SCM SCR3500 Smart Card Reader

Reviews for SCM SCR3500 Smart Card Reader

Customer Reviews and Ratings

4.0 out of 5 stars

Based on 31 reviews

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Best Smart Card Reader

    • Written by from EL CENTRO

    I am in the military and own a Macbook Pro and this little smart card reader is awesome!!! It worked straight out of the box. I didn't even have to install any software. (:

    115 of 128 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Best CAC reader on the market for the Mac!!!

    • Written by from Rockville

    Working with the Army and finally getting this was a great purchase! I would recommend this before any other reader for the Mac.

    85 of 90 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Amazing product!

    • Written by from Arlington

    This reader works with AKO and DTS. I can't sing its praises enough!

    72 of 75 people found this useful

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  • 1.0 out of 5 stars

    Does not work

    • Written by from Pembroke Pines

    I don't know why Apple would sell something that their latest OS does not support. Even after spending the additional $25 to get the driver suite from an outside company, scbsolutions, it still does not work.

    I don't understand what Apple's deal is here. Something like this is obviously very important to the people who use it. I cannot work from my computer.

    25 of 31 people found this useful

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  • 2.0 out of 5 stars

    SCR3500

    • Written by from APO

    I bought this CAC card read before the update was pushed out becasue the Army is forcing soldiers to use the OWA because of funding issues and now it does not work. I would hope the techs at Apple are able to come up with a fix because i Love my Mac Book Pro.

    19 of 19 people found this useful

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  • 1.0 out of 5 stars

    New Mountain Lion breaks card reader functionality

    • Written by from Prairieville

    If you have the card reader and upgrade to mountain Lion, be prepared for stop work issues. If you are buying it for the first time, I recommend researching for a solution before you buy this hardware. It worked Awesomely in Lion, but ever since the upgrade, I cannot even get the system to see the card reader.

    20 of 22 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Simply the Best...

    • Written by from Indianapolis

    Being a SFC in the Army I've used many a smart card reader in my day, but this one definitely stands out as the best for several reasons:

    Size: the SCR-3500 looks small in pictures but you simply won't believe how compact this card reader truly is until you hold it in your hand. If portability is key, you'll love this reader for that reason alone. No more bulky card reader with an incredibly long USB cable attached (a la GemPlus card readers...)

    Compatibility: this card reader works perfectly with Mac OS X (including Lion) with no need to download additional drivers or software work-arounds.

    In conclusion, if you need a reliable, portable smart card reader, look no further, the SCR-3500 is for you!

    Note: for members of the military that need CAC card access, if you have the Oberthur ID-One model of CAC, you will have to purchase and install an additional app from Thursby called PKard in order to use your CAC. This is not a fault of the card reader, but rather a function of that type of CAC, so do not fault the SCR-3500 if your Oberthur ID-One brand CAC does not function upon first use.

    16 of 16 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Awesome!

    • Written by from Peoria

    I use this to access a LOT of military websites for work and personal use. In conjunction with the PKard software offered via sites like cac.com or AKO, this reader is probably the best one I've used. I just switched from PC to MAC, and can't get enough of the user friendly apps and hardware like this reader that MAC users are able to get their hands on. This reader will easily fit into any pocket on a standard notebook case. The only warning that I can come up with is that when not in use and folded, the reader is really small so can be lost easily. Otherwise - great purchase!

    16 of 17 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    CAC READER

    • Written by from Goldsboro

    I bought this so I could go to the Air Force Portal with my '11 MBP. Possibly one of the best purchases I have made for my MBP. Didn't realize OSX LION didn't support it though. The package had a troubleshooting link to go to. Downloaded one program and BOOM. Works like a CHAMP!! Now, I don't have to go to work to check my emails while on leave, and can now check it while I'm TDY away from an AF computer. AWESOME product!!

    16 of 17 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Fix for Those Experiencing Mountain Lion Errors

    • Written by from Woodbridge

    Hi Apple Community,

    This Smart Card Reader is invaluable to those of us working in the DOD or other Smart Card-required fields. If you've recently updated to OS X Mountain Lion and are looking for a fix to your smart card reader error, simply perform a Google search for "OS X Lion SmartCardServices Installer v2.0b1 (beta)" and download this package from MacOSForge. Install the package and re-access your CAC-required program/website.

    The package does say that it's for OS X Lion, but I've tested it on Mountain Lion and it works as well. You should be back up and sailing in no time!

    Enjoy!

    20 of 26 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Awesome product! need to download tokend on lion

    • Written by from Los Angeles

    Great product! Had some troubles with it on lion when I first got it. Called SCM and got helped right away. Apparently apple does not include service tokens for smart cards on lion so it was not reading my certs. SCM recommend I go to smartcardservices.macosforge.org to download it. Website includes instructions. It works perfectly after installation.

    16 of 18 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Works with Military CAC (Air Force)

    • Written by from VALDOSTA

    Opened from mail, and used immediately to log into the portal. No software needed with OS X. Tested on vMPF and all. I read lots of reviews and was skeptical if it would work or not. I'm very satisfied with it so far.

    13 of 13 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    A MUST BUY!!!!

    • Written by from Spokane Valley

    Plugged in the SCM SCR3500 into my MBP w/ OSX 10.6.8 and logged into my military accounts immediately without any issues!

    13 of 13 people found this useful

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  • 3.0 out of 5 stars

    Difference in the ID card types

    • Written by from Woodbridge

    I bought the CAC reader and couldn't get it to work with the Oberthur brand ID card. I went this morning and got a new CAC, the GEMAL TO TOPDL GX4 and it works fine. So, there's obviously a difference in the type of CAC that you receive. I like it now that it works.

    13 of 14 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Great Product!

    • Written by from Virginia Beach

    My wife and I both have military ID's and they both work. My wife has a new version of the CAC and mine is 5.5. I've used other CAC readers for mac that where just a pain. A really great feature is that it's really small and a well thought out design. You won't be disappointed. Another great purchase from Apple. I rarely give these types of products 5 stars however "it just works" thank you Apple!

    12 of 12 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Works great!

    • Written by from San Angelo

    Very skeptical in purchasing this product. I had a CAC reader that use to work with my Macbook Pro then stopped as soon as I updated the OS.

    I've heard nothing but great reviews and had to try it out myself. FANTASTIC! I followed one of the reviews and purchased Pkard and it works fine. Highly recommend it to anyone who needs to log in to DOD sites from home. Hopefully it'll continue to work once the OS Mountain Lion comes out.

    Other than that, GOOD BUY!

    12 of 13 people found this useful

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  • 4.0 out of 5 stars

    Works

    • Written by from Bonaire

    Background - I work for the Air Force, and wanted to be able to check my email, and the Portal when TDY. I have a MacBook Pro, and I’m running Lion.

    In my research I found that this card does not “automatically” work, I had to do some downloading of software, and change some settings on my computer. It was somewhat technical, but I got it figured out with the website militaryCAC.com.

    Also – I only got it to work with the Google Chrome web browser.

    Google Chrome, militarycac.com, a lot of patience, and I got it work.

    11 of 11 people found this useful

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  • 4.0 out of 5 stars

    Works right out of the box

    • Written by from staunton

    Worked right out of the box. Works with later editions of Lion to 10.6.8 Snow Leopard. Safari and Opera browsers limits accessing certain government sites - a problem easily circumvented by either adding the required java updates or switching to google Chrome(tm). Apple store has the lowest total price as of 12/11. This is compact enough to lose, and it is not child-proof. Wish it was $10 more and made of some tougher material. It would be 5 star in that case. Highly recommend this if you are operating Lion to Leopard, it works, and is cheaper and faster (shipped in two days to East Coast) then trying various unreliable third party solutions.

    10 of 10 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Finally!

    • Written by from Greer

    Finally, a CAC reader that works with my mac! After reading countless forums on how to connect my gov't issued cac reader to my mac, I found another solution. This card reader is a little pricey, but invaluable for accessing my military email and programs from home. The SR3310 card reader I had previously would not read the certificates on my cac but this one actually works. Hallelujah!

    11 of 12 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    It Just Works

    • Written by from Warner Robins

    I have been looking for as CAC reader for a couple of years now and couldn't find any that the local net NAZIs would recommend as they "all had issues" of one form or another, so after reading about this one in the other comments i decided to try it.
    I plugged it into my MBP running Snow Leopard, stuck in my CAC, went to the AFPORTAL and it after selecting my email certificate was in just as though i was at my bench. No weird stuff, no errors, no invalid anything! I even went over and accessed my pay, TAX data, EVALS,,, everything i need to do on a secure server but don't normally have time while at work is now available without having production pressures looming in the background. This little device is invaluable and at $30 an absolute steal... I read one review stating it did have an issue with the older Oberon cards and while i did have one of them previously, my current one is not. That said this is one of those little "toys" that is small enough and cheap enough that i may just get a second one as a backup and keep it in the car because now that i see how well it works i don't think i want to go without it. 3 words "JUST DO IT".

    9 of 10 people found this useful

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