No more typing reviews! Try our Samantha, our new voice AI agent.

Cisco Wireless vs NETGEAR Insight Access Points comparison

Why PeerSpot?
 

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

Cisco Wireless
Ranking in Wireless LAN
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
5.2
Number of Reviews
154
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
NETGEAR Insight Access Points
Ranking in Wireless LAN
21st
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.3
Number of Reviews
13
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2026, in the Wireless LAN category, the mindshare of Cisco Wireless is 10.0%, down from 11.0% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of NETGEAR Insight Access Points is 1.6%, up from 1.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Wireless LAN Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Cisco Wireless10.0%
NETGEAR Insight Access Points1.6%
Other88.4%
Wireless LAN
 

Featured Reviews

EvansEsezobor - PeerSpot reviewer
Group IT Head at Euracare
Has enabled centralized user management and improved wireless access point aggregation
To improve Cisco Wireless, the ports on the access points are all 100 Meg, not 1 gig. We have not gotten a gigabyte interface of about 1,000, but the controller we have is just 1 gig. We would prefer if we could increase the controller to a 10 gig interface because we want to connect our controller to a 10 gig interface, which currently limits us to 1 gig. When we want to move higher capacity data via wireless, it limits us to 1 gig.
DG
Owner at ERIM S.A.
Centralized management has simplified our home Wi‑Fi setup and supports multiple users reliably
Given my experience with NETGEAR Insight Access Points, my piece of advice for other organizations considering it is that they have to look at the rest of their system because NETGEAR Insight Access Points is quite useless with anything but the Wi-Fi system. I rate this product an 8 out of 10.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Cisco Wireless is scalable."
"For me, there are two important features: 1) WLAN grouping – Allows us to have different groups and, within those groups, specific WLANs, so there is no overlapping. 2) FlexConnect – Enables us to have remote offices at different locations. We can have a central WLC to control all the locations."
"Unified management, reporting, stability, and most importantly seamless roaming."
"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 is mostly stable with a low downrate and the signal rate is good, and it is also easy to use."
"It's very, very stable; we have hardly ever had any problems with it as far as rebooting itself or it not being able to handle the load it had, given how we initially sized it."
"Its stability is most valuable."
"We can deploy a simple guest captive portal to allow guests to connect to the internet."
"The meshing capabilities are the most valuable feature. When I am going in-between buildings, my phone doesn't have to pick up different WiFi. They are all the same. Even in-between the buildings, I stay connected."
"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."
"The product's deployment is straightforward."
"The initial setup of NETGEAR Insight Access Points was straightforward."
"[Being] able to configure the WiFi devices and to see utilization remotely, or from the cloud."
"Our company sometimes uses the solution's technical support, and we have seen that they sort out our general problems quickly."
"The metrics demonstrate that NETGEAR really does a good job of balancing the load between the various access points on the networks and this results in an elimination of downtime."
"This solution has been a big return on investment."
 

Cons

"It's expensive."
"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."
"I am not a fan of Cisco's software pricing model. Their management software is far too expensive."
"Right now it just seems like it doesn't have enough power."
"The new licensing model isn't as good as what they had before."
"The product’s interface must be improved."
"I wouldn't mind if Cisco allowed their premiere devices to be able to have that cloud-based support as well, or cloud-based management."
"It is not easy to use. It should be made easier to use. They can maybe migrate it to the cloud so that we can manage the WLCs together. I find the licensing part very hard to understand. Cisco is now moving towards smart licensing, so this issue will be addressed soon."
"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."
"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 registration is annoying. I have to go back to NETGEAR and log tickets."
"While the data throughput does provide us with full insight into data being used, we find that it's not very accurate."
"The pricing and standard connectivity can be further improved."
"The product's UI needs to be simplified and made more straightforward."
"There is always room for improvement."
"When it comes to features needing improvement, the WAX610, WAC540 and the WAX610Y do not reliably stay online and this is especially true of the WAC540."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I feel the product's pricing is a good value."
"They have simplified the licensing, now there is a single license that is required. Earlier, multiple licenses were required. Single licensing is good. As a customer, I don't need to keep an inventory of multiple licenses."
"It's expensive. The pricing is an obstacle."
"However, when you integrate the access point and the controller with the DNAT across multiple sites, you need a DNAT cluster, which is a costly solution. Every site has a controller, and a DNAT cluster is not a good option in a global framework. It's okay for a small office or a few offices. But when you're talking about 500 offices, the cost becomes enormous."
"I think that the solution is expensive because the customer has to pay for a full year, at a minimum, in up-front costs."
"Its cost is a little bit higher than other products. Fortinet and Huawei are cheaper. If we were not a bank, I would go for Huawei or Fortinet because they are cheap, and I don't need that much security. A financial institute, a university, or a medical institute would need security to protect the customer data. That's why we buy this high-end product that has integrated security features."
"Cisco Wireless solutions should have a price reduction for educations centers. Education centers are there to help people grow and there are not large budgets. The solution tends to be expensive and it can cause difficulties when purchasing them here in Africa."
"The pricing is a bit high."
"The pricing seems to be reasonable."
"I think that the price of the product is reasonable."
"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."
"We have some basic models they give without a license."
"It is an expensive solution."
"My company does not need to pay anything related to the solution's licensing costs."
"For what you get, the price of Insight access points is very reasonable."
"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."
report
Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Wireless LAN solutions are best for your needs.
913,806 professionals have used our research since 2012.
 

Comparison Review

it_user212721 - PeerSpot reviewer
President at a tech services company with 51-200 employees
Mar 24, 2015
Cisco vs. Aruba Wireless Solutions
Cisco or Aruba Networks? If you are considering wireless access solutions, this is a common question that you are probably asking. You probably have sales people knocking at your door. How do you make sense of all the stories that you are presented with. If you have done any research, you are…
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
12%
Outsourcing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Construction Company
7%
Construction Company
11%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Outsourcing Company
10%
Retailer
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business79
Midsize Enterprise40
Large Enterprise74
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business9
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise2
 

Questions from the Community

Which is better - Cisco Wireless or Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN?
Cisco Wireless is very robust, very rugged, and can handle indoor and outdoor coverage extremely well. We found it to be very reliable and to consistently run very efficiently. Cisco Wireless helpe...
Which is better - Ruckus Wireless or Cisco Wireless?
Ruckus Wireless offers users the benefit of being both easy to set up and get running as well as being very user friendly. This user-friendly quality also renders it easy to learn how to use and ma...
How does Cisco Wireless compare with Aruba Wireless?
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 availabl...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for NETGEAR Insight Access Points?
My impression of the pricing aspect of NETGEAR Insight Access Points is that it is not exactly cheap. I find the pricing reasonable, but it is at the upper end of the reasonable bracket.
What needs improvement with NETGEAR Insight Access Points?
Managing users could be improved as it is quite difficult to block someone, and it is impossible to block someone on one specific access point. Regarding specific features that I would like to see ...
What is your primary use case for NETGEAR Insight Access Points?
We are using NETGEAR Insight Access Points in a domestic environment with four or five users.
 

Also Known As

Cisco WLAN Controller
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Aegean Motorway, Baylor Scott & White Health, Beachbody, Bellevue, Brunel University London, Bucks County Intermediate Unit , Chartwell School, Children's Hospital Colorado, Cisco Live Milan, City of Biel, City of Mississauga, Dundee Precious Metals, Electricity Authority of Cyprus, Erickson Living, Goldcorp, Great Ormond Street Hospital, Grupo Industrial Saltillo (GIS)
Information Not Available
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Wireless vs. NETGEAR Insight Access Points and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
913,806 professionals have used our research since 2012.