Compare These Top Vendors for Wide Area Network (WAN) Cards

Wide area network (WAN) cards provide great benefits. Giving employees wireless capability will enable them to be flexible, mobile, and more productive, particularly if you have traveling employees such as salespeople. Checking for their email messages frequently can increase sales.

You can be in an airport and connect to its network and get your messages, all because of a wireless card. This also applies to staying in a hotel. There's no more need to worrying about hooking up network cables to your laptop or using dongles that can break. Here are reasons to consider WAN cards:

1. WAN network cards reduce costs

2. WAN card networking accessories increase flexibility

3. Wireless wide area network cards reduce time for installation and configuration

Use wide area network cards in your mobile devices

You don't need a laptop or Tablet PC to connect to the WAN network. You can have other mobile devices, such as PDAs (personal digital assistants) or cell phones. Some devices either come with WAN network cards or they're already built into your system. If your laptops do not have built-in cards, you can purchase them at Best Buy or Circuit City. The wide area network card is the size of a credit card; just slide the card into a slot on your laptop. Your employees can connect to your network through your VPN (virtual private tetwork); they can access their e-mail messages, your file server, or intranet.

Access a wireless Internet provider's network

Wireless network area cards enable you to access a wireless Internet provider's network. The providers transmit your data to other network devices, including servers, routers, and switches. These devices are located both at the provider's network and the Internet. Carriers use different protocols. For example, AT&T uses UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommunications System) and HSDPA (High-Speed Downlink Packet Access). Sprint, on the other hand, uses EV-DO (Evolution-Data Optimized or Evolution-Data Only). When you sign up with one of the wireless providers, make sure your WAN card is compatible with the WAN service provider's protocol.

Sign up with a telecommunications carrier

You have a wide selection of telecommunications carriers to choose from: AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, and others. These wide area network providers are the ones who transmit your email messages to your recipients and vice versa. Your messages travel over their high-speed wireless networks. Their coverage is similar to their digital cell phone networks. They have invested heavily in reliable and high-quality WAN card networking equipment, such as Cisco routers and switches.

• Does your company have VPN access? If not, you should consult with a representative from HP or Cisco.