Zyxel announced the WAC6552D-S, a weatherproof access point that delivers powerful WiFi in busy outdoor environments and minimizes total cost of ownership by enabling multiple APs to be mounted on the same pole without the interference that usually brings.
“The WAC6552D-S’s design represents a key evolution of outdoor APs,” said Crowley Wu, senior AVP of Zyxel’s Networking SBU. “The new AP replaces external antennas with smart internal antennas that solve the high-density challenge faced by outdoor environments like caravan parks, lodges, and campuses.”
Deploying and managing the access point is streamlined with simplified installation, zero-touch switching between standalone mode and controller management, and the Zyxel ONE Network utility, which lets administrators quickly assign IP addresses to multiple APs.
The device’s secret ingredient is its MIMO smart antenna.“Unlike the antennas of most outdoor APs, our smart antenna has significant tolerance for its broadcast angle and can adopt to changes in the environment,” Wu said. “For instance, parking a travel trailer near an AP is usually fatal for its signal, but the WAC6552D-S can automatically shape its signal to avoid obstacles and keep delivering the best wireless possible.”
The antenna also utilizes innovative Zyxel technology that’s been shown to outperform competitors in eliminating the performance-killing interference caused by multiple APs operating on the same channel.
The WAC6552D-S meets the IP67 weatherproof standard, indicating total protection against dust and similar particles as well as heavy rainfall.Deployment expenditure is minimized with the WAC6552D-S. The AP comes with a pole-mounting kit in the box and its interference-mitigating tech means more than one can be deployed on the same pole, reducing the steep costs of installing additional poles.
The AP’s compact 255 x 256-mm frame is just 62 mm thick and has a Gigabit Ethernet port and a console port. It uses the 802.11ac standard and Zyxel’s proprietary RF-first design to deliver wireless speeds of up to 300 and 866 Mbps for the 2.4 and 5 GHz bands, respectively.
The WAC6552D-S was designed with practicality at its heart, and that extends to its cost—which Zyxel has set at the most competitive price among all outdoor APs with IP67 protection. For more information, visit here.
