Aruba Instant On Switches vs Cisco Nexus comparison

Hewlett Packard Enterprise and Cisco are both solutions in the LAN Switching category. Hewlett Packard Enterprise is ranked #2 with an average rating of 8.2, while Cisco is ranked #3 with an average rating of 8.6. Hewlett Packard Enterprise holds a 10.5% mindshare in LS, compared to Cisco’s 8.7% mindshare. Additionally, 95% of Hewlett Packard Enterprise users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 96% of Cisco users who would recommend it.

Aruba Instant On Switches

Read 29 Aruba Instant On Switches reviews

1,910 Views
965 Comparison Views

95% willing to recommend

Cisco Nexus

Read 105 Cisco Nexus reviews

1,564 Views
1,090 Comparison Views

96% willing to recommend

Aruba Instant On Switches

Cisco Nexus

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Aruba Instant On Switches and Cisco Nexus based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out in this report how the two LAN Switching solutions compare in terms of features, pricing, service and support, easy of deployment, and ROI.

To learn more, read our detailed Aruba Instant On Switches vs. Cisco Nexus Report (Updated: March 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Aruba Instant On Switches vs. Cisco Nexus

March 2025

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Helped 845,406 peers since 2012

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Categories and Ranking

Aruba Instant On Switches

Ranking in LAN Switching

2nd

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

6.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Cisco Nexus

Ranking in LAN Switching

3rd

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.6

Number of Reviews

105

Ranking in other categories

Data Center Networking (3rd)

Mindshare comparison

As of April 2025, in the LAN Switching category, the mindshare of Aruba Instant On Switches is 10.5%, up from 8.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Cisco Nexus is 8.7%, down from 11.1% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

LAN Switching

Featured Reviews

MashukThakur

Senior Wireless Engineer at FASTtelco

A centrally managed switches ideal for small and medium businesses but does not have any console access

The solution does not have any console access. For example, if you do not have internet access on your side and you need to configure anything, you should at least have CLI access to do something or manage the solution to put to some IP. It will only work if we have a TSCT on the network. We can port and configure the initial settings before we get the Instant On Switches. I am not working deeply on Instant On devices. I have only installed it in a couple of accommodation sites. Even today, one customer has ordered to install 80 pieces of Instant On. I’ve to order additional 94 access points. I was confused about whether to go with Aruba Instant On or AP-505. Instant On has limited accessibility but AP-505 have cloud or local access on normal infrastructure. This would be better and easier to configure. So, there are further improvements in regard to console access and some limitations with access.

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Joe Benítez

Systems Engineer at GAD Municipal de Guayaquil

Offer high performance capabilities and enables efficient data transmission and processing

Before Nexus, I used to have Catalyst 6500 switches. Those 6500 series chassis gave us a lot of problems. Too many problems, actually. And we had a Cisco ASA firewall blade within those chassis. And they were running outdated software. So, in fact, it was the firewall blade that caused us too many problems instead of the chassis. The chassis itself was working well and performing fine, but the firewall card was not suitable for our needs. That was one aspect. Additionally, those chassis had been in operation for more than five years. As we are a local government, we have a policy to renew hardware every five years. That's because we need to maintain all the hardware and software in the latest versions and keep up with the technology lifecycle of the technology we use.

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Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:

Pros

"It is easy for deployment and configuration."

"Instant On Switches' best feature is the 1930, which is stackable."

"The solution has a simple deployment and zero border."

"The solution is suitable for small businesses and small offices."

"It is straightforward to set up."

"The most valuable features I find in Aruba Instant On switches include the access list and VLANs, along with other features such as security and cloud capabilities."

"Setup is easy."

"Aruba Central provides various AI features that we can use. It collects data on health and performance issues for wireless and wired clients."

More Aruba Instant On Switches pros

"This is a powerful device and I can get good bandwidth."

"We got increased bandwidth, faster performance, and newer software which has improved our organization."

"We have a much more stable network now using the Cisco Nexus."

"From a data center implementation, with respect to competition from your data, there isn't really a product recovery for the different tests other than Cisco Nexus. For example, if you take Multi-tenancy for the data center, it's something which, I think, only Cisco has. There are some implementation from HP, but I think it's limited there."

"They are very high-performance switches and they are made for lossless data, so they're a good play in the customer environment."

"This solution has allowed us to better prepare our network for 10-gigabit."

"Cisco Nexus is a stable solution."

"This solution has saved us both time and money because we now have the ability to control all of these telephony devices that are deployed nationwide."

More Cisco Nexus pros

Cons

"The solution’s initial setup is very complex."

"The product must be integrated with Aruba Central for better management."

"Some customers have made complaints about Aruba Instant On Switches' stability."

"Instant On Switches' layer 3 and visibility could be improved."

"They should extend the marketing and talk about Aruba's success stories throughout the region."

"Some models need enhancement of the web interface to make management and monitoring easier."

"It could have an MSP portal version."

"The pricing is competitive but could be improved."

More Aruba Instant On Switches cons

"It would be ideal if there was better integration with various other platforms."

"The product lacks options for integration with other market products that would allow us more flexibility."

"One of the problems we have is that there is no confirmation for when you try to test a system command."

"Cisco Nexus needs to add the SDN capability and lower the price."

"There's a couple of really bad incidents lately. Probably luck of the draw."

"I would like to see more automation and for it to be easier to use."

"There's been a little bit of bugginess in the code, but that happens."

"The cost of the support can be improved. We had critical operations, and we needed 24/7 support for 365 days, which was quite expensive. We had to go for a very costly support contract, which was really a concern. The availability of spare parts, especially in a remote location such as Egypt, can also be improved."

More Cisco Nexus cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is the cheapest A-class switch."

"The pricing is quite low compared to other products, which is good for the customer."

"We pay an annual licensing fee."

"Aruba Instant On Switches is slightly cheaper than Cisco."

"Pricing is competitive, and there are no supplementary fees."

"The product is not cheaply priced, especially when compared to the other vendors in the market."

"Aruba Instant On Switches is cheaper than Cisco and expensive compared to some Chinese brand products."

"The product has good pricing."

More Aruba Instant On Switches pricing and cost advice

"The license for Cisco Nexus is one year to three years, in this case for the SMARTnet. It is a price per unit, in terms of this specific appliance."

"It's around $160K a year for our license."

"Costs more than most, but the reliability pays for the difference."

"It's worth the money we're paying for Nexus."

"All of our costs including subscription, licensing, and support services are bundled together, and the cost is approximately $100,000 USD per year."

"In most cases, there is a need to secure perpetual licenses to be able to use the product. When I set up the product, there isn't just a one-time cost that is involved."

"I thought that it would be less expensive."

"Our licensing fees are paid annually."

More Cisco Nexus pricing and cost advice

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845,406 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

18%

Manufacturing Company

11%

Comms Service Provider

Educational Organization

Computer Software Company

24%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Manufacturing Company

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Aruba Instant On Switches?

The solution has a simple deployment and zero border.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Aruba Instant On Switches?

I think the pricing for the switches is reasonable.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Aruba Instant On Switches?

I have run into a couple of problems with the switches. Recently, one of the newer stacks stopped working and had to be rebooted individually. They don't have a lot of diagnostics tools, which coul...

See all answers

What do you like most about Cisco Nexus?

The product's initial setup phase is very easy.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco Nexus?

The price of Cisco Nexus is on the higher side due to the premium services Cisco offers. Despite the cost, it offers valuable features and services.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Cisco Nexus?

When I talk about data centers, which are critical infrastructure and centralized application hubs, the Nexus platforms should be highly stable. Initially, the codes I received through ACI were qui...

See all answers

Comparisons

HPE ProCurve vs Aruba Instant On Switches

Compared 47% of the time

Cisco Catalyst Switches vs Aruba Instant On Switches

Compared 40% of the time

NETGEAR Switches vs Aruba Instant On Switches

Compared 14% of the time

More Aruba Instant On Switches Competitors

Juniper QFX Series Switches vs Cisco Nexus

Compared 45% of the time

Arista Networks Platform vs Cisco Nexus

Compared 20% of the time

Cisco Catalyst Switches vs Cisco Nexus

Compared 12% of the time

ExtremeSwitching vs Cisco Nexus

Compared 5% of the time

VMware NSX vs Cisco Nexus

Compared 4% of the time

More Cisco Nexus Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Aruba Instant On Switches

March 2025

Download Aruba Instant On Switches product report

Buyer's Guide

Cisco Nexus

March 2025

Download Cisco Nexus product report

Also Known As

Aruba Instant On 1930 Switches

No data available

Overview

The Aruba Instant On 1930 switches features advanced, smart-managed, fixed configuration Gigabit switches designed for small businesses that are easy-to-deploy and affordable. They’re made to handle today’s bandwidth-heavy applications like voice and video conferencing, enabling consistent connectivity to enhance performance. Using either the Instant On mobile app or the cloud-based web portal, you can quickly set up, monitor and manage the 1930 switch series from anywhere at any time. What’s more, up to 30 W PoE power delivery is available out-of-the-box for your class 4 PoE devices, like access points, surveillance cameras and VoIP phones, all easily managed from the same platform.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise

The Cisco Nexus family of switches is designed to meet the stringent requirements of the next-generation data center. Not simply bigger or faster, these switches offer the following characteristics: infrastructure that can be scaled cost-effectively and that helps you increase energy, budget, and resource efficiency, transport that can navigate the transition to 10 Gigabit Ethernet and unified fabric and can also handle architectural changes such as virtualization, Web 2.0 applications, and cloud computing and operational continuity to meet your need for an environment where system availability is assumed and maintenance windows are rare if not totally extinct.

Cisco

Sample Customers

KEMET, Vestavia Hills City Schools, Dropbox

Advanced Medical Transport, Banco de Guayaquil, Baylor Scott & White Health, BH Telecom, Bowling Green State University, Calligaris, Children's Hospital Colorado, City of Biel, Del Papa Distributing, Department of Justice, Dimension Data, Dualtec Cloud Builders, Electricity Authority of Cyprus, Grupo Industrial Saltillo (GIS), Hertz, K&L Gates , LightEdge, Lone Star College System, Management Science Associates, Mindtree, NBC Olympics, Quest, Sony Corporation, The Department of Education in Western Australia, Valley Proteins

Buyer's Guide

Aruba Instant On Switches vs. Cisco Nexus

March 2025

Free Report: Aruba Instant On Switches vs. Cisco Nexus

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