Asante Ships First Stackable Fast Ethernet Hub; AsanteFAST 100 Hub Joins 10/100 Adapter In 'Next Generation' Solutions; Delivers Faster Performance And Easy, Affordable Network Migration.

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 17, 1995--Asante Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: ASNT), a leading provider of Ethernet networking products for PC and Macintosh(r) computers, today announced the release of the AsanteFAST 100 Hub, a new 12-port stackable Fast Ethernet hub. The AsanteFAST 100 Hub offers an easy and cost-effective way to upgrade computer networks to 100Mbps Fast Ethernet as network congestion "hot spots" arise - providing both immediate performance improvements and flexible expansion capability to add bandwidth capacity as needed. The AsanteFAST 100 hub is priced at US $1,995 MSRP.

Delivering a range of features and functionality that provide companies with an easy migration path to 100BASE-TX networking and speeds 10 times faster than standard 10BASE-T Ethernet, the AsanteFAST 100 Hub offers support for multiple computer platforms, NWay(tm) Auto-Negotiation, easy installation, and stackability to 118 ports -- the largest Fast Ethernet collision domain on the market. Asante's new hub is designed to address the performance and throughput requirements of bandwidth-intensive applications, such as desktop publishing, pre-press, digital video processing, graphic modeling, medical imaging, and others.

Following the release last month of its Fast Ethernet counterpart -- the AsanteFAST 10/100 Adapter, a PCI card for PC and Power Macintosh computers -- the AsanteFAST 100 Hub is the latest in Asante's award-winning product line, including Ethernet adapter cards, intelligent and non-intelligent Ethernet hubs, and network management software for PC and Macintosh computers.

"Asante products are created with affordability, plug-and-play ease-of-use, and reliable solutions in mind," said Paul Smith, vice president of marketing at Asante. "AsanteFAST is ideal for companies where network bottlenecks are bringing productivity to a standstill. Many are looking for efficient ways to upgrade high-bandwidth workgroups without having to convert the entire network infrastructure."

The AsanteFAST 100 Hub and 10/100 Adapter are designed to give companies a network migration path that matches their own growth path. The hub, for example, offers immediate performance gains to a workgroup of 12 users as well as an effective way to expand Fast Ethernet throughout the enterprise on an as-needed basis -- to a total of 60 users supported on each "stack" and a maximum of two stacks on a single collision domain running 100BASE-TX. The adapter, on the other hand, provides dual-speed capability for maximum migration flexibility. With support for both 10Mbps and 100Mbps, the card offers customers the option to buy now for 10BASE-T networking, taking advantage of the high-performance design and PCI bus throughput now, and power up later when they're ready for Fast Ethernet.

AsanteFAST also makes the process of migration from 10Mbps to 100Mbps networking virtually risk-free and trouble-free. Both the hub and adapter card have implemented National Semiconductor's NWay(tm) Auto-Negotiation technology. Using NWay, the AsanteFAST adapter will automatically negotiate the network connection to 10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX, 100BASE-TX full duplex, or 10BASE-T full duplex without user intervention. If an incompatible connection is attempted, such as 100BASE-T4, the adapter will detect it and auto-partition the port to eliminate interference with other ports. The AsanteFAST 100 Hub also is equipped with this crash-proofing feature -- checking for compatibility between the adapter connections and the hub. This preserves the integrity of the network and minimizes downtime.

Both the AsanteFAST adapter and hub are fully compliant with industry specifications for Fast Ethernet, including the IEEE 802.3u standard approved last month by IEEE. As a steering committee member of the Fast Ethernet Alliance, Asante has worked extensively with more than 75 networking companies to encourage standardization of Fast Ethernet solutions for user interoperability. The Fast Ethernet standard is based on the same CSMA/CD media access method of standard Ethernet, allowing data to move between 10BASE-T and 100BASE-T nodes without protocol translation.

PRODUCT HIGHLIGHTS

AsanteFAST 100 Hub

o Stackability -- No special cables are required to expand network capacity. Five hubs may be stacked together using an expansion card that transmits the signals between units. The Asante hub provides 12 RJ-45 connector ports located on the front panel as well as an additional RJ-45 uplink port used to connect two cascading stacks (up to five meters away) for a total potential capacity of 118 ports. The Asante hub is a Class II repeater, allowing two repeater sets between any two nodes within a single collision domain.

o Multi-Platform -- The AsanteFAST 100 Hub is actually platform independent, allowing easy connection to 100BASE-TX-equipped PCs, Macs and workstations.

o Pricing -- At $166 per port, the AsanteFAST 100 Hub is nearly $50 less per port than other Fast Ethernet hubs expected to ship this year.

AsanteFAST 10/100 Adapter

o Cross-Platform Support -- The Asante card provides all-in-one compatibility to 10BASE-T and 100BASE-TX Ethernet networks for both PC and Macintosh PCI-based computers. The card ships with a single disk containing drivers for both platforms. This is an ease-of-use issue benefiting both the customer and the retailer, who only deals with one product on the shelf and one SKU.

o PCI bus, which the AsanteFAST adapter card supports, is an industry-standard technology and the next-generation bus architecture after ISA and EISA buses found in many PCs and the NuBus and PDS architectures found in Macintosh models prior to the Power Macintosh 9500. Asante's PCI card uses a 32 bit bus mastering design that allows maximum throughput without loading down the host CPU. The high-bandwidth adapter is ideal for installation in a network server requiring high-speed throughput and low CPU utilization for maximum performance.

o Plug-and-play installation and usability -- The AsanteFAST adapter saves time and money. Simply plug the card into the computer's PCI slot and it is automatically configured to the system on power-up, without using jumpers or switches. For added ease-of-use, the adapter has four LED lights for trouble-shooting. LEDs indicate connection to 10BASE-T operation, 100BASE-TX operation, link integrity and data traffic. All popular LAN operating systems are supported, including NetWare 3.x, NetWare 4.x, Windows NT 3.1, Windows NT 3.5, Windows for Workgroups, MS LAN Manager, TCP/IP, Open Transport Driver (Power Mac). Support for Windows 95 will be added to the adapter card later this year.

AsanteFAST products are expected to be widely available by early August through a network of VARs, system integrators, computer retail stores, and manufacturers' representatives worldwide. Asante's direct sales force in San Jose also sells the AsanteFAST hub and adapter to higher education customers. The AsanteFAST hub and adapter, like all Asante products, are covered under a unique lifetime warranty plan, guaranteeing free technical support and replacement of defective products.

About Asante

Founded in 1988, Asante Technologies Inc. manufactures and markets a full line of high-performance products for Ethernet networks, including PC and Macintosh adapter cards, intelligent and non-intelligent hubs, and network management software. Asante products are available worldwide through a network of North American and international distributors.

CONTACT: Asante Technologies, Inc.

Jennifer C. Doettling, 408/435-8401 x282

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Hi-Tech Communications

Lynne Rocha, 415/904-7000 x290