New Socket CF/SD WLAN card drivers for Pocket PCs

Socket Communications, Inc. (Nasdaq:SCKT), the Mobile Connection(TM) Company, today announced its WLAN Tools Mobile Edition software for its Low Power CompactFlash and SDIO Wireless LAN cards for Pocket PCs. The software provides a new easy-to-use Graphical User Interface (GUI) with advanced network monitoring capabilities for Microsoft’s Windows Mobile operating system as well as support for WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access) and WPA-PSK (Pre-shared) security. WPA offers enterprise-class security — an industry standard instituted by the Wi-Fi Alliance — that combines strong encryption, message integrity checking (called “Michael”), and 802.1x authentication.

Bundled with Socket’s new utility are new drivers for each card that supports Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) security. WPA is supported using certificate-based EAP-TLS and EAP-PEAP. WPA with Pre-shared Key (PSK) is also supported for SOHO environments. WPA and WPA-PSK are only supported on Windows Mobile Second Edition as well as on some ROM upgrades of the original Windows Mobile — users will need to check with the manufacturer of their device to see if WPA support is available.

Pricing and Availability

Socket’s WLAN Tools Mobile Edition software is currently available with purchase of the Low Power SDIO and CF WLAN cards through Socket’s worldwide distribution channels. Current owners of these cards can download the new, enhanced software at no charge from the Socket website.