Motorola Jumps Into Home Networking

Looking to tap into a growing market, Motorola‘s broadband unit today announced the retail availability of a key home networking component.

The SBG1000 is a cable modem, wireless networking access point, Ethernet router and switch, print server, and advanced firewall, all in one. In addition to PCs and laptops, the device links printers, fax machines, telephony equipment, and multiplayer game consoles.

Motorola said the offering also has enhanced security features that will differentiate it from competitors’ products. The systems guards against Denial of Service (DoS) attacks and detects intrusions.

“This new gateway makes it easy for any consumer — regardless of how technologically savvy — to fully experience the convenience of wireless networking,” said John Burke, a Motorola vice president.

In-Stat/MDR analysts predict home networking will grow 20 percent year over year through 2007.

Last month, Cisco Systems showed just how much it thought of the market by bidding $500 million in stock for Linksys.

Linksys, of Irvine, Calif., is a leading manufacturer of home networking products with a line of wired and wireless products for consumers and small office/home office (SOHO) users. Other players in the field include D-Link and Netgear.

Motorola’s SBG1000 is being sold at national electronics retailers Best Buy and Circuit City. Though the company is best know for its mobile phone headsets, it has closed a number of recent deals in the networking space.