Telstra has launched edge computing for IoT with products from Cradlepoint for its 5G network billing them as making 5G a viable alternative to fixed services.
It says the launch is a significant step in Telstra Enterprise’s broader plan to bring together its investment in 5G, simplified next generation plans, enterprise endpoints and managed services to provide a real alternative to fixed connections.
Edge computing for IoT is a hot topic: putting processing power at the edge can solve issues of latency, resilience, transferring massive amounts of redundant data to distant data centres, and more.
Telstra Enterprise group executive Michael Ebeid said 5G’s faster speeds, lower latency and greater network capacity had the potential to unlock a host of innovations and market opportunities, and revolutionise how organisations operate.
“With Cradlepoint and Telstra 5G, businesses can be online before the paint’s dry in a new office or before the trucks have arrived at a worksite. It’s also a powerful backup option for fixed networks,” he said.
Telstra says it now has 5G coverage in 47 cities and regional towns from more than 1,500 5G sites.
Cloud managed SD-WAN
The Cradlepoint products use SD-WAN technology and are managed by Cradlepoint’s NetCloud. According to Cradlepoint, NetCloud “enables customers to build and manage wireless WANs with complete lifecycle management, true zero-touch deployment, robust security, and SD-WAN traffic management for optimal application performance and reliability.”
The five Cradlepoint products to be offered will be
- W2000 Series 5G wideband adapters indoor and ruggedised outdoor 5G modem/antenna systems for 5G mobile access.
- E3000 Series –5G-optimised edge routers for small to midsized branches requiring advanced routing, SD-WAN and advanced security functionality at full 5G speeds.
- E300 Series – All-in-one 5G-ready edge routers for pop-up and smaller branch sites (to be launched later this quarter).
Supported by Telstra Managed Services
Telstra said all Cradlepoint edge routers include cloud-based network connection management, routing and security would be supported by Telstra’s managed service, which includes professional services, device installation and setup, lifecycle management and service assurance.
Cradlepoint chairman and CEO George Mulhern said the products were the first of their kind in the market and represented the culmination of several years of work by Cradlepoint engineers.
Cradlepoint announced its partnership with Telstra at Mobile World Congress Americas in October 2019, flagging it as a joint product development partnership.
“Telstra will tap into Cradlepoint’s deep enterprise cellular expertise and NetCloud platform to collaborate on the development of an integrated 5G modem and edge router solution that works seamlessly with its 5G mobile technology,” Cradlepoint said.
26GHz version coming
In February 2020 Cradlepoint announced the W2000 as the first product under the partnership, saying customer trials would start in April, and flagging a version, W4000, for millimetre wave 5G (26GHz), slated to be available in Q3 of 2020.
Cradlepoint also has a relationship with Microsoft, announced in January 2019under which it offers a prebuilt integration of its NetCloud service, NetCloud Edge Connector, for Azure IoT Central that allows organisations to connect IoT devices to applications built on the Microsoft Azure IoT Central platform “with complete visibility, security and control.”
