Extricom switch wraps Wi-Fi in 802.11n blanket

Enterprise Wi-Fi vendor Extricom has launched an 802.11n switch, claiming its "blanket" Wi-Fi technology solves the power problem of the new standard, allowing a smooth transition to faster Wi-Fi.

"Other vendors' implementation plans for enterprise-class 802.11n abandon the 2.4GHz band, move to the 5GHz band, and require costly non-standard power-over-Ethernet schemes," said David Confalonieri, vice president of marketing at Extricom. Extricom's "blanket" architecture avoids all these problems, he said, and supports four radios in one access point (AP).

Although the draft 802.11n standard offers a substantial speed increase over today's Wi-Fi, most vendors have been unable to make a full implementation, using two radios and multiple antennas, which uses less electrical power than the maximum of 12.95 watts which can be provided using the power-over-Ethernet standard with which enterprises drive their APs.

Only Siemens has apparently solved the problem for a two radio access point, while other Wi-Fi vendors have offered different work-arounds including proprietary power-over-Ethernet, and tuning back the throughput of the access point.

Extricom can vault past that, because its blanket architecture - which puts all access points on the same radio channel - centralises more of the processing. "Our AP has no CPU," said Confalonieri. "We can offer four radios and use less than 6 watts." Extricom's four-radio N access point is a new version of quad-radio 802.11abg APs launched a year ago.

Despite this, Extricom suggests companies should introduce N in stages, especially in the 5GHz band which has rarely been used for Wi-Fi till now, and whose propagation differs from the normal 2.4GHz band. Extricom says its systems can provide full N coverage and support legacy 802.11b and 802.11g using only the 2.4GHz band, because every access point uses the same channels - in contrast to "cell-planning" systems from Cisco Aruba and Trapeze, where adjacent APs have to use different channels.

This leaves the 5GHz band empty for gradual deployment. "You can introduce a slow roll-out of N, without changing the real estate, until your business has clients which require 5GHz N," said Confalonieri.

“The 802.11n standard promises to play a pivotal role in finally making the all-wireless enterprise a reality,” said Stan Schatt, director of wireless connectivity at ABI Research.

“The implementation of 802.11n should be about evolution, not revolution," said Gideon Rottem, chief executive of Extricom, who has said cell-planning is the 'original sin' of Wi-Fi.

The EXRP-40En four radio access point includes two n/a/b/g radios and two a/b/g radios, which can be operated in any combination of channels and bands. The ‘n’ equipped radios support 3x3 MIMO (multiple-in, multiple-out) antenna configuration. Extricom has also launched a tri-radio AP, with two 'n' radios and one a/b/g radio.

A firmware upgrade can give existing Extricom switches the ability to support the new APs, and a new switch, the EXSW-1600 has been announced, along with an antenna bar, which can add more antennas so one AP can have up to twelve antennas on a wall-mounted bar, connected to the AP by a single cable.

Motorola launches 802.11n AP and switch

Motorola has announced a new wireless LAN switch and a new Wi-Fi access point, both designed to support the faster 802.11n draft specification.

The access point, called the AP-7131, is the first on the market with three radios built in, and will sell for $1,199 (£600). The new RFS6000 switch can support up to 48 Ethernet ports to connect to access points. The eight-port version starts at US$2,900 (£1,400), Motorola officials said. Both devices will ship next month.

Motorola joins a growing group of companies supporting the 802.11n specification, which is still in draft form. But it's far enough along for Siemens Networks, Cisco Systems, Trapeze Networks, Aruba, and others to ship devices.

Customers can feel secure that while the final specification for 802.11n might result in a software change, the hardware will not be changed and will not need to be replaced, said Sujai Hajela, general manager of the enterprise wireless LAN unit at Motorola.

Some customers have found that some access points using 802.11n require more power than that provided in the current Power over Ethernet standard (known as 802.3af) and Motorola confirmed that all three radios will not work with that much power output.

However, an emerging 802.3at standard provides for the power needed for all three radios. To reach a receiver at 75 to 100 feet from the access point, power will support only one radio, said Manish Rai, director of product marketing for enterprise wireless LAN.

However, Rai noted that Motorola's 802.11n products offer much faster speeds – as much as four times faster – compared to those provided by 802.11a/b/g radios. And 802.11n works over longer distances.

The new AP and other Motorola wireless point-to-point technologies is being used by one Californian school to connect four school campuses, while two IT managers who have been using Motorola 802.11a/b/g in retail environments said they will evaluate the new 802.11n gear, but have no immediate deployment plans.

One of those managers, Todd Dvorak, from Circuit City Stores in Richmond, Virgina, said Wi-Fi has been a valuable tool in support of wireless tablet laptops carried by sales personnel to look up information for customers. However Circuit City upgraded its networks three years ago to accommodate IBM -based point-of-sale systems