The intelligent router Revolution still needs to be done.

Text/Guoren Smart router to become a new round of smart hardware focus, what is this market? From my point of view of the parties to see, the router market, water than imagined deep, money than imagined hard to earn. To leather the lives of traditional routers, the first to get the current market leader loses the trend, but now look, the traditional manufacturers still occupy an absolute share of the market. At the same time, feedback from the market to see the user's "smart" concept has not strong awareness and demand, not so attractive, smart routers are still in the niche market flop. But the intelligent, cloud service must be now the trend of the development of routers, but this process is not so fast. How big is the router market? In fact, most of what we refer to as routers is a product with no line functionality, a router that can launch WiFi networks, and more attention to the home market, where routers are still dominated by communications equipment giants such as Cisco and Huawei. Wireless router potential users are access to fixed-line broadband users, according to the Ministry of Public Information published earlier this year, the domestic fixed broadband Internet access users have reached 175 million households. China Unicom in November just released the business data, broadband users have reached more than 60 million households to 64.382 million households. This data is consistent with what I talked about with the Wang Zhuyun founder, and according to the ministry's goal, this year the fixed-line broadband will reach 200 million households. Because mobile terminals such as mobile phones and flat panels demand WiFi, these fixed-line users are potential router consumers, and the need for no lines has not been fully broken. Wang Zhuyun told me. Another set of data shows that the domestic wireless router penetration rate is about 21%, less than 30%, while the United States has no line from the penetration rate of more than 80%. According to 60% of the universal space, in the domestic is a 120 million units of the market. Now the home wireless router market, 60% is TP control, last year TP global shipments of 110 million units, of which the domestic market accounted for about 60%, 20% by the second echelon of the link, Tengda and other brands occupy; now the router market still has 500~ every month. 6 million shipments, in contrast to these emerging "smart routers" is drizzle. The extreme route is the current sales of smart routers, after a large six months cumulative sales have more than 150,000 units, most of them from the most recent 99 yuan to reduce prices greatly. But this number is still less than a traditional router giant double 11 of the day's sales, this is the polar route, 360 routers, millet router, Baidu router and other potential small partners are still raised in purdah people do not know. Traditional manufacturers to move quickly on the side of intelligent routes are shouting to the traditional route of life, one side is the traditional router vendors are working hard yell, by the need for a line by the demand to promote sales. In Jingdong Mall rough number, do router brand up to 60 several. Double, a routing maker who opened its flagship store in the days of the cat, sold 120,000 units, selling it at a surprisingly low price and is buying a 300M-rate product, only 48.8 yuan, the purchase number has more than 5000 people. Another router, the traditional leading manufacturer link, in the day Cat flagship store to support 11AC, 2.4g/5g dual-frequency Gigabit route sold to 199 yuan (double 11), a single month of sales have more than 3,500. According to a person in the industry, these mature products, online and offline sales ratio of 3:7, so the above two products as an example, the monthly sales are over million. According to the head of link Day cat business, double 11, routing category of sales before the 3 is TP, Tengda and D-link,d-link's sales in the Double 11 day for more than 4 million yuan, in accordance with the average of 100 yuan per customer unit price, sales have more than 40,000 units, The total amount of TP is about 3 times times that of link and about 120,000 units. Although the sale is much, but the profit has been very thin, the official said, the price war hit to now, the final channel profit only 2~3 point. Although manufacturers complain not to make money, but because of the cost control properly, or money can be earned, because the traditional manufacturers than the new players can play a price war. Traditional companies are more able to make price wars smart routers, while appearing as a subversive, have not tasted much in the competition for price wars. In Jingdong Mall, the rate of 300M routers, the price from 49 yuan to 1699 yuan, disparity. However, the price of more than 199 yuan in more than 60%, there are more than 30% of the product price less than 100 yuan. And intelligent routing this side, the rate of 150MB router, still to 199 yuan selling price in the colorful commemorative version. Another new smart router manufacturer "Ruyi Cloud Routing" rate of 300M, in addition to cloud app installation, at the same time usbhttp://product.it.sohu.com/list/subcate_682_1.html remote monitoring, USB printer and other functions, The price is 149 yuan. Although the intelligent router has the plug-in extension innovation in the function, purely from the disposition and the price view, does not have the superiority. Listen to a friend in the industry, the traditional manufacturers have a clear advantage in price war, one is the cost control of parts and production links, such as TP and Tengda such companies, packaging Factory, coil, abrasives, even screws are their own, so the cost control is very low. And the pole route, millet to spell price upfront can only earn a yell. In addition to the components sold out, traditional manufacturers because of the large amount can also be done lower costs, another is engaged in wireless product development friend said, in the past mainstream Qualcomm 9331 main chip For example, the average manufacturer's supply price is about 3 U.S. dollars, according to the amount of TP can be 1~2 dollar, So the main selling price of the mainstream products, hardware cost 30~40 can be fixed, in other words, the pole routing generation if TP to do, hardware costs can also be controlled lower, but the cost of intelligent function development will make a significant increase in costs. Traditional RoadBy the manufacturer still occupies the market absolute superiority another reason is the channel, the TP channel has already paved the county, the township level market, in the traditional market they already sits firmly in Taishan, the intelligent router wants to overturn through the Internet mode also not the matter of overnight. Intelligent routing Users accept limited "mobile app Remote Control", "plug-in extensions, system remote push upgrades, minimalist interface, network acceleration, cloud storage, or NAS storage is the key to the current" smart router "innovation for traditional routers, but from the current market feedback, User awareness is still limited. Traditional routers selling products on the promotion page, the main marketing point or high-power, high configuration low prices, wall performance, even with a few antennas and so on, users are more willing to pay for these simple direct demand. At the same time, intelligent routing participants also have their own "small mind", the popularity of intelligent routing is not the first goal, although the pole route shouting such slogans, but compared with the traditional players, received the above constraints. Millet router more in order to get through its mobile phone, TV, box several types of products, improve their product ecology, 360 is more around its security theme in doing; Baidu's involvement with a router industry friends say is "Come to the fun, I have not thought how to play." Cyberoam is a US-made routing security gateway Company, according to its domestic business manager Win Jinghua, now these so-called intelligent routes, just grafted some of the enterprise router functions, such as network restrictions, identity control, remote control, data storage and so on. However, compared with the security features of enterprise-level routing, it is still much weaker, but the price and intelligent route are also very different, the final price is more than 1000 yuan. Traditional manufacturers are not determined to play intelligent routes the traditional router manufacturers are not sitting ducks, doing some trying and transformation, but very limited. At the end of last year, TP launched a special interface for mobile phone operations; Link 2 years ago, the concept of cloud routing, although the current product profit is very low, but as a link staff said, now the boss is not to consider the issue of making money, for more than 40 years of products, will not give up easily, words can also feel the traditional router manufacturers helpless. The main high-end market in the Netgear is in the intelligent aspects of the early attempt, there are client and cloud storage services. But according to a friend who has long been concerned about the router market, these traditional router manufacturers are not thorough enough, or around the old ideas. Why traditional router manufacturers are slow to switch, "on the one hand they think that the threat of these smart routers is not enough, ignore it, in addition, because of the habit of the previous model, now if you want to completely turn it is difficult." "This friend said, if want to turn, also very easy, because now routers are modular things, but in the user training, accumulation, experience on the backwardness of emerging smart products." Finally, we do the following summary: Because more can compress costs, accumulated many years of channel advantage, traditional manufacturers stillControl a large portion of the market for hundreds of millions of home routers each year. Smart routers to knock on this hard market, not overnight, especially the limited user awareness and strong demand lack. However, the shell of the router market is cracking, in the whole hardware intelligent ecological promotion, intelligent and cloud service is already the general trend.