Motorola Unveils Indoor 3G Access Point

Motorola Wednesday unveiled an enterprise-focused access point aimed at spreading 3G cellular data service throughout a business.

The company said its Motorola AXPT will be sold by cellular operators to enterprises that want their users to deliver either UMTS or HSDPA 3G access within buildings. UMTS is the first generation of 3G cellular data service offered by GSM-based cellular operators but is currently being replaced by faster HSDPA service.

It delivers high quality coverage and capacity in-building directly where operators need to serve their enterprise customers," Raghu Rau, senior vice president, global marketing and strategy for Motorola Networks, said in a statement. He noted that the access point uses what he called "the Wi-Fi model" for distributing access.

In this case, though, the AXPT acts something like a small version of a full cellular base station, adding cellular tasks such as SIM authentication and circuit-switched voice and roaming capabilities.

The company did not say when the access point will be available but said it would be demonstrating it at the 3GSM World Congress trade show in Barcelona, Spain next month.