The Unfortunate 5000

Wi-Fi is great because it's simple and easy to use....if you're at home.  Ironically, if you're a small business, Wi-Fi can be a complete pain in the arse.

Most small businesses have limited IT staff that don't have the time or the inclination to be RF or Wi-Fi experts. Understanding the vagaries of how RF signals propagate, co-channel interference, 802.1x, link layer encryption isn't even a priority over watching the Evolution of Dance. They just want a wireless LAN system that doesn't require a PhD or becoming a lifetime member of "the human network" (let that one sink in....you'll get it soon).

Problem is, small businesses (20 to 500+ users) have basically two choices: 1) high-end, costly and cumbersome enterprise systems from Cisco, Aruba, et al or 2) low-end, feature-less APs that are literally cheap (and all that that implies).  This is one of the reasons why value-added distributors and resellers have had a hard time selling WLANs into the SMB market. Read "massive opportunity.

What's needed is a new breed of wireless LANs that combine only the features and functions that small business really need - packaged in a brain-dead simple manner.  Here's what's needed:

• Super simple installation and configuration
  All wizard-based, performed in minutes, not days.
• IT-lite deployment
  APs without wires (use the RF to create a full mesh) that configure themselves, just add power.
• Self tuning, self-healing, self-everything
  Entire WLAN self optimizes and heals. Not just by dynamic control of AP power and channels but steering around interference, finding the highest performing path to clients.
• Robust but simplified security
  No more configuration of individual laptops. System auto-configures client devices with the right SSID and encryption keys without human intervention. WOW. Now THAT would be cool.
• Increased capacity
  Read 802.11n.
• Buy-able
  A complete system to support 100 users for under $5,000.

There remains a massive opportunity to sell such as system to a hugely underserved market. 

The early WLAN switch guys have unsuccessfully tried to retrofit their high-end system to this market.  But things haven't worked out so great.  Meanwhile consumer Wi-Fi companies just don't have the focus or technology expertise to create such as system. A fourth generation of WLAN companies will emerge to address this trend. 

Watch this space.

Comments

[Faisal Khan]

To start off - I must say - well chosen title for the article. Having looked at Ruckus and then also after reading off from your blog, about Meraki, I keep wondering or asking the question - why cannot they both be one and the same. Meraki is offering (IMHO) what a lot of people who are looking at deployment simplicity - whilst your product offers what we would like to see inside of our homes - proper signals and jitter free communication.

Meraki's idea of having a Internet (read:web) based setup/installation seems like a big plus - privacy/hacking concerns aside, it seems to address the problem with respect to providing support to customers. Uniformity and in-front-of-you is what is attractive to 'us consumers'.

If Ruckus Wireless can make a mesh deployment solution as seamless and simplistic and economical as Meraki, you have a sure-shot winner!!!