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.
"You can easily monitor, manage, and cover all your IT equipment."
"The artificial intelligence feature is very good."
"In terms of reporting, in terms of all the user reports, it's very rich."
"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."
"The most useful feature of Juniper Wireless AP is the reporting Marvis."
"The most valuable feature of Juniper Mist is the Virtual Network Assistant, powered by artificial intelligence."
"The simplicity is great."
"With Mist, every Wednesday they roll out new features."
"The most valuable feature of Aruba Wireless is multi-tenancy."
"Our wireless overhaul has reduced the number of wireless related help desk tickets by nearly 90%."
"It has very flexible features."
"HA: Apps failover without reboot."
"Clearpass solution from Aruba."
"The portal has been very helpful for us."
"The coverage, concurrent user life, and visualization are the most valuable features of these solutions."
"What I like best about Aruba Wireless is that it doesn't need a controller. The product also has a GUI that's easy to navigate."
"It integrates with Cisco Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA)."
"Some of the valuable features of this solution are security, the controller is simple to configure, devices are easy to install, and we use the software to administrate all the APs."
"The product has valuable features for integration and authentication."
"Cisco Wireless is scalable."
"This product has a Clean Air Solution, which means it can detect non-WiFi signals. It not only signals but it can also detect that what type of device it is coming from. And if it needs to change the channel in order to avoid that unwanted signal, it can do so and that way the client machine will have better performance."
"Cisco Wireless gave us the ability to deploy and seamlessly manage wireless devices at our corporate office and remote locations."
"The product is easy to manage."
"It is an extremely stable and scalable solution. Its documentation and support are also very good."
"Improving third-party integration is key for Juniper Mist's next release."
"Juniper Wireless AP can improve by continually improving its reporting and integration with other systems."
"There is room for improvement in terms of support and installation."
"I need a bit more time with it before criticizing the features."
"The price could be better."
"The product should include adaptive Wi-Fi to show a more accurate location."
"The pricing should be made cheaper."
"Juniper Wireless Access Points (AP Series) could improve if the MIST platform had a built-in master key. This would be an advantage."
"Lacks a heat map analysis and a cloud-based wireless controller."
"I believe more security options are needed."
"The product’s performance got worse with newer releases."
"The solution could be improved on the security side."
"The stability and management could be improved."
"There are some issues we occasionally have. However, they are easily remedied."
"The management system would be better if it were more polished, if it had a better interface like, for example, Meraki"
"I would have liked to see more manufacturer driven events and outings to drive brand recognition and familiarity."
"Its licensing model and cost should be improved."
"There is room for improvement regarding HA issues and Radius integration."
"It should be fully compatible with other devices."
"Sometimes I've seen some issues come up with the interference. That's an issue users face at times. It becomes very complex when you have a lot of wireless interference in the area, or in your office. It's because of the environment of Cisco. Maybe, in the future, they can work on this area, and fix this issue."
"No product can be a ten out of ten and there are some security issues."
"The stability could improve, there are some issues. We were told the version of the software we are using on all of the controllers is best for Cisco IOS, but we might need to update our software, this might fix the stability issues we are experiencing."
"Sometimes, in some rooms the signal could be a bit better, a little stronger."
"There is no technology without room for improvement. The main setback with Cisco solutions, not only with Cisco Wireless, is having to update the OS manually. We are now migrating to Miraki, so we've been able to work that out."
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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 145 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.