The Neon Rush

Behind the veil of Taiwan's networking scene

Aug 20, 2009 14:23

When it comes to the latest gear, we know all the brands sold in the local electronics shop, but do we know who really manufacturers these products?

I can share my experience with the sector I'm most familiar with: Home networking gear. The products in this category you'd recognize would be wireless routers, modems, network attached storage (NAS), and maybe an Ethernet switch if you're piecing together a large home network.

Most of these devices have become commodity items, in my opinion. There's nothing sexy about the latest router from D-Link, Netgear or Linksys. You install it once and if it does its job correctly, hopefully, you will never touch it again.  

Is there any big news coming from the networking industry? Next month, the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) will finalize the 802.11n standard which offers wireless speeds of up to 600Mbps. That's a big jump over the older standard (802.11g) which provided a maximum throughput of only 54Mbps.  

Regardless, this won't make a splash in the media you read unless it's a really slow news day. Fast wireless has its place and definitely offers convenience, but any hardcore user will ALWAYS choose a wired connection over wireless due to its iron tank reliability and resistance to outside interference.

Being in Taiwan, I'd like to offer a quick glance at some of the suppliers to the big brands found in your local electronics retailer. The following is a list of contract manufacturers that do the R&D and production, while the brands are responsible for wrapping the devices in pretty packaging (marketing) and distributing to markets worldwide.  

D-Link

• Alpha Networks--D-Link's biggest partner factory, listed on the Taiex since 2004.


• Cameo--Good-quality routers, low return rate.


• Amit--Also a router supplier, HQ in the south of Taiwan.

Netgear (my personal choice because it has a smooth marketing style)

• Delta Networks

HP (known mostly for computers but also provides a lot of networking gear)

• Accton--It also delivers gear for second-tier brands such as SMC and LevelOne.

3com (one of the oldest IT brands, it founded Ethernet)

• Sercomm--It also makes IP cameras.

Linksys (bought by Cisco a couple of years ago)

• CyberTAN--Focuses more on the digital home movement.

Most of these OEM/ODM partnerships have been going on for years. It's very much a "you scratch my back, I'll scratch yours" arrangement, as long as the price is right, of course.

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