Netgear

Femto Forum agrees on one interoperability standard

Thu, 22 May 2008 06:59:55 -0400

The Femto Forum announced it has reached consensus on the standard way femtocells should connect with the mobile core network. The agreement is welcomed news as a number of vendors have come up with their own standards and mobile operator femtocell trials are heating up.

With interoperability a key factor in their success, femtocells have been deployed in trial networks without an agreed standard. However, vendors are meeting this week to hammer out the finer details of the agreed interfaces, with plans to send submissions as early as next week to the 3GPP, where there are already three work items in progress related to femtocells. By agreeing on the interfaces, the Forum believes it has removed one of the barriers that have discouraged some operators from making the leap from trial to soft commercial launches.

"We've enabled operators to move forward faster on their deployments," said Simon Saunders, chairman of the Femto Forum. "For many operators, until they have a clear path toward standardization, they won't take that first deployment step. So we've set out a road map, and now more operators are willing to take that step."

For more:
- check out this article from Unstrung
- read this report from Cellular News

Related stories:
Femto Forum adds new members. See this article on the Femto Forum
Motorola, Netgear announce femtocell products. Take a look at this article about Motorola and Netgear's femtocell gear

Ruckus Wireless sues Netgear over WiFi patents

Thu, 08 May 2008 06:59:55 -0400

Ruckus Wireless, which recently introduced its SmartMesh WiFi equipment for the enterprise market, has filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Netgear. Ruckus alleges that in the development of Netgear's RangeMax WPN 824v3 wireless router, Netgear infringed on two WiFi patents having to do with intelligent and adaptable WiFi antenna arrays like those developed by Ruckus.

Ruckus and Netgear entered into a technology licensing agreement back in 2005 under which Ruckus developed the underlying technology with in the Netgear RangeMax 824v1 and v2 wireless routers, which were the predecessors to the RangeMax 824v3 at issue. Ruckus says the resulting hardware and software technology developed for Netgear was owned and patented by Ruckus and Netgear never paid royalties on this latest version or asked for permission to release it.

Ruckus is seeking a permanent injunction against Netgear and Rayspan as well as damages and royalties.

To find out more about Ruckus Wireless' lawsuit against Netgear:
- check out this release

Related articles:
Ruckus makes aggressive push into enterprise WiFi
Ruckus Wireless named to Fierce 15 list

3GPP adds 3G support to UMA standard

Thu, 28 Feb 2008 06:59:56 -0500

The 3GPP standards group has approved a specification update that will see 3G support added to the UMA/GAN standard. This move should help developers of UMA-based 3G dual-mode handsets and femtocell products with their delivery plans to mobile operators considering the commercial deployment of FMC services.

According to Stéphane Téral, an industry analyst with the market research firm Infonetics, the addition of 3G support is an important step in supporting in-home 3G service delivery. "Operators and vendors alike have recognized the need for standardization to drive mass-market femtocell network deployments."

Qualcomm and NXP have both made recent announcements about their involvement in the dual-mode UMA handset market, while Motorola, Ubiquisys and Netgear are already working with operators (e.g. O2 and Telia) on testing femtocells.

For more about the 3GPP's specification:
- read this article from TMCnet
- take a look at this report from 3G.co.uk

Related articles:
UMA out of favor at Telecom Italia Report
T-Mobile USA introduces nationwide UMA services Report

Motorola, Netgear announce femtocell products

Mon, 11 Feb 2008 06:59:53 -0500

A host of femtocell-related news has come out before this week's Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Motorola introduced its first 3G femtocell customer premise equipment (CPE) and announced it will release two commercial devices in the second half of the year. Motorola's 8000 Series Femtocell Ethernet Gateway features a four-point Ethernet gateway, VoIP port, USB connections and a WiFi router.

Netgear announced its new Femtocell Voice Gateway that will become available in the first half of this year. Netgear's box includes a residential gateway with integrated ADSL2+ modem, router, 10/100 wired LAN switch, wireless access point, VoIP, firewall and 3G femto technology from Ubiquisys.

Meanwhile, after the Femto Forum announced plans to help harmonize the integration of femtocells into mobile core networks, NEC and Kineto Wireless announced a standards proposal based on the existing 3GPP Generic Access Network (GAN) model. The two companies said a formal standard will help the market achieve mass market success.

For more about the femtocell announcements:
- read this telecoms.com article

Related articles:
Nokia Siemens and Ubiquisys jointly push femtocells Report
Cisco pours cash into U.K. femtocell developer Report
Operators want femtocells Report

Femto Forum attracts big guns

Thu, 08 Nov 2007 06:59:57 -0500

The Femto Forum, a new industry group formed in July that is pushing femtocell technology, announced a big jump in its membership. The group, which started out with just seven companies, now has 40 members. The group started with some rather small players: Airvana, ip.access, Netgear, PicoChip, RadioFrame, Tatara and Ubiquisys. And everyone was wondering if some bigger names would be attracted to the forum. Now new members include Alcatel-Lucent, NEC, Nokia Siemens Networks, Motorola, and ZTE. Operators have also joined the ranks: Bharti Airtel in India, Bouygues Telecom, Carphone Warehouse Networks, Orsacom Telecom and Telefonica 02.

Femtocells are being billed as the next big thing in fixed-mobile convergence, promising to solve many of the shortcomings faced so far by many existing WiFi/cellular FMC services, namely a lack of compelling handsets and perceived complexity of the solution. Femtocells are envisioned to enable mobile operators to offer micro base stations for use in subscribers' homes or officers to deliver voice and data at carrier-grade quality at cheaper costs for operators and customers.

The Forum is now working with carriers to ensure product interoperability and commercial readiness. The Forum has also developed four working groups: standardization, network issues such as interoperability regulation and marketing and promotion of business models.

To read more about the Femto Forum's progress:
- check out this article from telecoms.com

ALSO NOTED: First also noted headline; second headline; and much more...

Mon, 02 Jul 2007 06:59:51 -0400

> Clearwire launched VoIP service in six Texas markets. Release

> ABI Research expects more than 180,000 buildings will receive in-building broadband wireless systems by 2011. Article

> Netgear and Ubiquisys announced a deal to deliver a comprehensive residential gateway with integrated DSL modem, Wi-Fi, VoIP and 3G femtocell technology. Article

And Finally... Check out the poor man's iPhone.

SPOTLIGHT: Pre-N routers not as fast as touted

Sun, 15 Apr 2007 20:01:32 -0400

David Pogue from The New York Times sampled pre-802.11n routers from Apple, Belkin, Linksys and Netgear and found that these pre-n devices offer better speed and range but nowhere near the 15 times better that is advertised. On average these routers offered speed and range that was two times better than 802.11g routers. Article

ALSO NOTED: Gordon Lindsay on WiMax; Ten features to consider before buying an 802.11 device;and much more...

Mon, 11 Dec 2006 19:01:31 -0500

> See this interesting interview with Gordon Lindsay, European product manager for Broadcom's wireless devices division, on the market potential for WiMAX, WiFi, and UWB technologies.

> TechRepublic's Joshua Hoskins offers a useful list of ten features you should consider before buying your next 802.11-capable device.

> Lansing, Michigan, gave us Magic Johnson, and they have WiFi at the city's cafes. Report

> By popular demand: Netgear has increased shipments of the Netgear WiFi Phone for Skype (SPH101) to Singapore. Report

> The home network of the future will consist of several technologies helping each other. Report

And finally... Talk about putting a damper on the holiday spirit: WLAN company AirMagnet conducted a study on how office network conditions are affected by holidays such as Christmas during which decorations are added to office environments. The study found that WLAN signal strength dipped by 25 percent after ornaments were "deployed" (this is AirMagnet's term for hanging ornaments around the office). See the company's press release.

ALSO NOTED: Freecom's 160GB storage gateway WLAN; Steve Jobs on the Zune; and much more...

Mon, 16 Oct 2006 20:01:31 -0400

> Freecom is showing a storage gateway WLAN which offers 160GB of network storage and includes a full-scale wireless router. Report

> The way the Canadiens hockey team is playing,anything would help, so why not install WiFi at the Bell Centre in Montreal? Report

> Steve Jobs says that the Zune will not help men create a romantic atmosphere when they are with their girlfriends because of the time it takes to select and play a song: "By the time you've gone through all that, the girl's got up and left!" Report

> Singapore will offer free WiFi to its citizens beginning in January 2007. Report

> Nokia's Linux-based 770 Internet Tablet now offers GPS. Report

> See the update on muni-WiFi in Oakland.

> Fon will be offering $5 hot-spot access, 802.11g routers. Unstrung report | press release

> Analysts at Deutsche Bank Securities initiate coverage of Netgear with a "hold" rating. The target price is set to $22. The analysts note that the increasing adoption of the 802.11n WiFi is poised to boost the growth of home networking, which is likely to benefit Netgear going forward, but--there is always a "but"--with the adoption of the 802.11n in the early stages, Netgear will remain exposed to competitive pressures in the near term. Report

And finally... James Paul Gee of the University of Wisconsin is a respected scholar of sociolinguistics; we should thus note that his last two books are What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy (2004) and Why Video Games are Good for Your Soul (2005); the editor of our FierceMarkets sister publication, FierceGameBiz, shares Professor Gee's view of videogames' beneficial contribution, and this is why the newsletter is holding the BrainPong Competition--add your commentary to an industry debate and enter to win a PlayStation 3 or two Nintendo Wiis!

Netgear shows WiFi Skype phone

Mon, 18 Sep 2006 20:01:35 -0400

Converged cellular-WiFi phones are all the rage (or, rather, will soon be all the rage) and companies with market savvy have noticed. The latest to join the lengthening list of vendors (e.g., Wistron, Accton) offering cellular-WiFi phones is Netgear, which last week began shipping its SPH101 (it demonstrated the unit in January at a trade show). The company says that the SPH101 is the first publicly announced handset certified to make Skype WiFi calls. However, at $249.99, it's not quite the least expensive unit on the market.

The phone will allow users to make unlimited free domestic and international calls to other Skype users over a wireless network without being tied to a computer. The phone will work anywhere in the world where a user has access either to to a secured or open WiFi network (note: The phone will work only where the AP does not require browser-based authentication).

Netgear's Vivek Pathela says that the device would appeal to "die-hard Skype users worldwide who want to experience Skype in a truly mobile fashion without a PC." Infonetics Research's Richard Webb says: "Voice over wireless LAN adoption is primed for a surge beyond enterprises and into the everyday lives of millions of global consumers looking for a cost-sensitive telephony solution."

For more on Netgear's cellular-WiFi phone
- see Netgear's Web site

MORE: See this backgrounder about making WiFi VoIP calls without a PC.

Netgear stumbles in draft-n race

Mon, 29 May 2006 20:01:36 -0400

When you walk point you draw fire. Netgear boasted that it was first to ship a draft-802.11n wireless ADSL router and now it has drawn criticism for a product which is likely to prove inferior to its existing products. Netgear says its RangeMax Next ADSL2+ modem router, or DG834N, is the first wireless-enabled ADSL2+ modem router based on the 802.11n draft. The company also claims that it delivers "the fastest data throughput speeds and furthest ranges available in the industry." The ADSL2+ uplink can reach 24 Mbps, while the WLAN may provide more than 100 Mbps (with Netgear quoting 300 Mbps symbol rate).

The point is, the company already sells a product range, the RangeMax 240 WPNT834, which some say is faster and cheaper. RangeMax 240 products are based on the third-generation Airgo chip set--also used in the Linksys SRX400 series--which beat Netgear's Draft-802.11n products in a test run by Farpoint Research's Craig Mathias. Other tests have found that draft-802.11n products interfere with existing WLANs, in ways which degrade the performance of both. "Draft-802.11n products don't just trash other WLANs, they trash themselves as well," said Dave Borison, senior product director at Airgo. "You are better off buying 802.11g."

Netgear does not agree, saying that while both products offer "highest speeds and best range," the DG834N also offers them the "compliant to draft 802.11n" feature. Trouble is, it is not exactly clear what are the benefits of draft-n "feature." Standards should allow products to work together, but Mathias' tests showed that draft-n products do not work together at draft-n speeds. What is more, they are unlikely to upgrade to the eventual 802.11n standard (Netgear admits as much).

With all these problems accompanying draft-n gear, why do companies rush to offer such gear? Airgo's Borison says the reason is that other WLAN chip makers are worried that Airgo's MIMO chips are poised to run away with the top end of the WLAN market, so these chip makers are scrambling to do something -- anything: "Broadcom and Atheros are bleeding, as we sweep across the high end where the margins are good," he said. "We've backed these guys into a corner." Borison is correct, even if his explanation is a bit self-serving. Also, there are nuances in the approaches of different companies that should not be overlooked: Broadcom's approach to draft-n standard (but also USRoboitcs'), for example, is different from other companies' approaches. It's also different from its own approach to the 802.11g standard way back then.

The last word is Mathias's: "It does seem they [Netgear] just wanted to be first to market...But being first to market with a product that isn't ready for production, isn't as good as what they already ship, and claims compliance with a non-standard just boggles the mind."

For more on the draft-n conundrum:
- read this Techworld report

PLUS: USRobotics implicitly criticized Netgear and other companies rushing to market with pre-802.11n products. In a statement released last week, the company said, "Products developed, produced, and marketed prior to the approval of the IEEE 802.11n Draft 1.0 specification are based upon technology that may not be compatible with Draft 1.0, and future, specifications for products...Even early versions of 802.11n Draft 1.0 based products have shown issues with interoperability and legacy networks...USRobotics will release its 802.11n Draft 1.0-compliant products when these issues have been resolved." Release

ALSO: MIMO is expected to become popular as a solution to enhance data throughput and quality of communication in complex propagation environments. There are several different interpretations and implementations considered to be MIMO technology, and MIMO will be adopted in many of the wireless and mobile communication systems in the future. MIMO will be integrated in IEEE 802.11n standards. MIMO is a family of techniques for multi-antenna wireless transmission and reception. There are many ways to accomplish MIMO processing, including MIMO Multiplexing, MIMO Diversity, and others (IEEE 802.11n will adopt Spatial Division Multiplexing (SDM) which is a form of MIMO Multiplexing). The substantial benefits of MIMO come at a price: MIMO also increases the challenges in design and system evaluation and validation, and as a result new measurements need to be considered for testing MIMO systems. Discussion

SPOTLIGHT: More draft-n products

Tue, 25 Apr 2006 20:01:33 -0400

Linksys is showing its draft 802.11n wireless products, based on the IEEE draft 802.11n standard, thus joining Netgear and Buffalo Technology as vendors with draft-n products. Linksys said its Wireless-N Broadband Router (WRT300N, about $150) and Notebook Adapter (WPC300N, about $120) are available at BestBuy.com, with other locations to be available shortly. The company says the new equipment offers up to four times the range and up to 12 times the throughput of its wireless-g products. As was the case with its earlier SRS product, the new Wireless-N offerings use MIMO technology to transmit two streams of data simultaneously over multiple channels. To support the draft specification, Linksys says its products will provide mixed-mode operation and backward compatibility with 802.11g and 802.11b products. Report

Netgear shows new MIMO AP

Tue, 08 Nov 2005 19:01:37 -0500

Netgear is releasing a new wireless AP, the RangeMax 240, which it claims can reach speeds of up to 240 Mbps--faster than the 100 Mbps of wired networks (improvements in Ethernet wired networks, though, can push speeds up to 1 Gbps and faster). The actual speeds of the new AP will likely be slower, especially as more devices are added to the network. Speeds of 100 Mbps, or even a bit slower, would be suitable for streaming music and video and HDTV. Note that in order to achieve these high speeds, all the devices in the WLAN must use the RangeMax 240 system.

The RangeMax kit uses MIMO technology, relying on several aerials on the base station to direct beams to the particular client with each beam, if need be, using different frequencies. The encoding involved in the spatial multiplexing and adaptive channel expansion are proprietary to Netgear, so the real speed enhancement would be achieved only with an all-Netgear WLAN. It is not clear that the Netgear kit will be compatible with the 802.11n standard once it is ratified.

For more about the RangeMax 240:
- see this report