Metro Wi-Fi

Zhone is changing the game in metro Wi-Fi

“Zhone has taken Wi-Fi to a new level of performance and capability”

—Kevin Schoen, CEO - ACD.net

• Related Products
• SkyZhone
• More Information
• SkyZhone Frequently Asked Questions
• White Paper
• Carrier Class - The Essential Ingredient for Successful Metro Wi-Fi (620K PDF)

Application

Rarely has a new technology been judged as rapidly and emotionally as the earliest municipal based Wi-Fi projects.

Mixed technical success and spotty user experiences spawned complaints of poor bandwidth, unreliable network coverage and a conclusion that Wi-Fi as an access technology was “not up to the task”.

Seeking to revitalize the viability of metro Wi-Fi networks for commercial, municipal and public-safety applications, Zhone has developed SkyZhone.

SkyZhone greatly increases overall network capacity, RF coverage and network reliability when compared to the traditional solutions used in many of the first outdoor Wi-Fi projects. The system enhances the economics of metro Wi-Fi networks by giving network engineers the ability to leverage existing network backhaul facilities and greatly expanding the locations feasible for radio placement.

Solution: SkyZhone

SkyZhone is the industry’s first Wi-Fi access system designed from the ground up to be Carrier-Class.

SkyZhone enables a more reliable, lower latency, higher speed, lower cost network than the comparable solutions. SkyZhone is line powered from the CO over a DSL line, the same copper pairs that provide power, also provide high speed backhaul. SkyZhone uses IEEE 802.3ah Ethernet in the First Mile (EFM) standard to provide over 20 Mbps backhaul per radio.

SkyZhone employs an innovative All-MIMO design which greatly improves coverage and interference management improving the connectivity success with today’s widely varying consumer Wi-Fi devices. SkyZhone is offered in single and dual 802.11n access radio versions assuring the highest performance and compatibility with end devices.

Features & Benefits

• Support for true multi-service environments - SkyZhone provides a uniquely scalable solution to address the combined requirements of municipal, public-safety, and consumer needs.
• Support multimedia and bandwidth intensive applications - With up-to 22 Mbps of capacity per radio and low system latency -- video, voice, and gaming applications perform to user expectations.
• Superior network coverage - SkyZhone’s all-MIMO antenna design produces exceptional user device connectivity at distances up to 100% greater than solutions using “off-the-shelf” AP technology.
• Removes the limitations of multi-hop mesh - SkyZhone’s integrated DSL backhaul provides network planners the tools necessary to distribute capacity logically through the network eliminating the halving effect and bandwidth contention issues common with multi-hop mesh systems.
• Simplified network engineering - Place access radios where the users are. SkyZhone’s integrated line powering allows network planners open consideration of mounting assets. If you can get a phone line to a location, you can power and provide service with SkyZhone.
• Telco-grade reliability - Public safety applications demand reliability. SkyZhone has been engineered to provide telco-grade uptime and line powering facilitates ongoing operation even during extended AC power outages.
• Integrated network operations - SkyZhone is fully integrated with Zhone’s industry leading multi-service access platform and network management system, ZMS. Network operators can, for the first time, integrate Wi-Fi services into a larger, converged access network.
• Improved service viability - By expanding revenue opportunities to include a wide range of municipal, public-safety, and commercial applications – SkyZhone remedies many of the most poignant challenges of metro Wi-Fi.

Summary

Aided by the latest technology innovations, SkyZhone substantially raises the performance benchmark for multi-service metro Wi-Fi. Through its use of line powering, DSL backhaul, 802.11n, and all-MIMO antenna technology – SkyZhone allows service providers and municipalities to provide greater network coverage at higher bandwidth within a desired service area. Integrating Wi-Fi as part of a multi-service architecture extends the life of existing assets and enables network operators to profitably deliver a greater quantity of high value services with positive-ROI results. In addition to increased affordable backhaul capacity and greatly increased throughput, telco-grade reliability and guaranteed uptime via central office battery and generator backup make true carrier-class metro Wi-Fi a reality for the first time.