AMP Inc, which specialises in the design and manufacture of connectors and interconnection subsystems, has become the latest licensee of Mountain View, California-based Proxim Inc’s RangeLAN2 technology for implementing wireless local area networks. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania-based AMP has incorporated the 2.4GHz frequency-hopping spread spectrum-based technology into PC Cards and AT Ethernet adaptor boards and a network Access Point for wireless local networks. AMP claims that its Access Point operates over the longest distance of any radio networking product in its class – up to 500 feet in normal office locations, 1,000 feet in open-space environments. It uses a multichannel approach to connect up to 15 local networks in the same physical space, at a speed of 1.6Mbps per channel, giving it an aggregate capacity of 24Mbps. AMP has also launched a point-to-point bridge, said to increase transmission distances to three miles. Although AMP’s system operates at a different speed from the proposed IEEE standard for wireless local networks, the firm was quick to reassure that it has every intention to comply once it has been standardised. AMP is also currently investigating whether to develop a Token Ring version of the system, but remains undecided. The AT board costs $600 (with the PC Card version costing $100 more); the Access Point costs $2,145; and the bridge will list for around $7,000, depending on configuration. All products are shipping now in the US, and regulatory approval – and availability – in Europe is imminent. They are also due to ship in the Asia/Pacific region sometime this quarter.
