Even though I was unable to attend N+I this past week, I got a few tidbits from other analysts and key industry folks in attendance.  One of the key takeaways of the show was that embedded security is quickly becoming a key catalyst to change the competitive structure of the enterprise equipment market.  In terms of competitive benchmarking, Cisco seems to be better positioned than its peers in terms of embedding security, switching and applications in its routing product lines.  The recently introduced ISR (Integrated Services Router) product line epitomizes the company's push towards this integrated design. 

At N+I, Cisco announced a line of smaller devices in the ISR family, including Ethernet switching, managed security and 802.11 a/b/g access - all this at a price point below $1,500.  The products were showcased during the event, including some demos of its wireless features (albeit the incorporation of Airespace functionality is still a work in progress).  The ISR can serve as a pretty effective solution "out of a box" for SMEs and branch/remote office locations.  Juniper will combat the Cisco with its management features and its operating system.  But the big installed base and number of yearly router shipments (about 900k units per year) make Cisco the player to beat.

Linux enthusiasts got yet another reason to smile when mobile chipset giant Qualcomm announced on Thursday that it would support the operating system on its chips for CDMA mobile handsets.  The built-in Linux support will come on the company's Mobile Station Modem (MSM) 6550.  Running Linux on the cell phone eliminates the need for a separate co-processor.  Qualcomm also plans to embed Linux functionality in future chipsets that support future generations of 3G (i.e. HSDPA and 1xEV-DO Rev. A), which will likely be introduced by mobile operators around 2006.  Up to now, Qualcomm phones typically only had its own proprietary OS (called BREW real-time operating system), so this is the first time that the company supports another third-party OS.