NETGEAR 802.11b Wireless access Point Receives "Bang for the Buck" Designation

NETGEAR’s ME102 Compared Against Enterprise and Home/SOHO Wireless Access Points – Wins Praise for Stellar Performance and Great Price

SANTA CLARA, Calif. — December 16, 2002 — NETGEAR, Inc., a worldwide provider of easy-to-use, high performance networking products, today announced that its 802.11b Wireless Access Point (ME102) was awarded the "Bang for the Buck" designation for "stellar performance and great price" in a recent lab test performed by the Government Computer News (GCN) Lab. The comparison test pitted the NETGEAR access point against enterprise-class products from Cisco Systems, Proxim and 3Com, as well as home/SOHO products from D-Link, Linksys and SMC Networks.

"Despite the low price, its performance was impressive. For one, setting it up and getting it running took just a few minutes, with Microsoft Windows XP auto-detecting the PC Card on a lab notebook," wrote the GCN staff in an article detailing the ME102’s test results. "Once testing began, the ME102 distanced itself from the more expensive competitors we reviewed. The NETGEAR (ME102) offers amazing performance over a great distance."

The NETGEAR ME102 802.11b Wireless Access Point extends existing Ethernet-based networks to provide the performance-enhancing mobility of high-speed 11Mbps wireless access to network resources, e-mail and the Internet. With the ability to support up to 32 wireless users, the standards-based 802.11b product provides up to 128-bit WEP encryption for enhanced network protection.

"The results of this GCN Lab comparison test provide strong validation for our line of value-based products that are designed to provide business-class performance at affordable prices," stated Patrick Lo, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors of NETGEAR. "The test results confirm that the ME102 performs just as well, in many cases better, than the products from our enterprise-class competitors. NETGEAR is the go-to vendor for small- and medium-sized businesses that require high-performance, business class networking solutions without the enterprise-class prices."

The complete review, which was originally published on October 7, 2002, can be found online at: http://www.gcn.com/21_30/prod_reviews/20184-1.html.

About NETGEAR Inc.
NETGEAR provides branded, easy-to-use, reliable and technologically advanced networking solutions for homes and small businesses. Headquartered in the heart of Silicon Valley, Santa Clara, Calif., NETGEAR designs and develops products that enable home and small business users to share Internet access, peripherals, digital content and applications among multiple personal computers and other Internet-enabled devices. NETGEAR primarily markets and sells its products through distributors based in North America, Europe and the Asia/Pacific region to a network of resellers, including more than 4,500 retail stores, mail order catalogs and online retailers. For more information visit the company’s Web site at www.netgear.com or call (408.907.8000).

For more information:
Doug Hagan
NETGEAR Inc.
(408) 907-8053
doug.hagan@netgear.com

Ken Hagihara
Integrity Public Relations
(949) 768-4423
ken@integritypr.net