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The NT-1 and analog dongles both offer an LED that shows power on, handshake or connection status and notifies you when the device is ready to send/receive data. One problem with DataFire GO!: The NT-1 dongle has an RJ-11 connector for connecting to the ISDN demarcation, but the supplied cable is a standard RJ-11-to-RJ-11 telephone cord. Because most ISDN lines end as an RJ-45 jack at the demarcation, you'll need an RJ-11-to-RJ-45 adapter. The included documentation does tell you this. However, it would be better if Digi included an RJ-11-to-RJ-45 cable with the unit.

A lthough DataFire GO! does not have an integrated processor and there is the minor inconvenience of the RJ-11 connector, these issues are outweighed when compared with its ease of use. Because most users require uncomplicated configuration capabilities and prefer to deal with as few components as possible-especially when traveling-DataFire GO! hits its mark.

Eicon Technology DIVA Pro PC Card and DIVA T/A PC Card
Eicon Technology's DIVA Pro PC Card 2.0 is designed for domestic and international use. It supports more ISDN switch types than any other product tested, for virtually any location in the world. DIVA T/A PC Card, DIVA Pro PC Card's sibling, is a terminal adapter only, but it supports ma ny operating systems. Unfortunately, neither offers a built-in V.34 modem, as Digi's DataFire GO! does. DIVA Pro can make analog calls over ISDN to analog modems or fax machines, but it cannot make standard V.34 outgoing modem calls. DIVA Pro and DIVA T/A both have a built-in CPU, taking the load off of the notebook's CPU and improving basic performance.

Although it supports many operating systems, DIVA T/A does not support analog over ISDN or faxing. Additionally, it doesn't support Microsoft's ISDN Accelerator Pack. However, if all you need is basic ISDN TA functionality, the DIVA T/A may be for you.

One of the best features of the DIVA series is the locking mechanism on the dongle to the PC Card. Not only is the dongle keyed so that it connects only one way, it also has a slide lock that provides a secure connection. We could not pull the dongle out of the card when the side lock was engaged.

The NT-1 dongle is a bit bulky while the S/T dongle is about the same size as most V.34 dongles. There are two LEDs on the NT-1 dongle: "line" shows ISDN line status and "loop" is for loopback testing. Neither show activity status. The software for both units ships on a CD-ROM, which reduces installation time. We found the included DOS-bas ed DILOG trace utility helpful in diagnosing problems.

Angia Communications I-Bahn ISDN + V.34 PC Card
Angia Communications' I-Bahn ISDN + V.34 PC Card is solid. Offering an excellent setup and variety of features, this card is a good value. But while it's feature-rich, it doesn't offer the same depth of features found in the units tested from Digi and Eicon.

Installing I-Bahn was easy. The documentation was precise, and the unit ships with a diagnostic utility that lets you test the ISDN configuration. This checks the line status and Service Profile Identifiers (SPIDs) before you connect to a remote site, eliminating a potential connection problem.

S imilar to DataFire GO! and DIVA Pro, I-Bahn's dongle has two LED indicators. One shows link sync state (telling you if you have connected to the ISDN line successfully); the other shows the connection (labeled DTE). Like Eicon's DIVA Pro, I-Bahn has a built-in CPU.

You may run into a problem if you want to use your Angia PC Card with other PC Cards. The card's dual RJ-11 analog connector, called a SafeJack, sticks out about 1.5 inches. When the phone cable is connected, it can interfere with other PC Card dongles. We found that switching the places of our Ethernet PC Card and Angia I-Bahn relieved some of the problem, but the Ethernet dongle was stressed a bit because of the SafeJack's protruding RJ-11.