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Broadband Wireless
Performance Testing |
Toronto Hydro Telecom One Zone
Delivers Best Broadband Wireless Performance in North America
Other topics:
WiMAX Technology Solutions,
WiMAX Arab Deployment
BUSINESS WIRE
January 23, 2007
Toronto, Canada -- TORONTO HYDRO TELECOM INC. today announced the results
of independent third-party performance testing of its broadband wireless
network, known as One Zone TM -- the largest ubiquitous Wi-Fi zone of
its kind in Canada. One Zone consistently delivered Internet upload and
download rates at a blistering 5 Mbps, far surpassing the performance of
all other tested networks including Wireless Philadelphia, a citywide
Wi-Fi initiative currently still under construction, and Google’s Wi-Fi
network in Mountain View, California. |
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One Zone is powered by
Siemens Mesh@vantage MR product family, which includes industry-leading
broadband wireless mesh technology from BelAir Networks.
“The results of this independent testing validate our network design and
business model,” said David Dobbin, President, Toronto Hydro Telecom.
“We set out to deliver the highest performance, with coverage both
outside and extending indoors to support business and residential
customers. We’ve achieved the speed, coverage and scalability that
really puts Toronto on the cutting edge of wireless technology and will
set a whole new standard for urban Wi-Fi performance.”
Testing was conducted in mid-December by Novarum Inc., an independent
consulting firm offering comprehensive broadband wireless advisory,
analysis and testing services. Novarum is developing the first
standardized benchmarks for overall wireless network performance. All of
the North American wireless mesh networks were tested from a user
perspective with industry-standard tools and methodology in Q3 and Q4 of
2006.
“We tested 41 wireless networks in 14 cities, and the performance of
Toronto Hydro Telecom’s One Zone, delivering speeds of up to 5 Mbps
bi-directionally, was stunning,” said Ken Biba, one of Novarum’s
analysts. “One Zone’s performance is better than my broadband connection
at home and, on average, five times faster than any of the other
networks we tested. Most impressive was the fact that this exceptional
performance is being delivered in the challenging environment of a dense
urban canyon.”
Covering six square kilometers, One Zone deployment was completed on
schedule, on December 31, 2006, and will launch commercially on March 7,
2007. Unlike many other municipal Wi-Fi networks in North America that
offer outdoor ‘wireless dial-up’ or ‘DSL lite’ performance, One Zone
provides users with seamless, untethered Internet access through readily
available Wi-Fi enabled devices.
“We believe a new generation of true broadband wireless networks are now
available and the Toronto Hydro Telecom One Zone reflects that new
standard of performance,” said Mark VanderHeyden, CEO, Siemens Networks
Inc. “Toronto Hydro Telecom did extensive research into wireless mesh
technologies before choosing Siemens Canada and our partner, BelAir
Networks, and they followed that up with extensive network planning. The
result was the fast and smooth deployment of what is now North America’s
top performing metro Wi-Fi network.”
About Toronto Hydro Telecom
Toronto Hydro Telecom Inc. is the telecom subsidiary of Toronto Hydro
Corporation, which is fully-owned by the City of Toronto. A highly
specialized and innovative provider of telecom services to businesses in
Toronto, Toronto Hydro Telecom owns and operates a fibre optic network
that spans 450 kilometres and connects more than 400 commercial office
buildings in Toronto with interconnections to utility-affiliated telecom
networks bordering the Greater Toronto Area.
About Novarum
Novarum Inc. provides comprehensive broadband wireless advisory,
analysis and testing services. Novarum’s management team offers over 50
years of combined technical, business and executive experience in the
wireless industry making it the ideal partner for service providers,
municipalities, enterprises or wireless infrastructure vendors seeking
trusted information on broadband wireless technologies and services. The
company is headquartered in San Francisco. For more information, please
visit www.novarum.com
Siemens in Canada
Siemens is one of the largest and most diversified companies in the
world, providing innovations in areas such as automation and control,
power, transportation, medical, information and communications, and
lighting. In Canada, Siemens is headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario,
with more than 7,500 employees located in 76 offices and seven major
manufacturing facilities. Sales for fiscal 2006 were $2.3 billion.
Siemens Networks Inc. provides and supports the communications equipment
business in Canada and focuses on the network needs of service
providers.
BelAir Networks
BelAir Networks is the first company to offer scalable, wide-area
wireless broadband solutions with the highest quality for data, voice
and video. BelAir’s wireless networking solutions are built on the only
multi-service architecture for wide-area wireless broadband deployments
of Wi-Fi, WiMAX, and 3G Cellular networks. Built specifically for
outdoor deployments, BelAir Networks’ patented solution delivers the
lowest cost per user and deploys in days, blending into the physical
infrastructure of downtown business districts, hotels and resorts, and
campuses. Founded in 2001, BelAir Networks is a privately held company.
For more info, visit www.belairnetworks.com. |
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