CommScope grows Ruckus Wi-Fi 6 offering for hospitality, MDUs and 'smart spaces'

CommScope (NASDAQ: COMM) this month announced the latest additions to its Wi-Fi 6 access point (AP) portfolio—the indoor Ruckus H550 and outdoor Ruckus T350—along with new enterprise and service-provider features in Ruckus SmartZoneOS.

As explained by the company's product announcement:

The modern device environment includes countless Wi-Fi-enabled end-user computing devices and a dizzying array of IoT endpoints enabled by multiple wireless technologies, including Wi-Fi, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) and Zigbee.

The H550 and T350 incorporate all three protocols, enabling organizations to deploy a single, converged network infrastructure that supports both end-user needs and operational needs, including building and energy management, asset tracking, physical security and telemetry.

Organizations can manage these new APs using any Ruckus management option, including SmartZoneOS-based network controllers, Ruckus Cloud and Ruckus Unleashed.

CommScope contends the H550 AP "powers the hyper-connected room," enabling hotel, apartment, dormitory and other multi-dwelling unit (MDU) owners and operators to deliver multiple 4K video streams, IPTV, virtual reality, VoIP and ultra-fast downloads, alongside support for IoT endpoints and associated applications such as connected entry and staff alerts, which are easily enabled using the Ruckus IoT Suite.

The company notes that with a slim, compact form factor and integrated switch ports, the H550 can be hidden discretely behind or next to cabinets, desks or televisions, providing PoE pass-through for VoIP phones and TVoIP.

For its part, the T350 AP delivers high-performance outdoor connectivity in a compact form factor, enabling it to meet the aesthetic requirements of smart spaces, community Wi-Fi installations, airports and other large public venues. In addition to built-in IoT capabilities the T350 includes a USB port to support additional wireless protocols.

Ruckus T350 Wi-Fi 6 outdoor access point from CommScope

The company says the T350 is built to handle the harshest outdoor conditions, including extreme temperatures, humidity, wind, salt and fog.

CommScope notes that "the new APs, like all other Ruckus APs and switches, serve as data sources for the artificial intelligence (AI)- and machine learning (ML)-powered network analytics capabilities available in Ruckus Analytics, for use in networks managed by Ruckus Cloud and SmartZoneOS-based network controllers."

Further, the company reports that its SmartZoneOS now powers a family of high-scale physical and virtual network controllers for use by service providers and large enterprises to manage wired and wireless networks. The new enhancements to the SmartZoneOS include:

Interoperability with Google’s Orion Wifi, which enables network operators to participate in the global cellular offload market.
Native integration of Hotspot 2.0 (including Release 3) and RadSec, which simplifies OpenRoaming operations for service providers, enhances subscriber, guest and visitor convenience and opens new opportunities for roaming-driven revenue.
A re-architected user interface that improves administrator experience through easy navigability, new search and “favorites” functionality, and faster response time.
Social login functionality, which makes it easier than ever for operators to facilitate a positive guest experience, and an enhanced captive portal that simplifies operations for administrators.

In customer testimonial remarks, Denton Meier, chief technology officer at Firefly Technologies, asserts, "We are excited to pair this new H550 Wi-Fi 6 wall access point with our current SmartZone management system. The Ruckus solutions always come through with exceptional performance and with the new Wi-Fi 6 features, we expect this AP to become our ‘go-to’ AP for all our MDU deployments. The dual IoT radios will simplify our installations and allow us to work simultaneously with multiple IoT vendors—key to our MDU strategy.”

Learn more at www.commscope.com.