Present Blog-IT thought leadership in Canada

The Ruckus Big Dogs Conference: new Wi-Fi solutions, new challenges

Written by Laurent Chayer_ | Oct 24, 2018 12:35:00 PM

Present had the honor of being invited to the Ruckus Big Dogs Conference held Oct. 9-11 in San Diego, California. This invitation-only event aims to exchange ideas and network among Ruckus' main business partners.

Ruckus, integrated into the Arris company since 2017, specializes in Wi-Fi solutions, including access points and IP switches. They took advantage of this partner event to make big announcements that shows that Ruckus wants to evolve along with the technological needs of the market.

 

Wi-Fi connections: a vast and diverse world

Business needs in terms of wireless connections are growing. A multitude of services can today be connected to a Wi-Fi network, and Ruckus intends to participate in the expansion of this technology.

Smart buildings that connect their heating, ventilation, air conditioning, door automation, lighting, surveillance cameras and irrigation to their Wi-Fi are proliferating. Ruckus predicts that by 2021, this range of services will make up 50% of Wi-Fi connections. This is an offering that will grow exponentially over the next few years. More and more companies will want to keep up with the pace of the market and provide themselves with high-performance multiservice Wi-Fi connections.

 

New Wi-Fi protocols and access points

Last July, Ruckus released its R730 access point, which uses the new 802.11 AX protocol. With 4 times faster speed, less interference, and supporting more devices at the same time, this new protocol is nearly as good as a wired connection.

In addition, the R730 access point incorporates the new Wi-Fi security protocol WPA3 which, launched in January 2018, will soon be the new standard for all wireless connections. Compared to its predecessor, WPA2, WPA3 offers much greater security against hacking, including additional protection of weak passwords and stronger data encryption, even for open networks. With the latest in cryptography technology, 192-bit encryption, WPA3 is great news for everything related to the security of sensitive data on devices that use a Wi-Fi connection.

Access points offered by Ruckus are also perfect for small deployments of 25 points or less. And it is possible to configure one of the access points to act as the master. The others will communicate with each other and take turns to ensure an optimal connection. This is a very sophisticated mini-network.

 

Private LTE network creation

An important announcement at the Ruckus Big Dogs Conference concerned private LTE networks. Ruckus announced that their equipment is capable of recreating this technology in a cellular network. This technology, whose main objective is to allow safe and fluid exchanges between members of the same organization via a private network, ensures:

  • Better coverage in terms of connection. Its protocols are more efficient than Wi-Fi, especially in a mobility situation. The connection field of an LTE base is 4 times bigger than a Wi-Fi base for data, and 11 times bigger for voice.
  • A higher quality connection. The frequencies released in the United States to make room for this technology are less used, less populous, and therefore more efficient.
  • Increased security. This network has been designed to secure data and prevent migration to other networks. A business that handles sensitive customer data, such as personal identification numbers or medical records, will be intrigued by this technology.

Ruckus was therefore proud to market its LTE 4G, stating that the 5G, even more powerful in terms of speed, would soon follow. For now, Ruckus' LTE private network is only available in the United States.

 

Conclusion

The Big Dogs Conference has allowed Ruckus, who is specialized in Wi-Fi solutions, to reaffirm, on the one hand, its importance in the technological field, and, on the other hand, its adaptability. Ruckus clearly wants to meet emerging market needs, and is continuously working to refine and improve its products to achieve this.

The company also shows a strong desire to strengthen its business relationships, as the organization of this partner event proves.

As a major Canadian partner, Present will take charge in supplying Ruckus' new devices to customers who will also be looking to keep pace with the changing technology of the market.

 

Image credit: Ruckus Network