StarTech.com 2-Port Serial PCIe Card, Dual-Port PCI Express to RS232/RS422/RS485 (DB9) Serial Card, Low-Profile Brackets Incl., 16C1050 UART, Windows/Linux, TAA Compliant - Level-4 ESD Protection

Product Overview

AI-generated summary

For the money (£69.18 ex-VAT), this StarTech dual-port PCIe-to-serial card is a pretty sensible buy if you still have kit that talks the “old reliable” way—think industrial controllers, lab equipment, building management bits, or legacy POS/automation gear that needs RS-232/422/485. The low-profile bracket included is a practical touch for smaller office/industrial PCs, and StarTech’s stuff tends to behave consistently in the real world (drivers aren’t usually a fight). Using the 16C1050 UART also helps with stability for serial workloads where you just need “it to work” rather than reinventing the wheel.

That said, I wouldn’t buy it if your environment is highly custom or serial timing-sensitive, or if you’re expecting modern “weird” USB-style compatibility across everything—PCIe serial cards are still more about matching the port type (RS-232 vs RS-422/485 wiring and termination) to your existing hardware than about marketing claims. Also double-check whether you actually need RS-485/422 conversions at the card level, because the wiring/termination decisions will still be on you. Overall: good value for companies maintaining existing industrial/legacy comms on Windows or Linux; not a great choice if you’re starting a brand-new design that should be Ethernet or USB-native.