ZyXEL Delivers Enterprise-Class 802.11N WLAN for Mid-Size Operations

ZyXEL Communications Inc., a provider of secure broadband networking, Internet connectivity and routing products, today announced the availability of its dual-band 802.11n wireless LAN products for medium-sized enterprises and vertical markets including education, government and hospitality. The ZyXEL NWA3166 is a Plenum-rated, enterprise-level WLAN hybrid access point that doubles as a WLAN controller capable of centrally managing up to 24 APs offering businesses scalability and flexible deployment options.

With the Multiple In, Multiple Out (MIMO) technology of 11n, the NWA3166 uses signal reflections to increase coverage range and reduce "dead spots," providing data rates up to 300Mbps for access to higher bandwidth applications. The 3-in-1 hybrid AP functions as an independent AP, centrally managed AP or as a WLAN controller and can manage 24 separate APs. The built-in controller enables ease of management allowing SMBs the ability to globally manage all APs, resulting in lower total cost of ownership, scalability, time savings and overall reduction in maintenance costs.

Security and Voice over IP or Voice over WiFi applications are one of the main challenges in the enterprise environment. The ZyXEL NWA3166 is equipped with multiple ESSID and VLAN to perform as multiple virtual APs, which can be independent to each other. The device comes with pre-set SSIDs for high-priority voice traffic and guest access. ZyXEL ATC (Auto Traffic Classifier) feature ensures quality of service for different time-sensitive applications.

Vertical markets, like the hospitality industry, are evaluating upgrades to wireless 11n networks to match their customer expectations. With the availability of draft-11n products, consumers have been upgrading home networks and are used to faster throughputs and bandwidth-intense applications. These consumers have come to expect the same speeds away from home. With NWA3166, ZyXEL has a right product ready to meet these demands.

Key features
ZyXEL NWA3166 product highlights include:

• Dual-band 802.11n Business AP
• 2x3 MIMO antenna configuration
• 3-in-1 Hybrid AP functions either as a WLAN Controller, Managed AP or Stand-alone AP
• Secured tunnel for communication between Controller and Managed AP
• Centralized management for up to 24 WLAN Access Points
• Enterprise-class Access Point functionalities: Multiple ESSID for VoIP, Data and Guest VLANs (up to 8), Internal PEAP server for 802.1x authentication, WMM + Auto Traffic Classifier (ATC) for QoS, and Load balancing by user limit or bandwidth
• Plenum rating

The ZyXEL NWA3166 is available for $399.99 MSRP.