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Dell PowerScale (Isilon) vs Huawei OceanStor 9000 comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 7, 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

Dell PowerScale (Isilon)
Ranking in NAS
2nd
Average Rating
9.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
65
Ranking in other categories
File and Object Storage (3rd)
Huawei OceanStor 9000
Ranking in NAS
13th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
2
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the NAS category, the mindshare of Dell PowerScale (Isilon) is 17.7%, up from 17.3% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Huawei OceanStor 9000 is 2.2%, up from 1.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
NAS
 

Featured Reviews

Scott Taylor - PeerSpot reviewer
Manages large data sets efficiently with hybrid cloud integration
My organization is quite large, with about 30,000 employees. The growth has been substantial in areas such as radiology and genomics. One of the best features we've utilized recently is offload to cloud pools due to capacity constraints on-premise. We didn't want to expand Dell PowerScale (Isilon) straight away, so we utilized cloud pools to offload some data to Azure. That's really saved us in certain areas as we didn't have funding to expand Dell PowerScale (Isilon) until next year, which is why we utilized the cloud pools functionality to offload.
ChukwuemekaOnyemelukwe - PeerSpot reviewer
An entry-level, flash-based storage system designed for enterprise-class applications
It took significantly longer to set up the solution with Huawei compared to other options. But when creating servers for VMware virtualization in one data center, it was a relatively quick process. The Huawei's solution, even with the assistance of an engineer, took more than one month, possibly extending to two months. Chinese engineers were involved in the process, which contributed to the delays.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"I don't have to rebuild the cluster to add a node."
"Dell PowerScale's performance is good."
"I rate Dell PowerScale (Isilon) a ten out of ten, and we continue to keep buying it."
"The recent introduction of inline deduplication and compression has drastically improved our efficiency ratios to make it an economical product. This solution has also had a positive impact on our employees' productivity because it reduces the amount of admin that our staff needs to handle."
"This has been a valuable solution for our business overall. It offers business continuity and replication features."
"Dell PowerScale is a scalable solution. It allows non-disruptive upgrades and maintenance of the system."
"It assists with eliminating storage silos because it provides SMB and NFS protocols. PowerScale has also helped free up our employee's time to focus on other business priorities."
"The solution is stable."
"It has many options for scalability, and it is stable."
"The storage capacity is really one of the most valuable features. Also, the GUI is very friendly and the switches gives high performance. The technology used in storage is RAID which as helped us a lot to expand and store various items ."
 

Cons

"There is room for improvement in its handling of object storage."
"The solution's rate structure or rate redundancy needs to be improved."
"The product’s expansion capacity, pricing clarity, and ease of use need improvement."
"We have issues in Brazil with the procurement of solutions because we have to check the entire market and justify the pricing to our audit institutions, making it difficult to keep with the same vendor."
"Dell PowerScale needs to reduce its price."
"We see room for improvement in Dell PowerScale (Isilon) because we need personnel to effectively utilize all our infrastructure; it's not easy to find skilled people to work on AI and data analysis."
"The solution can be a bit complex for those not well versed in the technology."
"PowerScale is not suitable for virtual environments."
"The call charges and the management cost should be more friendly. They can also include monitoring and management."
"The handling of data deletion and bulk servers setup could have been more straightforward and easier when dealing with data removal or setting up servers. I believe Huawei could enhance their solutions, especially managing storage, to provide a better experience for customers."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Dell PowerScale is expensive on the start-up side but we can recoup those costs quickly by not having to reapply the savings to other equipment."
"The pricing for this solution is reasonable."
"We use the TNA approach which is a great opportunity for us to better manage the licenses based on how much consumption is available for the different customers so we can use that approach and scalability."
"Dell PowerScale is an expensive solution compared to other products like Qumulo."
"Our company finds the pricing high, but it decreases over time."
"The price of the solution can fluctuate. The price can be competitive or other times not. The price of the solution could be better."
"It is a really expensive solution."
"Pricing for this solution is reasonable."
"It is cheaper than other solutions."
"The installation is expensive as they often come as a comprehensive package. The design is more integrated, and everything is bundled together as part of the solution. This is what contributes to the higher cost of their solutions because when you purchase one element, it often comes with additional features and components, and you end up paying for the entire package."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
13%
Educational Organization
10%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Computer Software Company
19%
Manufacturing Company
16%
University
11%
Educational Organization
11%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
No data available
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon)?
The solution provides massive performance, scalability, efficiency, and ease of management.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon)?
We have to go through a certified reseller for Dell PowerScale (Isilon). From a value standpoint, it performs very well.
What needs improvement with Dell EMC PowerScale (Isilon)?
I would make Dell PowerScale (Isilon) better by improving SmartSync in the graphical user interface. Currently, everything has to be done through the command line, and I prefer having a graphical i...
What do you like most about Huawei OceanStor 9000?
The storage capacity is really one of the most valuable features. Also, the GUI is very friendly and the switches gives high performance. The technology used in storage is RAID which as helped us ...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Huawei OceanStor 9000?
The installation is expensive as they often come as a comprehensive package. The design is more integrated, and everything is bundled together as part of the solution. This is what contributes to t...
What needs improvement with Huawei OceanStor 9000?
The handling of data deletion and bulk servers setup could have been more straightforward and easier when dealing with data removal or setting up servers. I believe Huawei could enhance their solut...
 

Also Known As

PowerScale, Dell EMC Isilon
OceanStor 9000 Scale-out NAS
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

OMRF, University of Utah, Translational Genetics Research Institute, Arcis, Geofizyka Torumn, Cyprus E&P Corporation, Colburn School, Columbia Sportswear, Harvard Medical School, University of Michigan, National Library of France,
Piraeus, Clinique Univeritaires Saint-Luc, Absolut Bank
Find out what your peers are saying about Dell PowerScale (Isilon) vs. Huawei OceanStor 9000 and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
860,168 professionals have used our research since 2012.