Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN and Ekahau Site Survey are contenders in the network management and WiFi planning markets respectively. In terms of each product's strengths, Cisco Meraki holds an advantage in centralized cloud management while Ekahau excels in providing detailed WiFi planning and optimization insights.
Features: Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN offers a centralized cloud dashboard simplifying network monitoring and management, robust security integrations like RADIUS and SSO, and extensive traffic analytics with Layer 7 protections. Ekahau Site Survey stands out with its advanced WiFi network planning capabilities, offering dual-band spectrum analysis, detailed predictive surveys, and reliable planning tools through importation of granular floor plans and structural materials.
Room for Improvement: Cisco Meraki could expand its feature set beyond the core functionalities, improve its licensing and reporting capabilities, and enhance its advanced routing options and technical support. Ekahau should focus on enhancing multi-file handling, reducing device resource demands, and improving GPS features and integration for mixed environments.
Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Cisco Meraki's cloud-based deployment allows flexible management and is backed by high-rated customer service, though its technical support may be inconsistent. In contrast, Ekahau delivers strong on-premises deployment tailored for controlled environments, receiving favorable support ratings that would benefit from adopting Meraki's accessibility practices.
Pricing and ROI: Cisco Meraki's pricing is reflective of its robust feature set and enterprise-level service but considered high, particularly with licensing fees. Its ROI is apparent in network stability and reduced management time. Ekahau, despite a high initial cost, provides significant value through Wi-Fi planning and troubleshooting, offering deep insights and accuracy for complex environments, which make it a strategic investment for businesses with specialized needs.
Over 12 years in the making, ESSTM maintains its reputation as the easiest to use, enterprise-grade Wi-Fi design and maintenance tool for Wi-Fi professionals. With crystal clear heat maps and easy-to-use reports, ESS makes it simple to optimize Wi-Fi.
ESS allows you to plan and create Wi-Fi networks according to your performance and capacity requirements—taking into consideration the increasing amount of wireless clients and applications such as VoIP, HD video streaming and web browsing.
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