Category: News digest

Cisco Cius

It seems to me that Cisco want to compete with Apple on the touch screen devices market. The Cisco Cius product confirm this.

OK, skipping the funny part of this story, honestly I believe that Cisco is making efforts to take the (still) open part of the tablet devices market that is not so developed in this moment, and by this I mean the touch screen devices for professional use.

While companies like Apple focus their efforts to develop home use friendly devices, Cisco want to apply the same success recipe for the business sector. The launch of the iPad was enough to make Cisco think that Apple’s platform can be adapted for business use and in this idea they developed Cius.

The Cius will sport a a 7-inch screen, making it smaller and lighter than the iPad. Some highlights of the Cius technology are:

  • 802.11a/b/g/n Wi-Fi, 3G/4G data and Bluetooth 3.0 help employees stay connected on and off-campus
  • HD video (720p) with Cisco TelePresence solution interoperability for lifelike video communication with the simplicity of a phone call
  • Virtual desktop client enables highly secure access to cloud-based business applications
  • Android operating system, with access Android marketplace applications
  • Collaboration applications including Cisco Quad, Cisco Show and Share, WebEx, Presence, and IM
  • HD Soundstation supports Bluetooth and USB peripherals, 10/100/1000 wired connectivity and a handset option
  • Detachable and serviceable 8-hour battery for a full day of work
  • Highly secure remote connections with Cisco AnyConnect Security VPN Client
  • HD audio with wideband support (tablet, HD Soundstation)

Cisco is also negotiating with six phone companies around the world to procure their services for Cius. The tablet5 device from Cisco will feature the ability to connect to Wi-Fi hot spots and cellular broadband networks.

The Cius is expected to be sold for less than a $1,000 and if Cisco is able to make a dent in the sales of iPads by attracting customers, then I’m sure that other companies will jump on this “train” developing similar products.

Below, I you can enjoy 2 videos of the Cisco Cius product. One is the designed for the marketing purpose, but the second one has an interesting “hands on” demo.

Cisco EnergyWise fundamentals

Cisco EnergyWise is a key part of the Borderless Network concept. According to this document:

The network discovers Cisco EnergyWise manageable devices,
monitors their power consumption, and takes action based on business rules to reduce
power consumption. EnergyWise uses a unique domain-naming system to query and
summarize information from large sets of devices, making it simpler than traditional
network management capabilities. Cisco EnergyWise’s management interfaces allow
facilities and network management applications to communicate with endpoints and
each other using the network as a unifying fabric. The management interface uses
standard SNMP or SSL to integrate Cisco and third-party management systems

I know, I know you will say that it’s a lot of marketing and this is typically for Cisco, but let’s be fair. Tell me one company that is not marketing their product. It’s true that Cisco is quite aggressive in their campaigns, but we have to admit that many times the quality of the products meet our expectation.

Back to EnergyWise, I was lucky enough to have my question taken and being discussed in the live Cisco Borderless Network phase 2, European presentation, on 18th of March. I was curios about the following thing. The Phase 2 campaign was oriented on the power and energy saving, by controlling a lot of device power remotely and being able to shutdown an entire environment when it’s not needed. I asked how will Cisco EnergyWise accomplish this? Either controlling the power outlet in which a device (e.g. laptop) is connected or directly OVER the Ethernet wires.
Their answer was that in the moment Cisco is working closely with the companies that develop network cards, to make this compatible with EnergyWise to be able to power the device over the Ethernet wires. I know about PoE, but PoE is something different and I’m sure that it does not offer enough energy to power up a laptop.
When the recording of the live session will be available, I sure hope to get it and to posted here. In the meantime, I found a very nice explanation of the EnergyWise fundamentals from TechWiseTV. Enjoy it:

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Other Cisco Borderless Networks Related Articles in Internet

Cisco Visual Network Index (VNI)

Cisco Visual Network Index (VNI) is an interactive tool that can help you to forecast and analyze the growth and use of IP networks worldwide. Cisco VNI intiative includes distinct elements to provide a comprehensive view of the changing IP network landscape:

Cisco VNI Forecast is a model for the estimation of future global IP traffic growth.

This can help you to estimate global IP traffic growth using data sources like Application Type, Country and Region, Segment or Network. You can access this VNI Forecast Widget and using the Wizard Editor you can create your own forecast. If you have more experience, there is also an advanced editor to predict IP traffic growth. I’m going with the Wizard to show you what I mean and why I like this tool.

IP traffic estimation by Application Type. You can select what applications to check from Web/Email, File Sharing, Internet Gaming, Business Internet, IP WAN and many more. Following the Step by Step wizard you can end with the following graph:

I have checked all the applications in the diagram above.

Estimated IP traffic by country and region:

IP traffic estimation by segment:

And finally Estimation by Networks:

If you want to help Cisco and improve this estimations you can download 2 applications: Pulse which can be installed on a PC (too bad that there is no version for Linux or Mac) or GIST for mobile devices like Blackberry or Iphone.

To see how the statistics gathered from this software look, check on Ciscovnipulse.com. It’s a real nice interactive map where you can find useful information. I don’t know if this numbers are accurate, as they rely on volunteer users which install Cisco VNI software, but certainly they are trying to make a good job together. If this forecasts are true or not will see in the future.

Cisco and IDG international Innovation Awards 2010

Austrian Companies ASFINAG & X-Tention Win the Cisco and IDG international Innovation Awards 2010
ASFINAG scoops award for implementing reliable communication network in Austria’s tunnels and X-Tention takes prize for its use of innovative IT solutions to link doctor’s surgeries, care homes and hospitals.

Quoting Cisco Press release:

“ASFINAG rewarded for highly secure and reliable communication in Austria’s tunnels

ASFINAG Autobahnen- und Schnellstraßen-Finanzierungs-Aktiengesellschaft won the Cisco Innovation Award 2010 in the Most Innovative Unified Communications and Collaboration Project category for implementing the Cisco IP Interoperability and Collaboration System (IPICS) in Austria’s tunnels. This system permits ASFINAG to connect analog and digital networks, including landlines, mobile phones and the radio networks used by the fire and ambulance service and the police. These services all use different networks, which are not compatible with each other. In the event of an emergency, IPICS facilitates rapid and reliable communication with all the emergency services. IPICS has already proven its worth and is being used extensively in the Arlbergtunnel, Europe’s longest road tunnel.


X-Tention awarded prize for standardised exchange of patient files

X-Tention Informationstechnologie GmbH took the Cisco Innovation Award 2010 in the Most Innovative Data Centre Project of the Year category for its role in the Cisco Medical Data Exchange Solution (MDES) project. MDES is a technology for highly secure, standardised exchange of patient data between hospitals, care homes and doctor’s surgeries. MDES was developed by Cisco in cooperation with Tiani Spirit of Austria, a world leader in its area. X-Tention, a hospital IT specialist, implemented the system at the Klinikum Wels-Grieskirchen, currently Cisco’s international e-health reference for connecting hospitals, care homes and doctor’s surgeries via networks. X-Tention is also working with Cisco on a number of similar projects in Austria, Germany, Switzerland and South Africa.”

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Read the full news on Cisco.com Press release…

Cisco quits WiMax radio business

WiMAX, meaning Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access, is a telecommunications technology that provides wireless transmission of data using a variety of transmission modes, from point-to-multipoint links to portable and fully mobile internet access. The technology provides up to 10 Mbps broadband speed without the need for cables. The technology is based on the IEEE 802.16 standard (also called Broadband Wireless Access).

The bandwidth and range of WiMAX make it suitable for the following potential applications:

* Connecting Wi-Fi hotspots to the Internet.
* Providing a wireless alternative to cable and DSL for “last mile” broadband access.
* Providing data, telecommunications and IPTV services (triple play).
* Providing a source of Internet connectivity as part of a business continuity plan. That is, if a business has both a fixed and a wireless Internet connection, especially from unrelated providers, they are unlikely to be affected by the same service outage.
* Providing portable connectivity.

Quoting NetworkWorld.com:

“Cisco Systems will stop developing and making WiMax base stations to concentrate on the IP (Internet Protocol) networks that sit behind them.

Cisco acquired Navini Networks, which made WiMax RAN (radio access network) equipment, in 2007. The dominant IP networking company said at the time that it saw a powerful opportunity to bring broadband Internet access to developing countries through WiMax.

However, despite hitting the market first, WiMax has taken a back seat to LTE (Long-Term Evolution) as a 4G (fourth-generation) mobile technology. LTE is backed by the industry body behind GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) and is on the road maps of most major carriers that have chosen a 4G system. In the U.S., Verizon Wireless plans to launch LTE commercially this year and AT&T will follow next year. ”

Read the full article on NetworkWorld.com…