20111102

My first impressions of the Redpark serial cable and Get Console

I'm reviewing them together, as I don't see an easy way to use the cable with another app (yet).
My first attempts were hampered by some Bluetooth weirdness between my iPad 1 and my ZAGGmate keyboard. A hard-reset of the iPad seemed to straighten that out. Since then, I have had good luck using the ZAGGmate with Get Console in both portrait and landscape modes. I'm a bit let down that the top speed is 'only' 57.6 Kbps, as I have a handful of console ports running at 115.2 Kbps. That said, it does perform well at those speeds which it does support.
There is no built-in method to email your log files, but you can copy them to the cut-and-paste buffer,and then paste it into the email app of your choice.
It makes the Escape key sequences visible! This is a BIG plus in my book! If you are working with conserver, this will help you spot devices which are prone to fill your logs with extra characters.
The earlier assertion that the application will only work with Cisco devices seems to be incorrect! That is, with a proper adapter, you can connect the cable to almost any device. Using a CFDTE92 adapter, I can connect to the DE9M com port on most Intel-based servers. (Check my Cisco console connection guide page for more clues, http://www.conserver.com/consoles/Cisco/ciscocons.html )
The cable is about 6' long, with a slender cable. The jacket feels a bit like Teflon, and the RJ45M connector has a molded strain relief, which will likely improve the service life. (That would be great, given the cost of the cable!) It is lightweight, and it looks like a high-quality part. The folks at Redpark have been known for the high quality of their products in the past, and I expect good things from this new product.
I have tried the combination with a variety of non-network devices as well, and I seem to be able to talk to them without needing to do any fussing with the signaling wires. I can't promise that it will work with anything, but the Get Console app running 'stand-alone' (without needing to connect to their website) seems to be a useful basic terminal emulator, if you need a wired serial connection. The cable has made a good addition to my iPad gear bag.
Testing the Get Console website service will need to wait for another post.