IBM unveils EoN product road map

IBM will release a series of new products in June as it steps up its Edge of Network (EoN) strategy aimed at simplifying the computing experience.

IBM will release a series of new products in June as it steps up its Edge of Network (EoN) strategy aimed at simplifying the computing experience.

David McAughtry, vice-president of marketing at EoN, said it will also announce several partnerships, including one with Bluetooth, in the next couple of weeks, to cement its strategy.

McAughtry said EoN was more than just a "marketing veneer over a set of products" and revolves around the idea that all devices, from wearable PCs to personalised servers, will sit on the edge of a network and be supplied with information from a central source.

He said EoN is just an extension of IBM's ebusiness strategy. "It's the final wave of (the e-business strategy) to create IBM-branded client devices that sit at the edge of the network. This is not the end of the PC business, it's the next stage. You will see classic devices in the EoN view too, but the message is simplification and choice."

EoN products on offer will include an all-in-one desktop, code-named Luxor, a next-generation desktop, codenamed Stardust, a thin-client computer, a DSL-based Web appliance and a wearable PC.

Sporting a 15in flat-panel monitor that is 75 per cent smaller than a typical desktop, Luxor will have two PCI slots and seven USB ports that will readily connect printers, modems and other plug-and-play devices.

Stardust will have up to seven USB ports, integrated ethernet capability and optional 256-bit encryption technology.

IBM will also launch a low-cost desktop, dubbed Vegas. It will have two USB ports and embedded ethernet and optional ASDL features. It is expected to cost less than £1,500 for a Pentium III or AMD chip, and will have two mini-PCI slots.

IBM's thin-client Network Station is designed for Linux, allowing users to create a customised environment. The Zero Footprint Network Station combines a Network Station Series 2200 with an IBM T55 flatpanel monitor.

A DSL-based internet appliance aimed at internet service providers (ISPs) and application service providers (ASPs) is also planned, as is a wearable PC the size of a paperback book which clips onto a belt and weighs less than 1lb.

IBM will also release a Netfinity 4000R server aimed at the ISP/ASP market this week. It will cost £2,500.