Magic Quadrant for Wireless LAN, 2H03. Evaluation Criteria

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1 Markets, K. Dulaney, R. Ahlawat, K. Hiller Research Note 13 August 2003 Magic Quadrant for Wireless LAN, 2H03 The market for wireless LAN products is entering a new phase in which it is no longer viewed as a stand-alone product market, but as an integral part of wired networks. Core Topic Wireless and Mobile: Mobile Infrastructure, Technologies and Markets Key Issue Which vendors will deliver effective mobile and wireless technologies, devices, infrastructures, applications and content? The wireless LAN (WLAN) market is saturated with startup and traditional networking vendors, both of which are introducing new hardware, management features and security solutions. Here, we examine the vendors in this space (see "Wireless LAN Segmentation and Success Factors" for an understanding of this market). Evaluation Criteria To be included in this Magic Quadrant, a vendor must: Be the primary producer of its product line. Outsourcing manufacturing is acceptable. (Note: A vendor need not be a chip designer or a component manufacturer.) Be shipping a minimum of one enterprise-class b hardware product or support b hardware products. Have WLAN hardware that can be integrated into a management framework. Possess enterprise-class support or well-defined support/service partnerships. Have demonstrated the intention of supporting the next generation of WLANs through pre-certified/pre-standard products or through a clearly presented road map. After meeting these qualification criteria, vendor evaluation is based on the vendor's vision and ability to execute in five departmental areas: finance, marketing, sales, operations and technology (see "Wireless LAN Magic Quadrant Evaluation Criteria"). During the development of this Magic Quadrant, vendor capabilities and proof points changed rapidly as some startups began to ship products. Vendor declarations of future capabilities Gartner Reproduction of this publication in any form without prior written permission is forbidden. The information contained herein has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable. Gartner disclaims all warranties as to the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of such information. Gartner shall have no liability for errors, omissions or inadequacies in the information contained herein or for interpretations thereof. The reader assumes sole responsibility for the selection of these materials to achieve its intended results. The opinions expressed herein are subject to change without notice.

2 were loud and incessant. We have discounted much of this hype to keep our analysis as even as possible. The large number of new capabilities that will be brought to market during the next six months portends rapid changes among the vendors. We expect vendor positions to change dramatically in our next review. We recommend that clients perform interim reviews with Gartner analysts to ensure that the latest information is applied to the decision-making process. Some of the vendors discussed in this report have not been Wi- Fi certified. Although products can operate without Wi-Fi certification, Gartner advises enterprise customers to look for Wi- Fi certification to ensure interoperability with adapter cards. We recommend caution when considering non-wi-fi-certified products, because supporting components and vendor add-ons can create interoperability issues, despite the use of standard Layer 2 chipsets. Although most products will eventually be certified, clients could incur costs to upgrade. Figure 1 Wireless LAN Magic Quadrant Challengers Leaders Cisco Ability to Execute Enterasys 3Com Vernier Nortel Proxim Vivato Symbol Bluesocket Airespace Aruba Trapeze As of August 2003 Niche Players Visionaries Completeness Completenessof ofvision Source: Gartner Research (August 2003) Vendors: 3Com Airespace Aruba Wireless Networks Bluesocket Cisco Systems Enterasys Networks Nortel Networks Proxim Symbol Technologies Trapeze Networks Vernier Networks Vivato The Vendors 3Com: 3Com's long-term goal is to move WLAN functionality back to the core, but it will start at the edge in For 2003, 3Com offers basic, second-generation WLAN equipment. We expect 3Com to rectify its deficiencies in 2004, but it will remain locked into its client base for the near future. Until then, 3Com 13 August

3 will focus on small and midsize businesses and will leverage its channel partners programs to follow this strategy. Despite its internal development program, 3Com is a candidate to acquire technology from among the vendors discussed here. Position: Niche Player/Visionary Airespace: Airespace markets products that are classified as third-generation edge switches, competing with Trapeze Networks and other wired incumbent providers. Airespace's value-added features are strong in intrusion detection and capacity management. Airespace has initially outpaced its competitors through early sales and a strategic alliance with NEC, but like other startup vendors, it will be challenged to succeed without a wired infrastructure business. Airespace has demonstrated a sound sales and marketing vision, but it must separate itself from the crowd quickly to ensure long-term viability. Position: Visionary Aruba Wireless Networks: Aruba Wireless Networks markets a core switch capable of functioning as an overlay system that is able to control third-party access points (APs), similar to Bluesocket. The company has poorly marketed the latter option, and it is unclear whether it can match the testing done by Bluesocket in the overlay mode. Aruba is a highly scalable product with a high-end price. Its feature set may be too extensive for some budgets, but Aruba has worked to bring the price more in line with its competition. Aruba will suffer from the lack of an established WLAN business; it must establish strategic partnerships to overcome this problem. Aruba appears to be well-financed for now, but it is still in the early stages of customer acquisition and rollout. Position: Visionary Bluesocket: Bluesocket's selling premise is that enterprises can do little to control the mixture of APs, and that its overlay solution can bring consistency to wireless networks. Bluesocket has had some impressive wins for its size, but the long-term market is limited. Thus, Bluesocket has been searching to find a broader market for its overlay products. Bluesocket contends that its management functions are superior in an all-cisco environment, which is a valid claim considering that Cisco Systems will not ship its product until This approach has worked to a limited extent, but will be tested as Cisco fills out this capability. Like other vendors, Bluesocket's lack of a wired incumbency will be an impediment as other mainstream LAN vendors improve their products. Position: Niche Player/Visionary Cisco Systems: Cisco is the leader in the delivery of WLAN products as a result of its dominant wired networking presence. Cisco is moving to seamlessly integrate wireless into its major structural components. Cisco's Structured Wireless-Aware 13 August

4 Network will first deliver a set of management products based on its CiscoWorks Wireless LAN Solution Engine server. Cisco will deliver the next phase in 2004 a wireless switch and router. Cisco products are well-designed, but typically have markups that demand premium prices from the client base. Cisco must prove that it can deliver products that match or exceed competitive offerings. Cisco intends to lead this segment for some time to come, primarily because of the networking manager's belief that homogeneity of network vendors is worth preserving, despite the increased cost. Position: Leader Enterasys Networks: Enterasys offers a wide range of data networking products and continues to target its established client base, where it has wired incumbency and familiarity. Its secondgeneration WLAN products have been shipping for some time; Enterasys must translate them into third-generation designs to better address customers' changing requirements. Enterasys has yet to deliver comprehensive wireless/wired switch architecture comparable to some of the startup vendors, but has the potential to succeed because of its strong enterprise presence and established channel network. Its priority should be to design integrated wireless and wired solutions before customers consider its competitors for technically superior/cutting-edge offerings. Position: Niche Player Nortel Networks: Nortel, like Cisco, comes to the WLAN market seeking to leverage its wired base. Nortel customers had been forced to seek out other vendors after Nortel's failed partnership with Symbol Technologies. Nortel returned to the WLAN market in 2003 with second-generation APs and has started to enter wireless switching. Its first products focus mainly on security, but also provide roaming, as well as integration with its Optivity network management product. Nortel plans to expand its offerings to include fully integrated LAN/WLAN switching in Expect Nortel to increase its push into WLANs, complementing basic data capability with voice communications. Position: Niche Player Proxim: Proxim was once the leader of the WLAN effort, with a strong entrenched base in the vertical markets. Proxim's purchase of Agere Systems and its ORiNOCO products was expected to help Proxim rebuild market share. However, financial problems that led to the departure of Proxim's longtime president and board member, David King, have derailed its recovery plan. Proxim must convince potential clients that it can add more value than the competition, as well as compete without wired products. Proxim's products are competent, but they do not match the designs of newer entrants such as Aruba and Trapeze. Proxim will begin to introduce third-generation products in Position: Niche Player 13 August

5 Symbol Technologies: Symbol started the movement to nextgeneration WLAN architectures with the introduction of Mobius Axon in Mobius (now known as Symbol Wireless Switch 5000) reduced the cost per square foot for deployments of four or more APs below that of deployments using exclusively intelligent APs. Expect Symbol to move toward a standard edge switch with wired and wireless capabilities in 2H03. Symbol struggles in the enterprise office space because its reputation is in vertical markets. William Nutti, the new Symbol president and former Cisco vice president, has expanded Symbol's goals for selling its products to the horizontal enterprise, yet faces huge challenges in recasting Symbol's networking offering. It may be necessary for Symbol to pursue an acquisition on the wired side to achieve this vision. Position: Visionary Trapeze Networks: Trapeze's edge switch product is wirelessand wired-lan-capable, However, Trapeze markets this product primarily in the WLAN category to avoid conflicts with Cisco. A lack of wired incumbency business could hurt Trapeze more than the other startup vendors because its products directly target mainstream networking components. A strategic relationship with an established enterprise that can compensate for this shortcoming is probably necessary during the next year. Trapeze's products have a strong array of features that from a marketing perspective are analogous to those of Cisco. Trapeze is an aggressive marketer, and will likely spend significantly in this area. Position: Visionary Vernier Networks: Vernier has the image of a WLAN security vendor, but views network management as an additional core competency of its overlay switch. One of its technical advantages is that network access is user-based, similar to cellular networks, and not network- or location-based. Hewlett-Packard has established a strategic partnership with Vernier to secure a place at the WLAN table until it can roll out its own products. We advise other networking vendors to pursue similar relationships to bring established products to market in a timely fashion. Position: Niche Player Vivato: Vivato has a unique design, placing all functionality into a phased array antenna that looks similar to a flat-panel television. This design should be considered for hot spot, public access or campus deployments, but could be used to cover one floor in an office building. Vivato is working on establishing a market presence. Position: Niche Player Other WLAN Equipment Providers Other WLAN equipment vendors are not included in the Magic Quadrant because they are part of a different target market or did 13 August

6 not meet the qualification criteria. We advise clients to consider some of these vendors in the evaluation process, depending on your enterprise's requirements. Wired Networking Vendors: Extreme Networks, Foundry Networks and Hewlett-Packard Extreme, Foundry and Hewlett-Packard plan to have third-generation WLAN products by year-end Hewlett-Packard resells Vernier's products today; therefore, Hewlett-Packard is not included in this rating. However, Vernier is rated on its own merits. Vendors Not Yet Shipping Products: AirFlow Networks, Chantry Networks and Legra Systems Airflow, Chantry and Legra are three additional startup vendors that plan on shipping products by year-end Small Office/Home Office Vendors: Buffalo Technology, D-Link Systems, Linksys/Cisco, Netgear and SMC Networks Small office/home office vendors play a role in enterprise purchasing decisions by fulfilling the needs of the teleworker. These vendors' products do not tie into an integrated management framework like the vendors evaluated for this Magic Quadrant. Enterprises seeking to equip teleworkers should evaluate equipment from these vendors. Specialized WLAN Equipment: Intermec Technologies, Psion Teklogix, ReefEdge WLAN vendors that address specialized vertical-market needs are not included in this Magic Quadrant; this does not indicate a lack of endorsement. Positioning them as niche player vendors would mask their value in their target markets. These vendors are not generally positioned from a sales or support perspective to fulfill the enterprisewide needs of most organizations or focus on certain specific verticals. Intermec and Psion/Teklogix offer specialized WLAN products for particular markets, such as warehousing. ReefEdge is an overlay vendor focused on government and vertical markets that is comparable to Bluesocket. Some of these vendors also resell mainstream WLAN products (which we have reviewed here) when clients insist on uniform solutions across the enterprise. Notable Resellers of Other Equipment: Avaya, Hewlett-Packard, LXE and Psion Teklogix Resellers are not included in our assessment of the WLAN equipment market. Clients that use a reseller might fare better on price, yet still receive the same quality of service and support. Avaya rebrands Proxim, Hewlett- Packard rebrands Proxim APs and Vernier switches, LXE resells Proxim, and Psion/Teklogix resells Cisco equipment. 13 August

7 Acronym Key AP LAN WI-Fi WLAN access point local-area network Wireless Fidelity wireless LAN Bottom Line: The selection of wireless LAN products has become simpler or more complex depending on the client viewpoint. Selection has become simpler because Cisco Systems has clearly established itself as the market leader. Clients with established Cisco wired infrastructures can easily extend them to wireless, albeit at the typical Cisco price premiums. Selection has become more complex because new architectures enable clients to customize WLAN features to meet different needs. The evolutionary state of the market portends major changes in the Niche Player and Visionary vendor landscape during the next six to 18 months. 13 August