• Does the Sympatico service support V.90?
• What's notable about the V.90 standard?
• What connect speeds can I expect?
• Should I upgrade to the new V.90 56 Kbps standard?
• What if I'm already using, or decide to upgrade to a V.90 modem?
• How do I upgrade my modem?
• More information about the new V.90 standard on the Web
• Some modem manufacturers

The V.90 standard, which combines the best of x2 and K56flex, is the 56 Kbps standard.

If you already have an x2- or K56flex-capable modem, there's no advantage to upgrade to V.90 unless your Sympatico service provider does support V.90 but doesn't support x2 or K56flex. If you want to upgrade your 28.8 or 33.6 Kbps modem to 56 Kbps, see the caveats below before upgrading to V.90.

Bell Sympatico is in the process of upgrading all their modems to V.90, so if you are a Bell Sympatico customer you should upgrade to V.90. MTS, MTT, NBTel, Northern Telephone, NorthwesTel and SaskTel Sympatico do support V.90 access in some or all of their dialup locations. IslandTel and NewTel do not. However, in the meantime, because most V.90 modems are designed to work at either 28.8, 33.6 or 56 Kbps (x2 or K56flex), if you have a V.90 modem, it should work at 28.8, 33.6 or 56 Kbps, depending on which speeds and standard your Sympatico service provider currently supports. Your V.90 modem should continue to work once your local Sympatico service provider upgrades their modems.

The V.90 standard is primarily an amalgamation of the best parts of x2 and K56flex technologies (both support up to 56 Kbps speed), which makes it easier for modem manufacturers and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to support one single 56 Kbps modem standard. This modem standard does not provide an increase in Internet connection speed if you're already connecting at 56 Kbps with an x2 or K56flex modem. To accommodate the transition between standards, most V.90 56 Kbps modems also support an alternate standard--either x2 or K56flex (but not both).

First, check which dialup speeds and standard your Sympatico service provider supports, then use the table below to help you match the speed and standard your modem supports with that of your Sympatico service provider. The connect speeds indicated in red tell you what maximum speed you can expect (in Kbps), but under optimal telephone line conditions only. (Generally, a connection made with a 56 Kbps modem at between 40 - 50 Kbps is considered good.)

The Sympatico service recommends that you do upgrade your modem to the V.90 standard but only if your local Sympatico service provider supports V.90. If you already have a x2 or K56flex modem, you probably do not need to upgrade your modem since there's not much to be gained if you're already using an x2 or K56flex modem.

However, if you have a 28.8 or 33.6 Kbps modem, that you want to upgrade to 56 Kbps, we advise that you upgrade it to V.90.

Most modems that support the new V.90 standard will also support either x2 or K56flex (but not both). As long as your Sympatico service provider supports the same 56 Kbps dialup speed standard that your modem supports, you should be able to connect as usual, with the following caveat:

If you do upgrade your modem to V.90, or if you purchase a new computer with a V.90 modem already installed, and if the Sympatico service does not yet support V.90 in your dialup location, be aware that you may experience one or more of the following situations when connecting to the Sympatico service:

• You should be able to connect at 56 Kbps (actually, no higher than 53 Kbps) if your Sympatico service provider supports the same alternate standard your V.90 modem uses (x2 or K56flex).
• Otherwise, you will only be able to connect at a maximum of 28.8 or 33.6 Kbps (your connection speed may 'downgrade' to the slower modem standard that both modems support).
• In rare cases, you may not be able to connect to your usual Sympatico dialup access number (sometimes modems with mis-matched standards won't connect at all).

  **Note that if you upgrade your modem to the V.90 standard, you probably cannot downgrade it back to the previous standard, so it's best to be sure your service provider supports V.90 before upgrading.

You can find out whether and how you can upgrade your existing modem from your modem manufacturer's Web site, or your local computer store. Most existing 56 Kbps modems can be upgraded over the Internet for free (see the literature that came with your modem for more information).

• Press release from the ITU February 6, 1998
  (International Telecommunication Union)
• http://www.v90.com/
  (the "definitive source" of information about the new V.90 modem standard--an unofficial V.90 information site put together by modem afficianados)
• http://www.pcwebopedia.com/V_90.htm
  (A useful online encyclopaedia of Internet and computer terms, including V.90)

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