disk capture. With the graphical user interface of Smartcom for Windows LE, users can go online and print files. Best known as the leader in microcomputer modems, Hayes develops, supplies and supports computer communications equipment and software for personal computers and computer communications networks. The company distributes its products in over 65 countries through a global network of authorized distributors, dealers, mass merchants, VARs, systems integrators and original equipment manufacturers. Hayes, OPTIMA, ESP, and Smartcom are trademarks of Hayes Microcomputer Products, Inc. V.FC and V.Fast Class are trademarks of Rockwell International Corporation. Other trademarks mentioned are trademarks of their respective companies. To obtain the sysop information and order kit, please call Online With Hayes BBS at 1-800-874-2937 (1-800-USHAYES) and select option '9' from the Main Menu. Or call Hayes Fax Response for automated fax retrieval at 1-800-HAYESFX and request document number '227'. For additional product information, customers may contact Hayes Customer Service: Telephone Online with Hayes BBS 404/441-1617 (U.S.) 800/US HAYES (U.S. and Canada) 519/746-5000 (Canada) 404/HI MODEM +33 1 34 22 30 15 (France) 404/729-6525 (ISDN Access) +44 252 775544 (Europe) +44 252 775599 (Europe) +852 887 1037 (Hong Kong) +852 887 7590 (Hong Kong)