Nortel Debuts New Router Line For Converged Networks

A month after completing its acquisition of router manufacturer Tasman Networks for $99.5 million, Nortel has released a new series of routers designed for converged networks.

Nortel's new Secure Router 1000 portfolio includes the 1001, 1002 and 1004 for small offices and branch offices, as well as the Secure Router 3120 for mid-range branch deployments. The routers are designed to bring converged, real-time applications including data, voice, video and streaming media, down to the branch office level.

The routers offer layer 3 routing, provisioning of firewalls, VPN and Quality of Service, and are designed to support IP telephony and other latency-sensitive applications such as streaming media.

Nortel CEO Bill Owen has been quoted as saying that Nortel was aware of its lack of having enterprise routers, and this release is clearly targeted at that need.

The announcement comes hard on the heels of the purchase of Tasman, a branch-office router vendor. For details about the Nortel purchase of Tasman, check out this this Podcast by Network Pipeline's David Greenfield of an interview with Mike Fitzgerald, Nortel's portfolio leader for enterprise routers.