AirCheck G3 vs SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager comparison

"The ability to push data to Link-Live is really important. On the main screen, you can see all the system parameters, and then you can also go and see all the current systems that are operating. They all have different SSIDs or system identifiers, and you can see all SSIDs that are operating in a certain area. Being able to see that and being able to dive into each one and figure out what frequency it is operating under is valuable."

"For a few thousand dollars, you save yourself a ton of time; it's a great deal."

"AirCheck made a lot of children and caregivers quite happy. While I might not have resolved everything, I have reduced the problems that we had every night. During the day, they would do visible checks and not always rely on the monitors, but every night, they had at least three or four of those alarms. I was able to reduce it to once or twice a week since those appliances are still limited in their wireless capability."

"I also like the remote session and the ability to log in to the device remotely. You can log in to the tester with your computer and can see the screen and operate the tester remotely. This is a very cool function, but it's very advanced."

"The one-button AutoTest feature is an amazing tool. It works well. It tells you whether or not you have shorts in your network, your PoE+ is running low on voltage, and shows you your link speed."

"AirCheck made a lot of children and caregivers quite happy, and while I might not have resolved everything, I reduced the problems we had every night from at least three or four alarms to once or twice a week."

"Few products provide an all-in-one platform like AirCheck, and for all intents and purposes, there's no competition in the space because no other enterprise-quality handheld testers do Wi-Fi and wired testing so comprehensively."

"It has made our networking staff more productive. We spend less time because the device helps us by identifying the issue and providing a solution for the customer. Prior to not having this device, we would have to guess when an issue arose. Now, we don't have to guess. This can easily save us hours per call."

"It is pretty straightforward to set up."

"The solution's view is very nice, and they have a great customized dashboard."

"The most valuable Real-time fault detection is beneficial as it enables the identification of changes made to a device's configuration through the SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager. This makes it easy to pinpoint which configurations were added or removed, potentially causing network issues. Such changes are saved in logs for future reference."

"It's perfect for network configuration management. It's easy to use."

"Configuration pushing, upgrade capabilities, job backup, configuration backup, and real-time configuration change monitoring are highly beneficial features of SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager."

"SolarWinds NCM provides updates on the status of your network infrastructure. If any issues arise, such as a link failure or a device going offline, you will receive notifications and alerts. Additionally, if someone unplugs a cable, SolarWinds NCM will detect it. It also features a Topology Mapper that displays the connectivity of your network devices, giving you a visual representation of the network's structure. With SolarWinds NCM, you have a clear understanding of what's happening within your network and can generate comprehensive reports."

"The tool is useful for security purposes."

"SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager improves the mean time to repair significantly, bringing measurable benefits to customers."

"The battery life needs improvement. For example, when you are doing an Ethernet test, that seems to drain the battery pretty quickly."

"The biggest improvement would be an easier upload over wireless to Link-Live."

"We use .1x authentication, so I need to download the certificate onto the device. It would be nice to have this functionality through the cloud as well. Right now, you need to do it through the software by connecting your laptop physically to the AirCheck. This is one thing that is a bit slow."

"I would love to have a button that pretends that you're an iPhone 5 or an Android Samsung model X, then tell me what you think the experience is."

"If it was capable of downloading MIBs onto the device, then we could identify the manufacturer."

"The only thing that would be an improvement would be the ability to do MPO/MPT testing, which is another mode of fiber, along with more options on the SFP to do that testing."

"I would like them to modify the interface. The button to change profiles is fairly small."

"I would love to have a button that pretends that you're an iPhone 5 or an Android Samsung, then tell me what you think the experience is. This is a very difficult thing to do because each of these things has different radios in them and behaves differently. Now, I can go into the user's office, and say, "The tool says everything's green. The WiFI infrastructure is fine, but their iPhone experience sucks." Is it a problem with their particular iPhone or is it a problem with any iPhone model? If I could have this solution emulate an iPhone model so I can walk into that room, and say, "My tools pretending to be your iPhone and it works fine. It must be your particular iPhone that we have a problem with." I found mobile phones in general have lousy radios and the coverage isn't strong enough, but it would be a nice feature."

"The AI features do not work well."

"We had issues with the FailOver Engine module installation, due to the resources of each SolarWinds server."

"Further improvements in automation are needed. Currently, there are limitations in performing tasks without logging into routers directly, and we expect more comprehensive device control."

"On NCM, reporting could be a bit better. It's completely become just one report. When I try to create a custom report, the solution just commits old server data."

"I would like to see more integration tools. Something like dialysis, for example."

"I'd like to see additional features like support for devices that don't use CLI for configuration backups, expanded inventory support for other vendors beyond Cisco, and compatibility with newer SD WAN devices. These enhancements would further improve the product's versatility and utility for users. we hope for future enhancements, especially in supporting security devices that lack CLI backup options."

"The third-party plugins available in the solution could improve. I have received some issues with the templates."

"The interface of solar winds could be improved."

"I'd always love a lower price, but as compared to some of the other tools, it is fairly reasonable. I personally bought one. So, I must have thought the value was there because I'm spending my own hard cash on it, not just the company's. You can get support. I don't have support on my personal device. We did buy support for our company devices. It is reasonable. It is not super expensive or astronomical."

"The product has a pretty good price."

"The overall cost of the solution, compared to the time saved—the number of man-hours devoted to other means of troubleshooting—is incomparable."

"Because I work in a big company, it is a no-brainer. If I were a consultant, I would still buy it, but it would be a huge investment. Overall, it's a good tool to have."

"It is definitely well worth the price. It is approximately $2,500. It pays for itself since it eliminates troubleshooting costs and labor due to all the money you would spend kind of troubleshooting the device if you didn't have any of these tools with you."

"Pricing is on par with the rest of the industry and the licensing is decent."

"For a few thousand dollars, you save yourself a ton of time. It's a great deal."

"If you find a feature you need, you have to call them and add it, but you should be able to use the product. You spend money on and invested in multiple devices and can't even use half of the features. They should negotiate with large enterprises who buy large numbers of units to provide NetAlly support for all of them at a nominal fee."

"In Africa, the cost is a major factor in decision-making for many companies. As a result, some companies may choose cheaper solutions, even if they are open-source, over more expensive ones, such as SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager. However, as an engineer, I believe that the functionalities and services offered by SolarWinds justify the cost. Nonetheless, many companies in Africa may still view the prices as unaffordable."

"There is a license needed to use SolarWinds Network Configuration Manager."

"With a minimal bundle, we pay about $3000 a year in licensing costs. If you have multiple devices in your network, you must buy the bundle, which is 100% identical for your infrastructure. If you have 15 devices, you need 15 licenses, for example. That's one bundle. You don't pay for anything over and above that."

"I have a yearly subscription."

"There is a license for the use of this solution and it is priced well, there is a lot of value for the money."

"Available at a moderate price"

"Pricing is reasonable and competitive."

"The price of the solution is high compared to other solutions."