Connectivity product maker Asante used this week’s Seybold Seminars conference and trade show to display a new router designed for cable and DSL users. Featuring two switched 10/100baseT Ethernet ports and a parallel printer connection, the new router also sports support for Asante’s own 802.11b-compliant wireless networking card.
The support for wireless networking makes the new router ideally suited for users of Macs equipped with Apple’s AirPort hardware, which also depends on the 802.11b (or Wi-Fi) standard. It’ll also work with any other computers using 802.11b wireless networking cards. Users who don’t need AirPort connectivity looking for a hardwired cable/DSL router can opt to buy a less expensive version of the box without a wireless card already included.
The FriendlyNet FR3002AL’s availability hasn’t been announced yet, but information on the show floor indicated that fully loaded with an 802.11b card installed, the new router will be available for a suggested retail price of US$319 — only $20 more than Apple’s own AirPort base station, but equipped with two 10/100baseT switched Ethernet ports, compared with the AirPort base station’s single 10baseT connection.
Asante also previewed new IntraCore 65120 switches — high-end networking products intended for corporate networking. The high-speed switches are rack mountable (1U tall), and can be configured with up to twelve modular GBIC interfaces, for network installations that demand both high speed and flexibility. The new switches can accommodate 1000baseT, 100baseSX or 1000baseLX GBIC interfaces. Asante plans to release more information about the new wireless router and the new switches later this month.
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