At CiscoLive Cancun we are introducing a new addition to the 800 ISR family, the new 800M Series. What does the "M" stand for? The "M" stands for modular, as this is the first 800 series platform with pluggable modules that give flexibility in the field.  Why do you need flexibility? The 800M is designed to operate in environments where 3G wireless is the primary mode of connectivity. For those of you with a cellphone, you are no doubt familiar with the large number of different service providers and 3G technologies. When designing the 800M we wanted to give our customers the ability to connect to any service provider in order to avoid lock-in, lower costs and improve redundancy. The modular platform enables customers to choose from serial and cellular connectivity without having to replace the chassis, which can be a challenge with fixed platforms.

In my last blog I talked about the challenges of last mile connectivity in developing countries. With the 800M we address present day business problems like secure transmission of data, lowering costs, and simplified management, while anticipating trends like the digitization of businesses and the Internet of Things (IoT). Some of the key 800M differentiators are:

• Secure connectivity-Integrated enterprise-class security that includes, VPN, firewall, and content filtering offers protection from all threat vectors.
• Flexibility between wired and wireless WAN connectivity-Broad support for wireless and wired technologies makes it easy to switch providers and lower WAN costs while increasing network availability and reliability.
• Lower capital and operation expenses-The single semi-modular platform includes an integrated Gigabit Ethernet switch, routing, multilayer security, the full Cisco IOS Software suite, multiple WAN interface choices, and Cisco IOx application hosting.
• Open development platform-Native application hosting improves performance of real-time local data collection and analysis.
• Comprehensive and centralized network management-Integrated device management includes Cisco Policy Management with monitoring and reporting. This also includes support for enterprise-class centralized provisioning and management using Cisco Prime Infrastructure.

For those of you attending CiscoLive Cancun, be sure to register for session PSORST-2800 to learn more about this exciting new platform. Or visit the Cisco World of Solutions Enterprise Booth.