ASTROCOM INTRODUCES THE ASTROCOM SP-100.

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 5, 1997--

Company's new product is aimed at Internet and data

service providers and incorporates features of the T-1000

family of products at a lower price

Astrocom(TM) Corporation, a leading developer of high-speed digital communications products for data, voice and video transmission, today announced the introduction of its latest CSU/DSU, the Astrocom SP-100 -- a product that brings the powerful features of Astrocom's T-1000 CSU/DSU product line (the recently renamed and enhanced WANMaster T-100 Series) to Internet and data access service providers at an attractive price point.

"Our company has a wealth of experience in designing and delivering communications interface technology," said T.J. Carter, Astrocom president and COO. "Our products improve our customers' quality of service and reduce their capital costs. Astrocom's products are used worldwide by leading companies for a range of applications that include extending corporate intranets, distance education, frame relay data networks, remote office connectivity and banking. The Astrocom SP-100 product is ideally suited to meet the growing demands of the Internet market."

The Astrocom SP-100 is designed for Internet and data access service providers to help them meet the demanding needs of Internet users. The Astrocom SP-100 can be installed easily and quickly, complies with industry standards and expands jitter tolerance by nearly four times the standards established by AT&T TR 62411. E-1 versions are available for global data network development.

For performance monitoring and network troubleshooting, the Astrocom SP-100 can be accessed remotely via Telnet or the Astrocom Remote Link Protocolsm. The Astrocom SP-100 can be monitored by a technician who can initiate diagnostics, then quickly identify and solve any network problems. Standard diagnostics include embedded bit-error tests, and a fully-embedded SNMP agent for local and remote network management. In a related announcement, Astrocom also said that it has entered into an agreement with thinSoft(TM) Inc. to provide thinSoft Ranger(TM), a JAVA(TM)-based(a) SNMP management tool. Using 512K flash memory, the SP-100 can be upgraded with future software code enhancements.

The SP-100 is available in three packages: Compact Standalone; a 1U, 19-inch Rack; and a 4U, 16-Card Rack. Prices start at $895. Astrocom offers lifetime warranties and free technical support 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The spare-in-the-air overnight replacement program can ship directly to an installation site. Astrocom also offers free network planning.

One of Astrocom's beta test partners, incNet, verified the new product's value for Internet service providers. "The SP-100 has the feature set we need to connect a growing number of corporate Internet customers," said Don Nelson, incNet's vice president of sales and marketing. "Our corporate and telco customers require consistent service; their networks can't go down, and neither can ours. We standardized on Astrocom products early on because of their reliability and ease of use. The SP-100 continues that tradition and meets our needs perfectly."

Astrocom delivers premium-quality voice and data access products that enable service providers to minimize their capital costs, more effectively acquire customers and provide superior response to their end-users. For more information, call Astrocom Corporation at [phone] or [phone], or visit the company's website at http://www.astrocorp.com.

(a) JAVA is a trademark of Sun Microsystems.

CONTACT: Valentina Plant

Astrocom Corporation

612/617-2456 (office)

[e-mail]

or

Bob Hanvik

Tunheim Santrizos Company

612/851-7235 (office)

[e-mail]