Fixed Wireless Equipment

Cheaper NLOS Kit for 900 MHz Services

WaveRider debuts its new system designed to deliver a low-cost, non-line-of-sight solution for wireless Internet services providing fixed wireless access over license-exempt 900 MHz spectrum.

by ISP-Planet Staff [January 31, 2002]

Toronto-based WaveRider Communications Inc. this week started shipping its new LMS4000 starter kit. The latest progeny of its "Last Mile Solution" family of products, the starter kit is priced at $6,675 (U.S.) and comes with all the components required to build a basic non-line-of-sight (NLOS) wireless network.

Speedy returns
WaveRider's LMS4000 starter kit is an entry-level system designed for operators that want to introduce the NLOS capabilities into their networks and prepare for a large-scale deployment. The kit also allows smaller operators to build a wireless network capable of serving business and residential customers on a single system. Because of its favorable low market entry costs, LMS4000 starter kits have already been ordered by Wireless Internet Service Providers (WISPs) in five states.

The LMS4000 Starter Kit includes WaveRider's wireless modems and indoor antennas, which can be installed by the subscriber, eliminating the cost of professional installations. The new system operates in the license-exempt 900 MHz spectrum, enabling operators to deliver both commercial and residential grades of service.

Charles Brown, WaveRider vice president of sales and marketing, said service providers can realize a return on their investment within a short period of time with the kit.

"The LMS4000 Starter Kit is the only available entry-level non-line-of-sight wireless solution that offers the features and reliability of a large commercial system," Brown said. "The low cost of the LMS4000 Starter Kit eliminates one of the barriers to establishing a wireless network, and the quality of the system allows for future growth of our customers' networks and their businesses."

WaveRider's LMS4000 starter kit comes with a single base station—the CCU3000 communications channel unit—six LMS3000 end-user modems with indoor antennas, and all the accessories required to prepare for system deployment. The CCU supports up to 20 subscribers with the ability to increase system capacity through the purchase of software upgrades, also available from WaveRider.

Included with the LMS4000 Starter Kit is the WaveRider NLOS training session, WaveRider's priority e-mail support for three months and, for customers in the United States, a prediction plot of the area in which the operator plans to deploy the network.

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