Ruckus Wireless has unveiled Xclaim, a new kind of WiFi system exclusively developed for the small business market that redefines the model for offering enterprise-grade WiFi services to organisations that have little to no IT expertise.
A new brand of disruptively priced, cloud-ready, controller-free WiFi products – Xclaim represents a fundamentally different approach to delivering enterprise-class WiFi.
Unlike alternatives, Xclaim eliminates the cost and complexity associated with conventional Enterprise wireless LAN (WLAN) systems for smaller organisations that can’t justify purchasing them, but still desire best in class WiFi connectivity, coverage, and performance, with simple, easy management.
Included within the Xclaim portfolio is the free Harmony for Xclaim mobile application. Purpose-built for the iOS and Android operating systems, Harmony for Xclaim radically streamlines installation, configuration and on-going administration of a WiFi network. Within minutes, small businesses can begin offering secure, robust and reliable WiFi at a fraction of the cost and complexity of traditional enterprise alternatives.
“New wireless LAN products and services have been introduced by leading vendors targeting smaller-sized businesses,” says Chris DePuy, vice-president of Wireless LAN research at Dell’Oro Group.
“Two main product types have typically been used to target these businesses: Enterprise-class access points and Small Office Home Office, or ‘SOHO’, access points. Vendors are now bundling these products with services and software that are customised – and in some cases, cost-optimised – for SMBs.
“Given the expansion in the number of products being introduced to address SMBs, we estimate the SMB WLAN market opportunity will now approach $1.3B in the next several years,“ concludes DePuy.
Unlike so-called ‘controller-less’ WiFi alternatives that still rely on virtual controllers in the cloud, Xclaim WiFi systems are controller-free, combining exquisite functionality and high-performance with the incredible management and deployment simplicity SOHOs and small businesses need and want.
“Ruckus is widely recognised for delivering carrier-class WiFi performance and reliability to mid-market enterprises and global service-providers,” says Rob Mustarde, vice-president and general manager of the Xclaim product line at Ruckus Wireless.
“With Xclaim, we are now extending this same value to the SOHO and ‘S’ of the SMB market. This segment is experiencing the same Mobile Internet revolution as everyone else, but hasn’t had reliable, powerful WiFi solutions available that are also simple to operate and manage, and affordable.
“Xclaim means these businesses no longer need to endure poor, consumer grade WiFi or deal with deployment costs beyond their reach and systems they can’t easily comprehend and manage.”
With the rising popularity and pervasive use of WiFi, offering enterprise grade WiFi services has effectively remained out of reach for small businesses that want better WiFi to support a multitude of new media-rich applications, devices, and users.
To deal with the growing need for WiFi to function as a reliable business utility, smaller organisations have been forced to either purchase enterprise-class, controller-based systems (either on premises or in the cloud) that are too costly and complex for their business, or buy consumer-grade WiFi products that lack the reliability, functionality and management required to support the myriad mobile devices and applications flooding the market.
With Xclaim, this quandary has been resolved. When ultra-affordable world-class WiFi is coupled with an easy-to-use mobile WiFi management application that’s free of any type of controller, installing, configuring, and managing enterprise-class WiFi networks becomes as simple as turning on a smartphone.
Xclaim now makes it effortless for IT-challenged small businesses to quickly install, configure, and monitor a WiFi network with the introduction of Harmony for Xclaim. Harmony for Xclaim is a custom developed mobile application used exclusively with Xclaim access points.
Completely intuitive and designed for simplicity, Harmony for Xclaim puts enterprise-class management in the palm of your hand, enabling an enterprise-class wireless network to be configured and up and running in a matter of minutes.
Specifically developed for small business use, Harmony for Xclaim takes any non IT-savvy person through an intuitive and simple step-by-step process to automatically discover access points and configure wireless LAN settings. After configuration and setup, Harmony for Xclaim’s elegant in-app dashboard provides a real-time view of important network data such as connected APs and clients, connected client by AP, client types, traffic volumes and much more.
Xclaim features four best-in-class indoor and outdoor 802.11n and 802.11ac WiFi solutions for small businesses designed within sleek, lightweight, and low profile form factors.
They include:
* Xi-1: dual-band (selectable) 2×2:2 802.11n indoor access point (AP);
* Xi-2: dual-band 2×2:2 802.11n indoor access point;
* Xi-3: dual-band 2×2:2 802.11ac indoor access point; and
* Xo-1: dual-band 2×2:2 802.11ac outdoor access point.
Xclaim indoor and outdoor controller-free APs deliver enterprise-grade wireless performance and reliability at breakthrough price points, making them ideal for cost-conscious small business environments.
Enterprise WiFi capabilities such as dynamic channel selection, band steering, client isolation, and airtime fairness all come standard in Xclaim APs to ensure the highest levels of WiFi reliability, security and performance without constant manual optimisation.
Local management is provided immediately through Harmony for Xclaim. Supported on iOS and Android smart mobile devices, Harmony for Xclaim revolutionises and simplifies the discovery of APs, the configuration of wireless parameters and the on-going monitoring of wireless LAN environments–truly controller-free—eliminating the requirement for businesses to purchase any additional management hardware, software or AP licenses.
