Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN and Aruba Instant On Access Points compete in the wireless connectivity category. Cisco Meraki appears to have the upper hand in centralized management and advanced features, while Aruba excels in ease of use and cost-effectiveness.
Features: Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN offers centralized management through a cloud-managed dashboard that simplifies monitoring and configuration, robust security features, and the ability to handle complex network needs. Aruba Instant On Access Points are known for their user-friendly setup, seamless integration, especially in smaller environments, and reliable performance.
Room for Improvement: Cisco Meraki could improve comprehensive error logging, advanced routing features, and more detailed network analysis capabilities. Users also desire better support in complex scenarios. Aruba Instant On Access Points could enhance radio frequency coverage, user density support, and provide better integration documentation along with advanced AI capabilities.
Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN is favored for its cloud-based deployment, allowing remote management and support for various environments, including public and private clouds. Installation is straightforward. Aruba Instant On Access Points advantage is their simple on-premises deployment, ideal for small to medium-sized businesses. Both products receive high marks for customer service, with Cisco praised for accessibility and Aruba for prompt support.
Pricing and ROI: Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN is perceived as a premium product, justified by its features and long-term ROI though pricing and licensing dependencies can be challenging. Aruba Instant On Access Points offer a cost-effective model with no recurring licensing fees, appealing to budget-conscious businesses. Both deliver satisfactory ROI, with Aruba noted for its affordability.
The technical support from Aruba is rated seven due to limitations, such as support issues when the controller is on the VM side.
There are still issues with the language barrier and the overall quality of support.
It would be better if the SLA of technical support was less than four hours.
Meraki is not scalable enough since it straightforwardly maps its products to segmented specifications.
The stability of Aruba Instant On Access Points is generally good.
We have experienced many instances where we have experienced a lag in our network, and I am not sure if it is due to their devices or our network.
Stability is not an issue for me because it comes with Cisco's proven manufacturer quality.
The default configuration can be overridden to enhance performance beyond the default settings.
In future updates, more AI for intelligence and the option for a separate network could be beneficial.
There is not enough focus on security across networking vendors, and they often add features without testing them thoroughly.
The most important improvement needed is to eliminate the limitation of uplinks.
Some of the newer models of the Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN access point have encompassed the new wireless protocols and increased the strength of their antennas.
The pricing of Aruba Instant On Access Points is competitive compared to Cisco, and they are actually cheaper.
Aruba Instant On Access Points work without a list price, suggesting that they are open source and no additional licensing costs are incurred.
The cost of Aruba Instant On Access Points is reasonable;
Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN is on par with other devices in that category, offering competitive pricing.
The pricing of Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN is not competitive enough for the SMB market compared to other brands.
Customers choose Aruba because it is more stable, has superior radio management, and offers features like mesh and a stateful firewall.
The product is incredibly stable and meets our needs excellently.
The virtual controller feature is very beneficial because it removes the need for a physical controller.
It also manages security clients and switches, providing a single dashboard to manage multiple network infrastructures.
The ability to program all access points from the Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN dashboard, view the status of all of them, and examine the individual devices connected to each access point is very valuable.
| Product | Market Share (%) |
|---|---|
| Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN | 11.5% |
| Aruba Instant On Access Points | 1.4% |
| Other | 87.1% |
| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 22 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 4 |
| Large Enterprise | 9 |
| Company Size | Count |
|---|---|
| Small Business | 68 |
| Midsize Enterprise | 26 |
| Large Enterprise | 31 |
Ingredients for success.
Fast 802.11ac Wave 2, secure employee and guest access, easy-to-use web, and mobile app management.
Say yes to secure Wi-Fi access.
Pre-built access control lists (ACLs) and built-in firewall in the access points prevent malicious traffic from entering your network – we call it “hassle-free” security.
Never drop an important call.
With Instant On, voice and video business applications are automatically prioritized, so you stay connected with your peers.
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