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May 10, 1999 Wireless Network Support 3Com plans Internet access devices, better connectivity from LANs, PalmPilots By Brian Riggs Related links: Wireless Calling Wireless LANs Gain Ground And from our sister publications: Network Computing Wired on Wireless: A New Class of 802.11 Devices Go the Distance 3Com Corp. this week will lay out a product roadmap for supporting wireless networks. By year's end, the vendor plans to deliver 11-Mbps wireless LAN connections, lower-speed connectivity to PalmPilot handheld devices, and wireless-access devices for service providers to deliver Internet access to businesses and telecommuters. Wireless data networks have the potential to simplify connectivity to business networks and the Internet-but few businesses have deployed them, in part because of the cost. Wireless LANs cost $350 to $500 per user on average, compared with $75 to $200 per user for wire networks, says Phil Redmond, an analyst with the Yankee Group. "Wireless LANs have long been a technology looking for the market," he says. 3Com hopes to change that. Later this spring, 3Com plans to ship a card for its Total Control remote-access concentrator that will let cellular carriers provide IP-based virtual private network and other data services to subscribers. In the summer, 3Com's PalmPilot VII device will be released with wireless access through its Palm.Net Internet access service. Later this year, 3Com will begin selling two 11-Mbps wireless LAN systems. And early next year, 3Com plans to come out with PC Cards and personal digital assistants based on a specification driven by Ericsson, IBM, Intel, and others that will provide short-range radio links between mobile PCs, mobile phones, and other mobile devices. Separately, Nokia will introduce 2-Mbps wireless LAN products this week, and will describe plans to develop 11-Mbps systems. It will also unveil products that integrate its wireless voice and data equipment with the voice-over-IP products it acquired with Vienna Systems Inc. in December. Other wireless data vendors are already looking at faster speeds. Proxim Inc. last week disclosed plans to support 24-Mbps wireless data connections based on a European standard called Hiperlan. Says Craig Mathias, a principal at the Farpoint Group research firm, "That's the kind of network that companies are clamoring for." Back to This Week's Issue Send Us Your Feedback Top of the Page Home | Career | Financials | Date Book Resource Centers | Search | Subscriptions