Cradlepoint debuts new 5G FWA router, targeting carrier SMB customers

Today, the Ericsson company Cradlepoint released its X10 5G router, purposely designed to provide service providers with a fixed wireless access (FWA) router for their small and medium-sized business customers (SMBs).

The X10 5G router connects with Cradlepoint’s NetCloud Manager software so that service providers can offer tiered security and quality of service (QoS)-based plans.
 

Cradlepoint was an early SD-WAN player. SD-WAN overlays software on top of various connections — whether they be MPLS, internet broadband or wireless — and the software chooses the best connection at any given time on a dynamic basis. SD-WAN is also great for failover protection, so if one form of connectivity has a problem, another connectivity option will dynamically take over.

Cradlepoint has found great success in providing failover SD-WAN connectivity for businesses. “I think we have a very strong play in the wireless WAN edge,” said Tony Puopolo, Cradlepoint’s SVP of sales for global service providers. “We were already the leaders in failover with 4G, but now fixed wireless access is the fastest growing part of the market in the wireless WAN. With the X10 we’re really getting into that space.”

Targeted to service providers

The company has made various announcements over the last few years with operators, including AT&T and Verizon, but it’s been largely focused on the enterprise space. Puopolo said the new X10 5G router brings enterprise-class features that service providers can now offer to their SMB customers.

According to the hardware specs, the router is also certified for T-Mobile’s network.

Cradlepoint declined to say how much the X10 5G router costs. “The target is for companies who are willing to pay a slight premium for a higher performance FWA solution,” said Puopolo. The X10 has higher levels of security and quality of service, and service providers will be able to stack on additional services and then charger their customers for those services.

The router was designed by Cradlepoint, and it is manufactured in Taiwan.

Billy Neal, senior product marketing manager with Cradlepoint, said the company sees a huge potential market for SMBs to use fixed wireless. He said some data that the company has been looking at finds that 29% of North American SMBs are either using or evaluating FWA for their primary business connection.

Puopolo said, “We’re already participating very heavily in the failover space. It’s kind of natural for service providers who provide failover to transition to fixed wireless, and then high-performance fixed wireless. With the X10 we can offer all three in one.”