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Aruba Instant vs NETGEAR Insight Access Points comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 31, 2024

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
Ranking in Wireless LAN
10th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
51
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
NETGEAR Insight Access Points
Ranking in Wireless LAN
21st
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.9
Number of Reviews
12
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Wireless LAN category, the mindshare of Aruba Instant is 2.0%, up from 2.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of NETGEAR Insight Access Points is 1.3%, down from 1.6% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Wireless LAN
 

Featured Reviews

Alessandro Salvadori - PeerSpot reviewer
Comes at a good price and has a good cloud console
We usually sell Aruba Instant where there is no need for more than four or five switches. It is generally recommended for very small companies where we don't need more than three or four switches We are using it only for very small companies. We have had a reduction in time, but it is not that…
Piyush Jain - PeerSpot reviewer
A product with load-balancing features that offers scalability to its users
My major problem is right now, the area which I need to cover is around 7,000 to 10,000 square feet, where even the mesh routers don't work out for me because it is a huge area to be covered. To cover huge areas, I will have to put extenders. I will have to use mesh routers with extenders to cover a whole huge area with Wi-Fi. I would like NETGEAR Insight Access Points to extend the area coverage they provide. One of the major problems I see is that when you try to use NETGEAR Insight Access Points, the huge amount of options that are there can only be handled by a person who is experienced or knows the process. So there should be a guide that walks anyone through different options and different things about how to go work with the UI.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The integration with ClearPass is the most valuable feature."
"The deployment guides that we get from Aruba are excellent."
"The coverage of the solution is great."
"In terms of stability, Aruba Instant is the best on the market."
"I find network management features related to monitoring Wi-Fi usage and visited sites particularly valuable. Content filtering is also important to prevent access to malicious or inappropriate websites. It is reliable and simple."
"I would rate the stability a ten out of ten."
"The access it grants to wifi is the solution's most valuable feature."
"The technical support from Aruba is of high quality, and I would rate it a ten."
"I'm able to do a lot of things, because the GUI is designed very well. I'm able to remotely make certain changes via my phone and apply them right away. It makes life easier when it comes to managing the equipment. The Insight management solution phone app is very good. It enables me to do what I want to do."
"The product's deployment is straightforward."
"I am all about simplicity. With the Insight management solution, I don’t need an additional cloud controller, appliance, network manager, or PC/server to configure and manage my access points. You have to look at cost, and everything has a cost. There is a cost to using Insight. But if the cost is reasonable, I don't want another layer. The ability to deploy a network and then have that software built-in, without having to go to a third-party, is big. Also, the less pieces that I have to call in on, the better. So, when I'm calling NETGEAR, it's not like I'm using some third-party piece of software to manage their product. It doesn't add that layer of complexity, which is key."
"Our company sometimes uses the solution's technical support, and we have seen that they sort out our general problems quickly."
"The internet connectivity is good."
"[Being] able to configure the WiFi devices and to see utilization remotely, or from the cloud."
"I now have the ability to remote access my network. That works extremely well. I can access it from any place. I don't need to be physically at the device. This saves me on time and travel."
"From the WiFi aspect, it's very intuitive and easy to use. The solution enables me to manage my entire WiFi from anywhere in the world..."
 

Cons

"The Central cloud management (optional) is far behind the competition in features, ease of use, and dependability. I have tried Aruba Central a few times over the years and, in my option, it is not where it needs to be for serious consideration in production environments."
"Embedding a heatmap tool within the product would make it easier to conduct a wireless survey."
"Aruba Instant can improve by increasing the gigabit range of the switch or by adding additional management features and tools. It can be helpful."
"For on-premises, I would rate the scalability a seven out of ten. For on-prem, if I want to integrate two more controls, and I want to extend my network , and add a couple of access points that need to be integrated with my network, I have to do the configurations and all. So that will be each and every time, as and when the users expand, the Wi-Fi solution expands; I need to do the configuration settings on all other controllers."
"In a corporate environment or a larger network, where more advanced filtering or MAC-based filtering is needed, I don't think the IAPs would be sufficient."
"It is not powerful enough and lacks features recommended for larger dimensions, making it unsuitable for big companies with requirements like 100 access points."
"The connectivity of the solution can use some improvement."
"Aruba Instant should not have a limit on users for future releases."
"I have some frustrations with the ease of use. It tends to be sluggish. The graphical interface is pretty, but not useful. They have this tree that shows connected devices, which makes no sense whatsoever because the labeling field of the tree truncates all the items to the point that it's almost useless. You can't even tell what it is. I would prefer a spreadsheet list of the gear as opposed to a graphical representation."
"There is always room for improvement."
"My major problem is right now, the area which I need to cover is around 7,000 to 10,000 square feet...I would like NETGEAR Insight Access Points to extend the area coverage they provide."
"The pricing and standard connectivity can be further improved."
"The registration is annoying. I have to go back to NETGEAR and log tickets. Access points and router registration are something that they need to address in Insight. They need to fix the bug of getting the devices activated and enrolled in Insight without fighting with them. I have probably done about six of these in the last month. You get to see patterns."
"Software-wise, they need to provide the ability to kick users out. If multiple users are abusing the system or the network, I should be able to block them for a time and, when I need to unblock them, I should be able to do so by using their MAC ID. That feature might already be there and I just don't know about it."
"The biggest issue I've had is that it works very well with the WiFi, but it does not offer any assistance at all with the routers. You can't control them or manage them at all. As soon as you want to use anything on the network side—because I have multiple 28-port switches—you can't manage them using this app."
"Ubiquiti is a very good company. NETGEAR should look at that model and expand on its remote capabilities. Ubiquiti seems to have a better product."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Two years ago, I paid INR 12,000 for access points, but now, I will have to pay double the amount, which comes up to INR 24,000, making it a costly product."
"The product is reasonably priced."
"The licensing cost is somewhere around $20,000."
"We only pay for the support and the contract licenses from Aruba Instant."
"Aruba Instant is affordable."
"I purchased the hardware and there are no monthly or yearly licenses to buy."
"I rate the product's price a five on a scale of one to ten, where one is cheap and ten is expensive."
"There’s no licensing required to use the tool."
"For what you get, the price of Insight access points is very reasonable."
"It wasn't much more than 100 dollars a year. For the devices that we have, the pricing was pretty fair."
"Price-wise, it is a little too high, about $20 higher than what it should be, but it's worth it. It's cheaper than Cisco's access point, but the products are not apples to apples."
"The pricing seems to be reasonable."
"My company does not need to pay anything related to the solution's licensing costs."
"Their pricing is perfect for smaller businesses who are money and budget conscious. There are a lot of other solutions out there that are two to three times more expensive."
"I can source the stuff pretty quickly wherever I go through the distributor. There is pricing available at NETGEAR if you can spend between $2,000 and $5,000 on a solution. So, there is special pricing that they can help with. The vendor's reps are very responsive. They have a good channel system."
"We have some basic models they give without a license."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
14%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Construction Company
6%
Computer Software Company
14%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Retailer
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

Which is better - Ubiquiti WLAN or Aruba Instant?
We researched Ubiquiti and Aruba when looking for a WLAN solution. Ubiquiti offers good WLAN access both indoors and outdoors. It provides an enterprise-level WIFI while remaining cost-effective. U...
What do you like most about Aruba Instant?
I find network management features related to monitoring Wi-Fi usage and visited sites particularly valuable. Content filtering is also important to prevent access to malicious or inappropriate web...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Aruba Instant?
In my experience, Aruba Instant's price is reasonable compared to premium products like Ruckus, Cisco, or Juniper. However, when compared to entry-level market segments, the price is higher. Overal...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Purdue University, Orlando Magic, Brussels Airport Company, Molecaten Holiday Parks
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Find out what your peers are saying about Aruba Instant vs. NETGEAR Insight Access Points and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
860,592 professionals have used our research since 2012.