Aruba unveils low-priced WLAN gear

Aruba Networks Tuesday showed off a new family of low-priced wireless LAN access points and controllers designed for fast setup and easy management at branch offices, teleworkers' home offices and small businesses.

Customers plug in the new remote access points, connect them to a gateway or other WAN link, and the devices automatically connect to a central Aruba controller and download the necessary WLAN security, usage and management configurations for the local site and its user, the company says. The access points and local controllers can be administered remotely. No VPN software needs to be loaded on to local clients.

To do this, Aruba used existing consumer products available from a contract manufacturer, but with new software, including an integrated firewall, to download and enforce enterprise-grade security and management policies. This strategy means Aruba could price the new gear aggressively: one access point model for one to five users is $99, another model that supports as many as 50 users and includes 802.11n, is $395. The new controller, for as many as 256 users, is $1,495.