Cisco's Cius tablet coming to Verizon LTE

Verizon Wireless will introduce Cisco's Cius tablet for its fast LTE mobile broadband network in the spring of 2011, and the companies will also offer LTE interfaces for Cisco's second-generation Integrated Services Router for small and medium-size businesses.

Cisco announced the Cius enterprise tablet last year and plans to begin shipping it in March. Verizon will be the first carrier to sell the Cius, the companies announced on Thursday at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Verizon's LTE (Long Term Evolution) network,launched in 37 markets in December, is now available to one-third of the U.S. population, according to Verizon.

The Cius will have 3G capability on Verizon as well, for connectivity where users cannot get LTE.

The Cius uses Google's Android OS and is designed to run Cisco collaboration applications, including video and other forms of communication, as well as other Android applications. It has a 7-inch diagonal touchscreen and includes Wi-Fi as well as mobile broadband capability.

The LTE interfaces for Cisco's ISR (Integrated Services Router) will allow enterprises to run bandwidth-intensive applications in locations where wired Internet connections are inconvenient or not available, opening the door to possibilities such as video-enabled automated teller machines and retail kiosks, the companies said in a press release.

The ISR platform is designed as an all-in-one connectivity platform for small and medium-size businesses and remote offices, with slots for a variety of modules for different functions. It has already been offered with 3G interfaces for remote or failover Internet connectivity.

Stephen Lawson covers mobile, storage and networking technologies for The IDG News Service. Follow Stephen on Twitter at @sdlawsonmedia. Stephen's e-mail address is stephen_lawson@idg.com

Sumber : http://www.itnews.com/tablet-pcs/27048/ciscos-cius-tablet-coming-verizon-lte