TECH

Ubiquiti brings Power over Ethernet to 800 meters with extreme caveats

Power over Ethernet has a limited range, and available bandwidth can also decrease over distance. But Ubiquiti wants to at least overcome the range limitations for PoE with the new USW-LR-Switch-8-PoE switch. However, the extended range comes at a cost of both power and bandwidth.

Ubiquiti has announced a new switch called USW-LR-Switch-8-PoE (630W). Its specialty is offering Power over Ethernet (PoE up to PoE++) beyond 100 meters. The new switch offers an interesting alternative for temporary installations or situations where running another power cable through the ground or walls is difficult.

But the 8-port switch requires special cables and an endpoint that passes PoE through to the PoE powered device, which can be, for example, a PoE camera or a PoE switch.

One additional port is just for the uplink. Users can choose either the RJ45 port or the SFP port, with a maximum speed of 1 Gbit/s. However, this switch is not intended for data-intensive use cases. The switching capacity is limited to a very low 3.6 Gbit/s and all long-range ports are limited to 100 Mbit/s.

90 watts becomes 13 watts at 800 meters...Using long-range mode comes with some serious caveats. According to Ubiquiti, Power over Ethernet will degrade significantly at higher ranges. Using the official outdoor cable, a PoE sink cannot consume more than 13 watts at the maximum range of 800 meters. That is sufficient for many smaller devices. However, the electricity bill will be significantly higher than with a local PoE switch.

If a device consumes more energy, like UniFi's AI PTZ cameras, the range will be limited. This device requires 51 watts and can be used with a distance of up to 200 meters. Connecting a device with high bandwidth requirements is also out of the question. Ubiquiti says in long-range mode with a compatible long-range endpoint, the switch usually negotiates 100 Mbit/s for up to 400 meters. Beyond 400 meters, the speed is further reduced to 10 Mbit/s. 

Ubiquiti's USW-LR-Switch-8-PoE (630W) is already available for 274 USD. The long-range endpoint UACC-LR-Endpoint costs 99 USD per unit. So, a full setup comes in at 1,066 USD since Ubiquiti does not offer discounts  for ordering multiple endpoints. That does not include the cables. A single TP cable, UACC-Cable-C5e-Outdoor-Pro-305M-W, with a length of 305 meters costs another 149 USD.

PoE and connectivity, now available far beyond the building. Introducing Long-Range Switching by Ubiquiti, delivering power and data over a single Ethernet cable up to 800 meters.

Extend beyond standard Ethernet...Standard copper Ethernet reaches 100 meters. Beyond that, connecting remote cameras, access devices, and IoT sensors often requires fiber and a separate electrical supply. Long-range switching brings both power and data to locations where local power is unavailable, with a familiar PoE interface.

Reach remote devices up to 800 meters away

Deliver power and data through one Ethernet cable

Simplify deployments beyond the building

Extend Ethernet connectivity and PoE up to 800 meters over a single cable.

Power remote deployments...With eight long-range ports and up to 90W of PoE output per port, the long-range switch brings connectivity and power to remote physical security and IoT deployments.

Eight ports for long-range connectivity

Up to 90W of PoE output per port

Built for remote cameras, access devices, and IoT sensors

Eight long-range ports bring high-power PoE to remote infrastructure.

Built for exposed installations...A dedicated outdoor endpoint enables extended reach while providing surge protection for exposed installations. Use these endpoints for the best performance and the longest range runs to the edge of your site.

Dedicated outdoor endpoint

Extended reach for remote installations

Integrated surge protection

Extend your network outdoors with surge protection at the endpoint.

Unified with UniFi...Manage your network and physical security through UniFi, whether your endpoints are wired or wireless. Long-range switching brings remote infrastructure into one building operating system, completely license-free.

Unified network and physical security management

Remote connectivity within the UniFi ecosystem

Completely license-free operation

One building operating system unifies networking and physical security.

Bring power and wired connectivity further than ever before with UniFi long-range switching.

 

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