Customers Connect with NETGEAR®’s Innovative Technology Solutions for Digital Homes and Growing Businesses at 2006 Consumer Electronics Show

CES Innovations Award Double-Honoree to Host Interactive “Net-Workshops”; Breakthrough Skype Device Among New Product Surprises Awaiting Visitors to Booth #36219.

LAS VEGAS — January 3, 2006 — NETGEAR®, Inc. (Nasdaq: NTGR), a worldwide provider of technologically advanced, branded networking products, is showcasing its newest award-winning products at the 2006 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas this week. NETGEAR will demonstrate Digital Home Makeover solutions in the areas of wireless and powerline networking, entertainment, voice, storage and security; as well as its extensive product line of ProSafe™ switches and business wireless and security products for corporate, branch, and remote offices of small and growing companies. The company will host interactive and informative “Net-workshops” throughout CES to offer booth visitors the opportunity to learn more about home and business networking. At CES, the company is welcoming visitors to Booth #36219 in the South Hall 4 of the Las Vegas Convention Center.

On Wednesday, January 4 at 2:15 pm, NETGEAR will co-host a press conference with Skype® at the eBay Kiosk in the Central Hall Grand Lobby of the Las Vegas Convention Center. The two companies will offer a presentation of a breakthrough device that will change the way people communicate.

NETGEAR is also designated a double-honoree by the CES Innovations Design and Engineering Award committee, for its Storage Central (SC101) and RangeMax™ Wireless Router (WPN824) with Smart MIMO technology, the industry’s #1 selling MIMO-G product family.

“We look forward to CES every year as an exciting venue for connecting face-to-face with our existing customers and partners, and for reaching out to new ones,” said Patrick Lo, chairman and chief executive officer of NETGEAR. “Because we tailor our products to address our customers’ needs, CES offers an advantageous opportunity to gather first-hand comments to feed into our design to make products even more innovative, stylish, and reliable.

“Home networking has gone beyond basic Internet-sharing to supporting communications throughout the home. For many people, realizing this lifestyle requires a ‘Digital Home Makeover.’ So, at CES, we’re showcasing new products and hosting ‘Net-workshops’ to educate consumers on what they’ve identified as their biggest technology challenges in the home and small business: wireless networking products that have a broader range and are faster and easier to set up; and devices for sharing, storing, and managing digital content such as photos, music, games, and videos. We’ve also got new product surprises in store for booth visitors related to our work with Skype,” Mr. Lo added.

CES conference attendees will also have an opportunity to hear Mr. Lo discuss security challenges related to home networks when he participates in a panel discussion hosted by Steve Wildstrom, “Technology and You” Columnist for BusinessWeek magazine. Part of the CES Knowledge Tracks, the session will begin at 12:00 p.m. on Thursday, January 5.

Wireless Infrastructure for Homes
At CES, NETGEAR will demonstrate — for the first time in a public forum — its recently announced next-generation RangeMax 240 family of wireless networking products. The RangeMax 240 family extends NETGEAR’s RangeMax Wireless Product Line, already the #1 selling MIMO-G in the world, and is the first wireless networking solution capable of delivering data at speeds previously possible only through wired Ethernet connections. Offering superior wireless coverage and reliability, hallmarks of the RangeMax line of products, while doubling the throughput of wireless networking with wireless MIMO technology, NETGEAR’s RangeMax 240 family eliminates dead spots in home or office environments and provides wireless speeds fast enough to support simultaneous bandwidth-intensive applications such as streaming high-definition video and audio, online gaming, backup of laptop files to Storage Central over Wi-Fi, and Voice-over-IP (VoIP) telephony.

Incorporating advanced True MIMO™ Gen 3 technology from Airgo Networks with Adaptive Channel Expansion, NETGEAR’s RangeMax 240 Wireless Router (WPNT834) provides a data rate of up to 240 Mbps when used with RangeMax 240 adapters, meaning that for the first time wireless has attained an effective throughput of up to 100 Mbps comparable to that of 10/100 Fast Ethernet wired networks. In addition, it is compatible with and connects simultaneously to RangeMax and all other 802.11b/g clients. RangeMax 240 also incorporates NETGEAR’s “Touchless” Wi-Fi Security and NETGEAR’s popular Smart Wizard® Installation Assistant and Assisted Firmware Update to ensure easy installation, security set-up, and management.

Also on display is NETGEAR’s 2006 CES Innovations Design and Engineering Award honoree, the RangeMax Wireless Router (WPN824) with Smart MIMO technology from Ruckus Wireless. It offers a unique and innovative capability to dynamically sense the environment and select from over 120 possible antenna configurations in real time, optimizing the wireless connection to each client for the fastest and most stable connection possible.

Storage
Guaranteed to be a popular draw, NETGEAR’s Storage Central (SC101) network data storage device is a 2006 CES Innovations Design and Engineering Award honoree. Versatile enough to accommodate any home or small office user’s storage needs, Storage Central offers users an affordable, mirrored, expandable and easily shared network storage solution for protecting and sharing large volumes of valuable data and content (such as music, photos, videos, and office documents) wired or wirelessly over the network. Incorporating the unique and powerful Z-SANTM IP storage technology from Zetera Corporation, Storage Central is the only multi-drive solution in its class offering users spanning and mirroring capabilities. Consumers have the option of choosing two IDE disk drives of any size in their first unit, as well as the capability to link multiple Storage Central units together for unlimited storage capacity. Included with the purchase of Storage Central is the award-winning and simple-to-use SmartSync Pro backup and recovery software, which provides users with a reliable file backup and synchronization solution.

Communications and Entertainment
Highlighted at CES will be NETGEAR-branded products for the digital living room as well as upcoming NETGEAR entertainment devices for wirelessly connecting and streaming multimedia content. NETGEAR will also show wireless routers to enable VoIP broadband phone service, and will be demonstrating new products for VoIP communications planned for 2006 release, including devices designed for Skype. NETGEAR booth guests will see how people can stream digital movies from the PC or the Internet to the TV, watch digital photos on the TV, play MP3s on the home stereo, play team video games, and enjoy unlimited, worldwide Internet radio, all while sharing the home network among multiple users.

NETGEAR will also demonstrate its stylish next-generation, high-speed powerline product family for seamless entertainment networking. The industry-first NETGEAR 85 Mbps Wall-Plugged Ethernet Switch (XE104) makes a high-quality, high-speed broadband connection available anywhere in the home without running any cabling between rooms, even in areas where a wireless network may not be accessible. By turning any electrical outlet into a 4-port Fast Ethernet (10/100 Mbps) connection, the 85 Mbps Wall-Plugged Ethernet Switch enables consumers to quickly and easily set up a networking solution with the speeds and ports needed to support the increasing number of networked devices in the digital home.

Security
Home office workers will want to see demonstrations and attend workshops on NETGEAR’s two most recent enhancements of the comprehensive network security provided by its industry-leading line of consumer wireless routers. Available across the full line of NETGEAR routers and adapters for the home, “Touchless” Wi-Fi security is NETGEAR’s simple interface enabling users to set up and connect to a secure network using standards-based Wi-Fi network security, including Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) and Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA-PSK and WPA2-PSK), whether at home or on the road.

Also on display is the latest anti-virus, anti-spam, and anti-spyware protection in NETGEAR wireless routers. By integrating Trend Micro security, NETGEAR is delivering a centrally managed security dashboard to establish and enforce security policies across the network, protecting all connected PCs from security risks including Trojan horses, viruses, spyware and adware. Network-based Parental Controls also provide unsurpassed protection from objectionable Web sites.

Infrastructure for Small and Medium-Sized Businesses
CES attendees in search of networking solutions for small and medium-sized businesses will find a full array of NETGEAR ProSafe™ products for corporate, branch and remote offices, including Managed and Smart Switches, Wired and Wireless VPN Firewalls, and Wireless Access Points. NETGEAR delivers everything that a growing business demands from its network infrastructure — performance, versatility, manageability, and, affordability.

Last month, NETGEAR expanded its industry-leading suite of affordable, feature-rich family of ProSafe Smart Switches with the launch of industry’s first Stackable Smart Switches, the ProSafe 24 Port 10/100 Stackable Smart Switch with 4 Gigabit Ports (FS728TS), ProSafe 48 Port 10/100 Stackable Smart Switch with 4 Gigabit Ports (FS752TS) and ProSafe 48 Port 10/100 Stackable Smart Switch with 4 Gigabit Ports and 24 Power over Ethernet Ports (FS752TPS).

Offering key management features that provide the ability to scale network infrastructure without the need for dedicated IT personnel on staff or the complexity of a fully-managed network, NETGEAR’s Smart Switches are the ideal solutions for growing business networks. Recent analyst reports demonstrate that more customers in North America continue to choose NETGEAR’s ProSafe Smart Switches than all other competitors combined, based on NETGEAR’s category-leading value, performance, and reliability.

Making the Digital Home and Office a Reality
As proof of NETGEAR’s commitment to making the digital home and office a reality, NETGEAR’s technical experts will present six daily “Net-Workshops” at CES. Each informative and interactive 30-minute workshop presented in the NETGEAR booth will cover tips and offer visitors a chance to ask questions about their home and small business networks. Session topics include:

Home Networking: Digital Home Makeover
Home Network Makeover
Storage Central
RangeMax 240: Raising the Bar
Business Networking: NETGEAR ProSafe Networking
Simplify and Save on Wireless and VoIP with PoE
Optimizing Wireless Networking for Businesses
Secure Your Network with Unified Threat Management (UTM)
Visitors to NETGEAR’s booth can also call on Las Vegas Luck to win one of five NETGEAR Digital Home Makeover Solutions. The prize includes complete NETGEAR solutions for wireless networking, storage, gaming and multimedia. NETGEAR is also participating in a Skype-organized “treasure hunt” that includes 50 NETGEAR RangeMax Wireless Routers among the prizes.

NETGEAR welcomes visitors to its booth at the Consumer Electronics Show through Sunday, January 8, 2006.

About NETGEAR®, Inc.
NETGEAR® (Nasdaq: NTGR) designs technologically advanced, branded networking products that address the specific needs of small and medium business and home users. The Company’s product offerings enable users to share Internet access, peripherals, files, digital multimedia content and applications among multiple personal computers and other Internet-enabled devices. NETGEAR is headquartered in Santa Clara, Calif. For more information, visit the company’s Web site at www.netgear.com or call (408) 907-8000.

©2006 NETGEAR, Inc. NETGEAR®, the NETGEAR logo, RangeMax, Smart Wizard and ProSafe are trademarks or registered trademarks of NETGEAR, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries. Other brand and product names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders. Information is subject to change without notice. All rights reserved.

NOTE: References to signal rates indicate maximum achievable rates under ideal operating conditions. Actual data throughput will vary. Network conditions and environmental factors, including volume of network traffic, building materials and construction, and network overhead, lower actual data throughput.

Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 for NETGEAR, Inc.:
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Specifically, statements concerning expected performance characteristics, specifications, market acceptance, market growth, specific uses, user feedback and market position of NETGEAR’s products and technology are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Safe Harbor. These statements are based on management’s current expectations and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, including, without limitation, the following: the actual price, performance and ease of use of NETGEAR’s products may not meet the price, performance and ease of use requirements of end-users; the performance of NETGEAR’s products may be adversely affected by real world network, environmental and operating conditions; the ability of NETGEAR to market and sell its products and technology; the impact and pricing of competing products; and the introduction of alternative technological solutions. Further information on potential risk factors that could affect NETGEAR and its business are detailed in the Company’s periodic filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including, but not limited to, those risks and uncertainties listed in the section entitled “Risk Factors Affecting Future Results,” pages 19 through 28, in the Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended October 3, 2005, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 14, 2005. NETGEAR undertakes no obligation to release publicly any revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

Contact Information

Doug Hagan

Director, Corporate Marketing

NETGEAR, Inc.

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