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AP8250
802.11 a/b/g Wireless PC Card
The 3Com AP8250 is one of the most futuristic shapes of AP we have seen. Once the unit has been plugged in and powered on, configuration is done using the 3Com Wireless Infrastucture Device Manager, which is bundled on the included CD with various other tools and utilities. This device manager takes a few seconds to install on a host PC, and allows the administrator to configure any 3Com APs it detects. Once the initial pre-IP configuration has been completed, the operator is then launched straight into a browser-based configuration screen that offers the choice of advanced setup or a setup wizard for the remainder of the configuration.
Overall this is a very neat enterprise-orientated product with a excellent feature set, particularly in security. It's very easy to deploy and looks good too.
3Com also sent a dual-frequency (2.4GHz and 5.0GHz) network interface card, allowing the user to connect to any hotspot or wireless network they encounter. 3Com has also included features such as WPA, autonomous load balancing (ALB), and 802.1x support. There are also proprietary 3Com security features too, such as 3Com's Serial authentication (using EAP-TLS and EAP-MD5) and Dynamic Security Link, both of which require compatible 3Com APs to work. If you are deploying all 3Com-branded wireless equipment into a new site or looking to replace all existing wireless cards and APs, these products may deliver a edge above and beyond the wireless security standards that exist today. But don't forget you would be locked into a single vendor environment for the life of the technology.
| Product | 3Com Wireless LAN Access Point 8250 |
| Price | Access point AU$700, NIC from AU$99 |
| Vendor | 3Com |
| Phone | 1800 678 515 |
| Web | ap.3com.com |
| Interoperability |  |
| Upgradablr to support 802.11a,b, and g standards; works well in a managed environment. | |
| Futureproofing |  |
| Good support for current WLAN security standards. | |
| ROI |  ½ |
| A little on the expensive side. | |
| Service |  |
| One-year warranty is a little below the average for an access point, but an extended warranty is available. | |
| Rating |  |
