ARMONK, N.Y. (02/16/2000) - IBM Corp. is creating a set of customized computing devices and services to link users to corporate networks, the Internet and e-business applications.
As part of this grand plan, called Edge of the Network (EON), IBM will roll out all sorts of devices - from wearable PCs and Linux-ready thin clients to small Internet access-only appliances. Although IBM's PCbusiness posted big losses in 1999 - about $500 million - the company hopes to excel as a provider of easy-to-use Internet appliances.
EON demonstrates the direction IBM plans to follow now that it is out of the switching and routing business, according to Tom Nolle, president of CIMI Corp., a Vorhees, N.J., consultancy. Instead of selling a few routers, the company would rather sell large volumes of Web-appliances.
Among the products due for rollout is a Web caching device - a preloaded Netfinity 4000 series server running the Linux operating system, IBM executives say. Enterprise customers could buy these boxes for remote sites to cache the most popular Web pages - reducing the time it takes to retrieve the pages over the WAN from a company backbone or ISP. The box will be available sometime in the first half of this year - pricing was not available.
Also on the way is a broadband-enabled Internet appliance, code named I-Cruiser. Although aimed primarily at application service providers or ISPs, IBM is willing to sell I-Cruiser to enterprise networks. The device has a 10-inch screen and a lightweight operating system, and can be attached to a keyboard.
With the device, employees in, say, a brokerage house could use it to check stock quotes. Employees could also use I-Cruiser to log on to a company Web portal, do word processing, check pertinent Web sites and send e-mail, depending on the specific service provided.
The I-Cruiser will be available sometime in the first half of the year - pricing was not available.
IBM: www.ibm.com.