Proxim Aims New Wireless Products At SMB

Proxim Monday is easing SMB customers into wireless LAN deployments with the rollout of a new entry-level access point and new management tools.

Aimed at customers with as few as 25 users, Proxim's new Orinoco AP-700 brings enterprise-class features such as security and Quality of Service (QoS), downstream, said Ben Gibson, vice president of corporate marketing at Proxim, Sunnyvale, Calif.

"Security problems are the most important issue for small businesses," Gibson said.

The new AP-700, the successor to Proxim's current AP-600, includes new security features such advanced rogue AP and client detection on both the 2.4-Ghz and 5-Ghz bands.

It also adds support for 802.11i, a wireless security standard recently ratified by the IEEE that provides AES encryption.The features are available as part of Proxim's Release 2.5, a software upgrade that will be available across the vendor's entire family of Orinoco APs by mid-October.

AP-700 also includes support for the draft IEEE 802.11e standard, which provides wireless QoS and fast roaming capabilities for voice, data and video applications.

With its $599 price tag, the new AP is priced low enough to show a quick return on investment compared to providing two CAT 5 cables (which on average costs $125 per drop) to each user for PCs and phones, said Al Pheltz, vice president of Sun Wireless, a solution provider based in San Diego.

"If it's supporting more than three people, it's cheaper to buy the AP-700 than to run cable," Pheltz said.

Proxim also introduced the Orinoco Smart Wireless Suite, a trio of management, software distribution and site survey tools from vendor partners Wavelink and Ekahau, available now.Proxim had new announcements for its partner program as well. Gibson said the company recently rolled out changes to its Wireless Wizard Partner Program that adds a new top-level Platinum tier.

In the U.S. the new tier carries a revenue requirement of $2 million. About 10 partners have earned Platinum status, which the vendor introduced to help encourage growth among its largest partners, he said.

Proxim also rolled out new advanced partner training courses in areas such as surveillance and public access network deployment, he said.