3Com this week is expected to unveil switches for small and medium businesses designed to bring enterprise-class capabilities, such as Gigabit Ethernet, to that market.
The switches include a 10-port desktop Gigabit Power over Ethernet (PoE) device and a line of wiring closet Gigabit Ethernet switches in various configurations. The products are intended to enhance price/performance, security and ease of deployment for Gigabit Ethernet and PoE networking.
“3Com is pushing gigabit when a lot of the enterprise competitors have been pushing 10/100[Mbps],” says Steve Schuchart, principal analyst for enterprise network systems at Current Analysis. “I’m a little mystified as to why people are dealing with 10/100 at this point. You can hardly buy a PC without gigabit on it.”
For desktop connectivity, the OfficeConnect Managed Gigabit PoE switch is a fanless device sporting 10 1Gbps PoE ports for lower-density workgroup, phone and access-point connectivity. PoE switches usually carry a minimum of 24 ports.
For the wiring closet, 3Com’s Baseline Switch 2900 line of managed devices come in four configurations: 16-, 24- and 48-port 1Gbps Ethernet; and 24-port 1Gbps PoE. The rack-mountable switches are designed to interconnect desktop workgroups, such as those configured with the OfficeConnect line.