ZyXel Eases Hot-Spot Setup

That desire spells a significant opportunity for solution providers looking to build hot spots. Setting up a hot spot can be challenging, but solution providers will now find that task much easier with ZyXel's ZyAir B-4000 Hot Spot Gateway. The B-4000 is a hot-spot-in-a-box, consisting of an 802.11b router with integrated four-port 10/100 switch and a dedicated thermal receipt printer.

Solution providers will find setup of the unit easy. Simply plug in all of the components and run the included setup wizard, and the B-4000 is configured in a matter of minutes.

In practice, operating the B-4000 is quite easy. All a user has to do is push a button on the thermal printer and a receipt with a price, time limit and connection information is printed out. Two quick taps of the button doubles the amount of assigned access time. Price, time limits and other elements are all configurable.

CRN Test Center engineers found that the unit has good range and offers wireless speeds equivalent to most 802.11b solutions on the market. The four-port switch allows the unit to do double duty as the primary broadband connection device for an in-house network.

For sites that choose not to use the included thermal printer, the B-4000 offers a browser-based console for processing hot-spot sales and then printing the receipt on any local or network-accessible printer.

The B-4000 lends itself well to most any location where broadband is available. With the B-4000, solution providers can quickly roll out hot spots for most any business, enhancing the possibility of add-on sales such as networking services and broadband connections.