Today marks both the official company and product launch from AirMagnet, Inc. The company develops wireless network solutions, focusing on deploying, administering, securing, and troubleshooting wireless LANs. AirMagnet also announced today that it has secured $2 million in Series B funding. That brings total funding to date to $2.6 million.
AirMagnet’s first product, the AirMagnet Handheld, is a multi-dimensional application for 802.11 networks that runs on the Pocket PC platform. This application suite is designed to overcome obstacles inherent in setting up and administering complex WLANs, with the end-goal in mind being minimal channel interference and maximal network performance and security.
The AirMagnet Handheld application includes site survey tools, installation tools, security assessment tools, and performance and troubleshooting solutions. The goal, according to Dean Au, President and co-founder of AirMagnet, is to make it as easy as possible to set-up, maintain, and secure these networks.
Operating in the background of this, and future AirMagnet product releases is what the company calls AirWISE. This is the company’s patent pending intelligent analytical engine. As soon as the handheld is powered up, AirWISE begins collecting information about the WLAN in terms of network performance statistics, identifying and tracking individual wireless devices, monitoring network performance, pinpointing problems, and suggesting potential solutions. Dean Au led us through a product demo of the AirMagnet solution, which is available at the company’s Web site. Because it operates on the Pocket PC, the solution is particularly suited for easy to navigate mobile usage. There is even an odometer-style display that one can use to track down a particular access point! Users can also drill down through information screens until they find the type and amount of information they are seeking. The color displays are typically text and/or graphs of real-time network information.
The AirMagnet Handheld is available immediately for $2,495 including an 802.11 PC Card or Type II CF Card. The Pocket PC hardware is sold separately, and Au mentioned that the company currently supports several of the major hardware vendors including Compaq and HP.
