VoWLAN Eyes The Mainstream

Although VoWLAN technology has been available for some time in specific verticals, mainstream enterprises are beginning to show more interest in these deployments, solution providers said.

"We're just starting to see interest from the enterprise," said Dan Elliott, vice president of mobile technologies at CompuCom, Dallas. "They're looking to see where they can use [the technology and what the opportunities are."

For now, however, the biggest opportunities remain in niche markets such as health care, higher education, manufacturing and retail.

On the vendor front, Symbol Technologies and Spectralink have been providing wireless handsets that can be used over WLANs, and other companies have been extending capabilities to PDAs and notebooks.

Symbol, Holtsville, N.Y., teamed up with Kanata, Ontario-based Mitel Networks to integrate its wireless telephony gateway into Mitel's voice-over-3300 IP-PBX equipment, said Maureen Young, Mitel's director of enterprise wireless products.

The two companies previously offered a Symbol gateway add-on, but Young said integrating the two products will significantly reduce costs. "We wanted to eliminate a $25,000 piece of hardware on the LAN," she said.

The integrated 3300 solution will support Mitex wireless handsets, and with some add-on software, it will also support Symbol's wireless PDAs, Young said.

Meanwhile, Toshiba America Information Systems, Irvine, Calif., has stepped into the VoWLAN space with the Mobile Communications System, said Steve Medina, a director of mobility strategy and business development at the company.

Toshiba's product, slated for rollout next April, will include a server, a node controller and client applications that can be used over any standard Wi-Fi 802.11b network and IP-PBX equipment. The system will include protocols that allow users to move between subnets without losing a call or a data connection over the 802.11 network, Medina said.

Toshiba plans to start a beta program in January and is recruiting solution providers with experience in VoIP and wireless technology, he said.

Toshiba will also be providing a software-based IP phone technology that can be used with any Pocket PC 2000 device or Windows XP-based portable.

Other Pocket PC vendors, such as Hewlett-Packard, said they, too, will include soft-phone technology in upcoming portables.

But solution providers say the market for mobile PDAs that can handle VoWLAN technology is still in its early stages.

Lutfi Abed, CEO of Monterey Information Technologies, said the Monterey, Calif.-based solution provider is doing some limited VoWLAN implementations but is still using standard VoIP telephone equipment.

Monterey Information is using wireless VoIP to connect remote buildings in campus environments and in older buildings where running new wires can be challenging. But many hurdles, including limited quality of service, still have to be cleared, Abed said, adding that he's waiting for the 802.11e QoS standard for wireless networks to be ratified.