Data pump still needs memory. Requires more power. Limited to Pentium and Windows applications. Ongoing price competition with host-PC pricing erosion. Uniqueness Operating-system neutral.
Memory resides on host.
Supervisory code and DSP runs on host. No host or operating system dependencies. Integrated controller and data pump. The controller-based designs work without hosts, so they don't care about operating systems or whether the host has crashed. This standalone approach assures greater redundancy, since the modem operates independently of the host computer and its operating system.