SYMBOL INTRODUCES MODULAR 802.11A/B ACCESS PORT FOR ENTERPRISE MOBILITY AND LOW COST OF OWNERSHIP

New Product Lowers Total Cost of Ownership for Wireless Switch Deployments; Converts to 802.11A/G Access Port

Symbol Technologies, Inc. , a global leader in enterprise mobility solutions, today introduced, at NetWorld+Interop Las Vegas 2003, its IEEE 802.11a/b Access Port for the Symbol Wireless Switch that dramatically reduces the total cost of ownership for higher bandwidth switched-wireless networking.

Built on Symbol's pioneering , the new Symbol Access Port was developed in an attempt to achieve the highest level of mobile environment design flexibility. The list price of $249 for the Symbol Access Port is a fraction of the cost of current competitive offerings. Symbol is aiming to reduce the structural cost of connectivity while maintaining and increasing the functional capabilities of wireless networks for mobility.

"As Enterprises build their mobile infrastructures for emerging voice, video and data applications, network administrators can maintain their acquisition and ownership cost objectives through creative wireless network design," said Aaron Vance, senior research analyst, Synergy Research Group. "Symbol's approach is very applicable for Enterprises looking to gradually deploy new .11g and .11a wireless technologies when ROI for mobile applications is more justifiable."

This high performance Access Port is highly modular. It includes multiple antenna options for both .11a and .11b and a single 2.4Ghz expansion slot. The new product is an 802.11a Access Port to which 802.11b or 802.11g can be easily added. Network administrators now have the ability to first choose the best access port placement location for 802.11a mobile applications, and then also optimize range performance for 802.11b or 802.11g connectivity as needed.

"We are providing enterprise mobility with investment protection and an intelligent adoption path for mixed 802.11 technologies at a reasonable price today," said Ray Martino, general manager and vice president, network products, Symbol Technologies, Inc. "Our product design and roadmap is on pace with current enterprise IT spending patterns."

The new Symbol Access Port delivers high bandwidth connectivity to existing 802.11b WiFi for enterprise environments or is designed to offer later integration with 802.11g for new deployments, following the ratification of that standard and when 802.11g client populations become more prevalent. The new Access Port requires zero configuration, supports IEEE 802.3af Power-over-Ethernet (POE), and includes two built-in Ethernet ports that allows for additional Access Ports to be connected or "daisy chained."

The first generation Symbol Wireless Switch, shipping since late 2002, was developed to easily integrate with existing enterprise backbones from network vendors, including, 3Com, Cisco Systems, Extreme Networks and Nortel Networks. The Symbol strategy maintains a strong lower total-cost-of-ownership (TCO) value proposition for enterprise wireless networking. For this reason, Symbol is experiencing steady acceptance of the product from new and existing customers in healthcare, education, retail, manufacturing, logistics, and public space market segments.

Last month, T-Systems deployed 16 Symbol Wireless Switches and 215 Access Ports at the CeBIT trade show for Deutsche Messe AG's permanent public wireless network. At , the Symbol Wireless Switch is connecting nearly 80 laptops for the InteropNet Event Network's (eNet) managed wireless registration area, which will accommodate numerous show attendees.

The new Symbol Access Port will be available in the summer 2003 at an estimated list price of $249.

Symbol mobility products will be on display this week at NetWorld+Interop Las Vegas 2003, April 28 - May 1, in booth #5687. Attendees will be offered an opportunity to test-drive the Symbol Wireless Switch in a free, 30-minute hands-on lab ().

On Tuesday, April 29, from 3:30 to 4:45pm, Ray Martino, general manager and vice president, will join the panel discussion entitled "Wireless in the Wiring Closet."

For more information about the Symbol switched wireless networking system, visit .