Aruba Wireless and Cisco Wireless are industry leaders, offering robust solutions for building and managing wireless networks. Users prefer the robust stability of Cisco Wireless after a longer setup process, while Aruba Wireless offers quicker deployment with seamless integration and strong security features. Cisco Wireless excels in performance and customization options, but needs improvement in range and connectivity. Consider your existing network infrastructure. If you heavily rely on Cisco products, Cisco Wireless might offer smoother integration.
The summary above is based on 64 interviews we conducted recently with Cisco Wireless and Aruba Wireless users. To access the review's full transcripts, download our report.
"Overall, we've been very pleased with the performance."
"You can easily monitor, manage, and cover all your IT equipment."
"The most valuable feature of the solution is Marvis, the AI-driven network management system."
"The solution is pretty generic and easy to use."
"The artificial intelligence feature is very good."
"With Mist, every Wednesday they roll out new features."
"The most valuable feature of Juniper Wireless Access Points (AP Series) is the ability to troubleshoot ports on the network. Additionally, when there is an update on the APs they are able to reboot quickly reducing downtime. Other solutions have a longer downtime when updates are done."
"Juniper Mist offers valuable features like comprehensive network insight, granular policy control, fast device setup, strong security, and efficient SSL traffic management."
"Reasonably priced and great for small to medium size organizations."
"We like the centralized configuration and monitoring."
"The most valuable feature is the client match."
"Aruba Central is a valuable feature because I can monitor access points remotely, even if I'm not in the office."
"Although there are other solutions available and some with a lower initial cost, they don't offer the same level of integration with IoT as this solution without having to add additional hardware, which ends up costing more."
"I like the way it groups and manages access points."
"The tool's most valuable feature is Aruba Central, which offers centralized management. You can manage its switches, APs, and data access. It is easy to manage the entire switches and APs. The solution is the best in terms of security and manageability."
"The product improved overall scalability and simplicity in configuring and replacing. The use of an Aruba Controller to configure multiple APs was game-changing."
"It is a stable solution. The performance was good."
"Cisco Wireless is scalable."
"The FlexConnect feature is the most valuable."
"It is tough, has a nice speed, and is quite reliable."
"Its stability is most valuable."
"The initial setup is straightforward."
"The technical support from Cisco is good."
"The most valuable features of this solution are the Cisco CleanAir and Cisco RRM."
"Juniper Wireless AP can improve by continually improving its reporting and integration with other systems."
"Juniper Mist Wireless Access Points’ support services need improvement."
"The pricing is very high in the Indian market."
"The product should include adaptive Wi-Fi to show a more accurate location."
"It would be helpful to have even stronger security features to help protect against interference from other nearby access points that aren't part of our network."
"They should include SD-WAN features to it."
"There is room for improvement in terms of support and installation."
"Improving third-party integration is key for Juniper Mist's next release."
"The console is difficult to use. The firewall settings could be improved."
"There needs to be better visibility on the day-to-day monitoring."
"The solution could be improved on the security side."
"Not cost-effective."
"We would like to declare a specific number of devices that an employee or a user can use to access their Wi-Fi."
"The speed could be better. I heard that Aruba is trying to shape the speed inside the wireless controller, but that has not been adopted yet. If they put some kind of mechanism inside the wireless controller for the speed such that, "Okay, this many users will have 20 by 20 - 20 in the upload, 20 in the download. Just this many users. And this many users will have that type of speed." I think it would be very good if they actually bring that functionality inside the wireless controller."
"Aruba Wireless can improve the assigning of access points. We have times that the nearest access point is not assigned but one far away. The integration between access points could improve."
"There has been a recent decrease in the level of support."
"The solution's pricing should be improved."
"The security must be improved."
"The solution could be more stable."
"The solution should introduce natural language troubleshooting processes. It will identify possible problems or errors due to the symptoms."
"Their software's really clunky."
"The configuration interface could be easier. They should make roaming easier and should fix it so that when you cross a building you can keep the signal."
"Controllers could be improved."
"The internet speed is high within environments. As you move further away from the access point, there is a decline in speed. Omada or Ruckus don’t have the speed degradation as you move away from the access point."
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Aruba Wireless is ranked 1st in Wireless LAN with 138 reviews while Cisco Wireless is ranked 2nd in Wireless LAN with 146 reviews. Aruba Wireless is rated 8.4, while Cisco Wireless is rated 8.2. The top reviewer of Aruba Wireless writes "The portal for centralized management and virtual controller for APs are very valuable". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Cisco Wireless writes "Allows us to deploy a wide range of wireless products with stable WiFi". Aruba Wireless is most compared with Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN, Ruckus Wireless, Ubiquiti WLAN, Huawei Wireless and Mist AI and Cloud, whereas Cisco Wireless is most compared with Ruckus Wireless, Ubiquiti WLAN, Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN, Mist AI and Cloud and Omada Access Points. See our Aruba Wireless vs. Cisco Wireless report.
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On the most basic level, Cisco Wireless can offer a rather straightforward initial setup. In the span of about three hours, the basic framework can be set up. Step-by-step instructions are available to ease the deployment of the Cisco wireless network. A small business will now be able to make use of this wireless product without being worried about having to make a massive investment of either time or resources. This peace of mind extends to the actual maintenance of the product as well. Cisco wireless’s network does not require very much in the way of maintenance. It does require occasional upgrades to keep it running smoothly, but other than that, a team tasked with maintaining it has very little to worry about. Organizations of all sizes will be able to benefit from both of these aspects of Cisco wireless’s design.
Cisco wireless provides a very robust service that will continue to run over long periods of time and under heavy usage. Furthermore, the teams that are responsible for assisting users and resolving any potential issues that may arise are highly professional. These are two additional features that make Cisco wireless a valuable product. The wireless service is capable of running for years without any real need for replacements to be made to the hardware.
Although no system is perfect, Cisco’s Wireless network shows that products can still be made to last. Long spans of time can pass without issues arising. When they do, Cisco’s technical support team is well-equipped to help handle it. They respond quickly to inquiries and they are extremely knowledgeable. They bring the kind of professionalism that one would hope to have in a product’s support team.
Aruba Wireless can support many devices and provide the features that one would expect for this type of product. It is relatively cheap when compared to other products like Cisco Wireless. For that relatively cheap price, Aruba offers hardware whose performance can match anything offered by its competitors. It advertises what it can do and follows through with its promises. It is also very easy to configure. However, they do not guide users in different industries through the best practices that they should be employing when using Aruba Wireless.
Conclusion
Cisco Wireless offers an effective service. In terms of cost it is more expensive than Aruba Wireless. They both have a lot to offer. The price tag might just be the deciding factor.
Aruba is our choice for our WIFI solution as Aruba has a lot of features that can do the same with Meraki.
Aruba is saving costs vs Meraki in a long time operation.