Fixed Wireless Equipment

Tsunami 100 Mbps 5.8 GHz Bridge

Western Multiplex Corporation's Tsunami 100 Mbps 5.8 GHz Wireless Bridge promises wire speeds and fast Ethernet in a single band.

by Wayne Kawamoto [March 27, 2002]

Western Multiplex Corporation, which makes high-capacity fixed wireless equipment, announced its Tsunami 100 Mbps 5.8 Ghz, a new high-performance addition to its Tsunami product line.

The Tsunami 100 Mbps 5.8 GHz is designed to provide high capacity connections for distances up to 13 kilometers (8 miles). The company's dual-band Tsunami, which until now has been the highest capacity unlicensed wireless Ethernet bridge available from the company, offers coverage of 8 kilometers (5 miles). The Tsunami 100 Mpbs 5.8 GHz product also includes either two E1 connections or two T1 connections for the extension of PBX connectivity between buildings without additional leased-line costs.

The company claims that by using only the 5.8 GHz band rather than both the 5.3 GHz and 5.8 GHz frequency bands, the single-band product delivers better frequency conservation and meets most international requirements for deployment.

According to the company, the new system's features include:

• Capacity of 100 Mbps Full Duplex, equivalent to three E3 or two DS-3 leased lines, plus 2 E1 or 2 T1 wayside channels providing additional capacity and cost savings
• Distances up to 13 kilometers (8 miles)
• 5.8 GHz single-band operation more than doubles the capacity previously available in most countries
• Carrier-class reliability
• Fast deployment and activation
• Lower-cost of ownership compared to typical leased E3 or DS-3 lines
• Weather-resistant path performance

"By more than doubling the available capacity over its original dual-band 5.3/3.8 GHz product, the new Tsunami bridge can solve big networking bottlenecks worldwide," said Strategis Group analyst Peter Jarich. "With fiber so hard to come by throughout the world, and leased lines proving to be so costly, wireless systems like the Tsunami 100 Mbps 5.8 GHz offer much-needed, affordable and secure high-bandwidth connections that are quick to deploy."

Pricing and availability
The Tsunami 100 Mbps 5.8 GHz system with E1 waysides will be available at the end of March. The T1 version will be available in mid-April. The manufacturer's list price will be $19,995 per bridge (two bridges make one link).

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