NSN updates ROADM, integrates 40G

Nokia Siemens Networks today introduced a new version of its Surpass hiT 7300 metro/regional optical platform that increases its remotely configurable multiplexing capabilities and moves 40-gigabit-per-second interfaces from a separate box to an internally inserted circuit pack.

The new release, version 4.25, takes the 7300’s remotely configurable muxing capabilities from six degrees to eight by replacing its wavelength-selective switch (WSS) photonic crossconnect, based on planar lightwave circuits, with one based on MEMS (microelectrical mechanical systems – essentially tiny tilting mirrors that direct optical signals).

Last summer, when NSN introduced the six-degree version of the 7300, it refused to say how many degrees the WSS supported, claiming it was a competitive differentiator. “I wish I could just shout it out,” Hans-Juergen Schmidtke, head of NSN’s fixed operators group, said at the time. “But we don’t want to disclose that.”

But the eight degrees NSN is hailing nine months later doesn't surpass the number included in Fujitsu's 7500 or Tellabs' 7100, according to Dell'Oro analyst Jimmy Yu, who added, "A lot of vendors don't need large ROADM-configured product options to be considered competitive; it depends on their market and who they are targeting as customers...Each application and each configuration in the metro requires a different number of n-degrees in a ROADM configuration. So sometime a fixed-OADM is good enough."

Release 4.25, generally available in May, also includes 40G circuit packs that can be inserted directly into the main shelf; whereas the previous version required a separate 40G box from NSN’s partner, StrataLight (now Opnext) on an adjunct shelf. Moving those 40G interfaces into the main shelf will save carriers the expense of the extra shelf, a controller card, software and cabling related to the partner box, NSN said.

The new product also includes a half-sized horizontally oriented “flat pack” that allows customers to mount six equipment shelves on a single rack. The flat pack can also accommodate some of the more common requirements of the enterprise world, such as 19-inch racks and AC or DC power. And it can be useful in smaller networks – with only a few channels, for example -- where the standard 7300 would be overkill. “It’s really optimized for metro, metro access applications,” said Pathmal Gunawardana, head of business development for NSN’s optical connectivity division.