Tropos joins 802.11n outdoor mesh router club
Tropos joins the group of companies that offer Wireless-N outdoor mesh networks, with three new routers.
Meraki debuted the first outdoor 802.11n mesh router a few months ago, but another vendor has thrown its hat into the outdoor wireless mesh network arena.
Tropos Networks, another big name in wireless broadband mesh networks, joined the outdoor Wireless-N club with its latest line of 802.11n-based wireless routers. The new line includes three routers: Tropos 7320, Tropos 6320, and Tropos 6310. All three are mesh outdoor routers; however, each has its own distinctive design and features.
The Tropos 7320 outdoor mesh router is the company's flagship product and it supports 2.4GHz- and 5GHz-based clients and has flexible configuration options. The router's modular design can accommodate different types of antennas to fit a range of coverage-area types.
The Tropos 7320 can be powered traditionally with a power adapter or via Power-Over-Ethernet (POE) technology, which eliminates the need for separate power connections. It also has an optional integrated battery-backup module for use in the case of a power outage.
The Tropos 6320 is much like the Tropos 7320, minus the flexible configuration. The 6320 has a compact and lightweight design that can be mounted easily almost anywhere.
Lastly, the Tropos 6310 is an economical solution for networks with light traffic loads or for an add-in wireless solution for existing networks. The router is also compact and lightweight, but it only supports the 2.4GHz band.
These routers have 802.11n wireless, are optimized for outdoor applications, and run Tropos Mesh OS. They are fully interoperable with Tropos' existing line of fixed and mobile mesh routers, including those based on the legacy 802.11g standard.
Together with the introduction of these new routers, the company also announced its plan to immediately reduce the prices of its existing 802.11a/b/g-based routers by 29 percent.
The new 802.11n routers from Tropos are available now with prices that vary depending on the configurations, but start at $2,995. Obviously, these are not routers for your home, but rather for large organizations or operators of large wireless hot spots.