Andrew Garcia

The recession that is strangling the economy is forcing enterprises to reduce the dollars available for both capital and operational expenses, and potential unified communications projects are not immune to the financial pressures. Given that, customers looking for UC solutions need to stay focused on the business objectives behind the initiative when considering products. They […]

Unison Server and Unison Desktop deliver a decent unified communications experience at a great price for companies looking for basic integration of communication channels at the desktop. However, due to a current lack of extensibility to mobile devices or other applications, Unison may not be a good fit for companies with more advanced UC needs. […]

In fall 2008 at CTIA, or more specifically at one of the satellite shows, I met with representatives of a company called Newber. They were writing an application for the iPhone. A little like GrandCentral, Newber provides users with a VOIP phone number, and the application redistributes calls received by that number to whatever number […]

Rules: Once you’ve been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 20 tech-related things, facts, habits or ideas about yourself. At the end, you will tag no one, since you should have forsworn chain letters years ago. However, if you want to share your tech idiosyncrasies, you can reach me at agarcia@eweek.com or […]

Following up on Scott Ferguson’s story on Cisco Systems’ new enterprise Aironet 1140 802.11n access point from a few weeks ago, I had an interesting conversation with Cisco’s senior manager of Mobility Solutions, Chris Kozup, about the new product line. For me, the most interesting technology improvement with the Aironet 1140 is ClientLink, Cisco’s take […]

With its AirMaestro solution, Bandspeed provides many enterprise-grade wireless LAN capabilities to small businesses at an affordable price, requiring minimal time or expertise to get started. While the system provided reliable service for wireless data and voice clients alike, shortcomings in AirMaestro’s centralized management capabilities will limit the appeal of the product only with the […]

Without a doubt, the first beta edition of the Windows 7 operation system indicates that Microsoft is on the right track to shore up many of the perceived flaws of Windows Vista. While not a ground-breaking release-Windows 7 is at its core very similar to Windows Vista-the new OS has adeptly taken advantage of under-developed […]

eWEEK Labs Walk-through: Microsoft Windows 7 Beta By Andrew Garcia Windows Install I’ve installed Windows 7 twice-one 32-bit version in a VMware virtual machine and a 64-bit iteration on a Dell XPS M1330. The installations averaged about 25 minutes to complete. Taskbar 1 Windows 7’s new taskbar automatically groups windows from the same applications, presenting […]

At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Palm finally pulled back the curtains on the Palm Pre–the first device based on the long-awaited, oft-delayed WebOS mobile operating system, previously known as “Nova.” Although early demonstrations indicate the platform is well designed and very slick, I think Palm’s latest release may be too little, too […]

“I just need AT&T to lower the service fees a little bit.” “Don’t count on it.” While these words could have been shared between any two people with a cell phone and a healthy suspicion of their cell phone operators, this lighthearted exchange actually took place in December between Doug Garland, vice president of product […]

eWEEK Labs Walk-Through: Bandspeed AirMaestro by Andrew Garcia AirMaestro 3100AG Bandspeed’s access point has three radios, allowing businesses to utilize the 2.4GHz and 5GHz band simultaneously and provide always-on Wi-Fi monitoring services. Connections Because Bandspeed’s APs do not yet support 802.11n, the 3100AG only offers a pair of 10/100 Ethernet ports (1 with PoE). Management […]

eWEEK Labs Walk-Through: RIM BlackBerry Bold Smartphone by Andrew Garcia Front The Bold offers a QWERTY keyboard and the now-standard trackball, but the Bold has the nicest screen seen on any BlackBerry. Media Player The Bold’s Media Player takes good advantage of the Bold’s hardware, delivering crisp images and vibrant sound. Back The Bold has […]