Xirrus has introduced the Xirrus XR-620 access point, a new 802.11ac wireless solution that offers the performance of 11ac at an 11n price. The access point can be purchased at a low, entry-level cost as an 802.11n AP, then later software-upgraded to 802.11ac, allowing customers to spread CAPEX over time.
The new XR-620 AP provides flexibility through software-programmable radios that enable 2.4GHz or 5GHz operation at 802.11n and 802.11ac speeds on both radios. Dual-radio 11ac operation enables the XR-620 AP to deliver 30 percent greater 11ac performance compared to 11ac access points on the market today that are limited to only one 802.11ac radio due to their fixed configuration.†
According to Xirrus, the XR-620 is the industry’s first 2×2 (2-stream) 802.11ac business solution, capable of 867Mbps per radio—almost twice the maximum 450Mbps speed available with 3×3 802.11n.
“The insatiable demand for wireless continues to create new and more complex challenges for organizations everywhere,” says Bruce Miller, vice president of product marketing for Xirrus. “While new, higher-speed 802.11ac may help address some of these pain points, technology transitions can be disruptive. To help our customers with this, Xirrus offers a unique approach with a broad range of 11ac solutions starting with the new entry-level pricing of our XR-620 up to ultra-high performance of our wireless Arrays. Organizations scale at different rates, with vastly differing drivers. Today’s announcement helps accelerate the adoption of 11ac in the enterprise.”
Example applications for the Xirrus XR-620 include:
- Organizations in a wireless refresh cycle that want to take advantage of the performance and power savings advantages of 802.11ac
- Hotels refreshing wireless in their guest rooms to improve service quality
- Organizations upgrading to 802.11ac with a range of use cases covering low to high user density and therefore do not need a premium solution everywhere
- Enterprises with a high percentage of smartphone and tablet usage
The XR-620 extends the XR-600 AP family, which includes the 3×3 11ac XR-630 AP with 2.6Gbps total bandwidth. The Xirrus 11ac portfolio of solutions also includes the modular XR-series of Arrays that scale from 2 to 16 radios to handle extreme user densities and traffic loads. All Xirrus wireless solutions support an integrated controller and on-board Application Control, providing visibility and control of over 1,200 applications.
The XR-620 802.11ac-capable access point starts at $675 and is available starting in March 2014. For more information, visit www.xirrus.com/11ac.
