Netgear aims to bridge the gap between traditional SMB storage offerings and those normally reserved for the enterprise with its latest network storage platform targeted at SMBs.
Netgear has abandoned the ‘simple affordability’ philosophy of its previous SMB network storage offerings, debuting its ReadyData 5200 range which it says offers enterprise-class features and an ‘easy conversation’ for resellers.
Peter Levett, Netgear storage product architect and lead product architect for the ReadyData 5200, says while simple affordability has been the focus in Netgear’s previous ranges, the ReadyData platform offers ‘the best of both worlds with advanced functionality while keeping away from complexity at the same time’.
Levett, who dubs Netgear ‘the biggest storage vendor that no one has ever heard of’, says ReadyData is ‘a new generation of storage’, bridging the gap between traditional offerings for SMBs and the higher end enterprise offerings.
The platform, which Netgear says offers easy-to-deploy, enterprise level data management with in-built data protection and disaster recovery at an SMB-friendly price point, was launched in New Zealand last month.
ReadyData offers native deduplication, thin provisioning, unlimited snapshot functionality, instant volume creation and cloud managed smart block-level replication.
Ryan Parker, Netgear Australia and New Zealand managing director, says SMBs have the same problems around data growth as enterprises, but don’t have the big budget to spend, or an IT department to handle the complexity of many systems.
Levett says the offering will make for ‘an easier conversation’ for resellers to have with customers. “It’s an easier conversation to have with customers because it’s one solution solving lots of problems. It’s greater than the sum of its parts.”
Levett says ReadyData’s deduplication in itself is ‘a very powerful feature to have’ enabling customers to maximise storage capacity. “The potential savings in storage [through deduplication] are awesome. And they are just as awesome for SMBs as for enterprises.”
He says Netgear can’t take full credit for the development of the platform. “All we did was listen to the channel. We didn’t invent these concepts, we just made it really easy to adopt, and affordable.”
He says many vendors are ‘a little ignorant and just cut out features’ for the SMB market. “But [SMBs] want and need the features, just not the complexity and cost. We’ve made it more palatable both on price and simplicity.”
Kent Dapiere, Netgear New Zealand territory manager, says he expects the ReadyData 5200 to appeal to both resellers focused on managed services and those ‘traditional’ IT resellers providing hardware.