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Press Release -- March 22nd, 2011
Source: Cisco Systems
Tags: Ethernet, Telepresence, Video

Cisco Wireless Solutions Extend Corporate Network Performance From Headquarters to the Home for Teleworkers

New Cisco OfficeExtend Dual-Band 802.11n Access Points and Wireless Controllers Extend the Corporate Wireless Network and Company Resources to Remote Locations

SAN JOSE, Calif. – March 21, 2011 – Cisco today announced new wireless hardware and software solutions designed to extend the corporate wireless network from the office to the home teleworker, incorporating existing control, management and security infrastructure.

The Cisco® OfficeExtend solution includes new access points and a full line of wireless controllers that offer high-performance wireless connectivity and include the industry’s first dual-band 802.11n access point specifically designed for teleworkers. These new solutions require no intervention from end users, lowering information technology support requirements and overall cost of ownership by allowing IT professionals to remotely manage home access points alongside the corporate infrastructure.

Cisco’s new wireless controllers are designed to support the deployments of increasing scale and sophistication across any home or office environment. The new Cisco® Catalyst 6500 Series Wireless Service Module supports up to 500 corporate and “teleworking” access points and can be scaled to support the increasing number of mobile devices running rich-media applications such as telepresence, voice and virtual desktops.

Announcement Highlights:

The Cisco OfficeExtend solution comprises the Cisco Aironet® 600 Series OfficeExtend Access Points, Cisco wireless controllers and the Cisco Wireless Control System. These new solutions provide support for a rich home teleworking experience consistent with office mobility performance, and complement the Cisco Virtual Office (CVO) solution with additional wireless connectivity options for teleworkers. The Cisco OfficeExtend Solution is both voice- and video-ready to optimize the performance of rich media communications. The new components of the Cisco OfficeExtend solution include:

  • The new Cisco Aironet 600 Series OfficeExtend Access Points incorporate an 802.11n dual-radio design that supports both 2.4 and 5 GHz radio bands, allowing access to the least congested and highest performance band available. By providing separate corporate and personal Service Set Identifiers (SSIDs), the Cisco 600 Series access points segment private traffic from corporate traffic, allowing personal traffic, such as in the home, to be directed to the Internet rather than to corporate controllers. Other features include four integrated Ethernet ports for connecting IP phones, printers and other network devices in the home office to deliver a complete teleworking mobility solution.
  • The new Cisco Catalyst® 6500 Series Wireless Services Module chassis supports up to 500 corporate and teleworking access points and allows customers to scale large wireless LANs to support the increasing number of mobile devices running rich-media applications such as Telepresence, voice and virtual desktops. The Cisco Wireless Service Module 2 for the Catalyst 6500 also includes Cisco CleanAir technology for interference management, Cisco ClientLink beamforming technology to boost client performance, and Cisco VideoStream technology to optimize multicast video over wireless.
  • For smaller networks, the new Cisco 2500 Series Wireless Controllers and software for the Cisco ISR G2 Services-Ready Engine  offer 802.11n service for up to 50 access points and 500 clients. An innovative delivery model gives customers two options for deploying controller functionality – either physically with the Wireless Services Module or the 2500 Series Wireless Controller, or online by downloading the software on demand to the ISR G2 Services Ready Engine module. The Cisco 2500 Series Wireless Controller and Wireless Controller Software for ISR G2 Services-Ready Engine also includes CleanAir, ClientLink and VideoStream technology.

Supporting Quotes:

    • Ray Smets, vice president and general manager, Wireless Networking Business Unit, Cisco

“The proliferation of smart mobile devices, the adoption of cloud services, and even government regulation are all changing the concept of workplace, and many employees have both the expectation and need to work from home. The Cisco OfficeExtend solution addresses the need for organizations to provide simple, highly secure wireless access to company resources for teleworkers either at home or in the office.”

    • Ron Hutchins, associate vice provost,  Research and Technology, and chief technology officer, Georgia Institute of Technology

“Migrating to the second generation wireless service module will allow us to effectively scale our wireless system to meet the demands of students and faculty. Wireless has become the preferred network connection method and, therefore, has become a critical service for us. Moving to the next-generation service module allows us to protect our existing investment and be ready for ever increasing wireless networking demands.”

Product Pricing and Availability:

  • Cisco Aironet 600 Series OfficeExtend Access Point: $419, scheduled to be available May 2011
  • Cisco 2500 Series wireless controller: starting at $2,495, scheduled to be available May 2011
  • Cisco Wireless LAN Controller on SRE: starting at $1,195, scheduled to be available May 2011
  • Cisco Wireless Services Module 2: starting at $29,995, scheduled to be available May 2011

About Cisco

Cisco (NASDAQ:CSCO, news, filings) is the worldwide leader in networking that transforms how people connect, communicate and collaborate. Information about Cisco can be found at http://www.cisco.com. For ongoing news, please go to http://newsroom.cisco.com.

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