Arista Networks Platform vs Dell PowerConnect Switches [EOL] comparison

Why PeerSpot?

Arista and Dell Technologies are both solutions in the Data Center Networking category. Additionally, 100% of Arista users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 90% of Dell Technologies users who would recommend it.

Arista Networks Platform

Read 36 Arista Networks Platform reviews

5,947 Views
2,438 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Dell PowerConnect Switches ...

Read 34 Dell PowerConnect Switches [EOL] reviews

90% willing to recommend

Arista Networks Platform

Dell PowerConnect Switches ...

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Download the report

Executive Summary

We performed a comparison between Arista Networks Platform and Dell PowerConnect Switches [EOL] based on real PeerSpot user reviews.

Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco, Arista, Dell Technologies and others in Data Center Networking.

To learn more, read our detailed Data Center Networking Report (Updated: August 2026).

Buyer's Guide

Data Center Networking

August 2026

Download the complete report

Helped 911,473 peers since 2012

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

Arista Networks Platform

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.0

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

Ethernet Switches (4th), Data Center Networking (3rd)

Dell PowerConnect Switches ...

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

8.2

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Featured Reviews

Dibyendu Das

Director at a tech company with 11-50 employees

Ultra-low latency networking has delivered reliable video workflows and critical operations

The support of Arista Networks Platform is quite complex; it is not very easy to configure. It needs a lot of network expertise for token sheddings and different kinds of configurations. It is very difficult to configure because Arista Networks Platform does not have a flexible GUI like Huawei or Netgear; everything is a very CLI kind of mainframe architecture. Scalability at every single step has a huge upgrade cost which is required for port mapping, connectivity, and transceivers certified by Arista Networks Platform, then the fabric upgrades from a software firmware level. Arista Networks Platform should improve commercial aspects to be affordable. There is no path for growth with a perfect score because the focus is more on reducing costs globally.

Read full review

LarsEvans

Chief Technology Officer / Chief Information Security Officer at Lorton Data, Inc.

Reliable and useful for network segmentation

The solution's most valuable feature stands up well. The tool is reliable, and it stands up well. The solution works fine and lasts a long time. I think if you speak about the features that have a flow and you can measure, it is hard to say. I don't spend a lot of my time with the tool, but I know that Dell APEX is the solution's cloud. I would say the VLAN features are important. The VLAN features are really useful because network segmentation is important. I would say the tool is easy to program. I don't know if the tool has any security features that I am aware of other than the fact that the solution is for networking. The VLAN and the ability to segment your networks are easy, which is its security feature.

Read full review

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"We use Arista products not only because they are so stable, easy to adopt and configure, but also because they have high throughput ratings (e.g. 40 / 100 / 400 gigabits), making them very scalable."

"Arista Networks Platform has impacted my organization positively by reducing the time taken to deploy a wireless solution in any organization or in any projects we have been on so far."

"The most valuable features of the Arista Networks Platform are the EVPN and VXLAN, and it has comprehensive features."

"The product's initial setup phase was straightforward."

"The solution is scalable."

"It's an extremely reliable platform for the network switches we use."

"I find the operational system used by Arista to be very valuable, and the hardware is exceptionally nice. Arista has a unified operational system called EOS that is easy to set up and replicate on other devices. The ease of configuration and transition between devices is a significant advantage for me."

"Arista Networks Platform has really boosted our organization to the extent that our organization does not want to think about any other platform except Arista in terms of access points and switches."

More Arista Networks Platform pros

"It's easy to set up. We can put it in production in a couple of minutes."

"Dell offers very good support."

"This solution comes with a lifetime warranty."

"The setup is straightforward. It takes minimum time for deployment."

"We have these switches installed in an environment with hardware from many other vendors, and so far, so good."

"This is a very good product, and it can be used lightly, but you have to understand how it works before implementing it."

"There is high reliability since we have used them for close to twenty years and only had possibly one failure."

"The technology is good and the interface is simple. We haven't had any bugs, disconnections or delays."

More Dell PowerConnect Switches [EOL] pros

Cons

"The stability of this solution needs to be improved as part of the next upgrade."

"Its price can be better."

"Something that you will often hear about Arista products is that the price is a bit too high and, like with Cisco, we sometimes have problems with our customers because of its pricing."

"They should expand further into campus networks."

"Currently, Arista is too costly for its customers."

"The product is fairly expensive. It's not a cheap option."

"The pricing is a little bit higher than Cisco and Juniper, and pricing is the concern."

"The documentation did not explain that we could not vary the speed between ports that are in the same block. For example, we cannot have 1G and 10G on the neighboring ports; all four ports have to be 1G or 10G, which was very annoying for us when we realized that we needed to change the configuration and the cabling that we had already prepared."

More Arista Networks Platform cons

"Technical support tends to give conflicting advice on how to configure the product."

"When it comes to the configuration, there should be documentation and interactive help available to assist people who have experience with products from other vendors."

"An area for improvement would be that it's very hard to configure if you're not familiar with the UI or CLI of the product. The UI itself could also be improved."

"The CLI for Dell PowerConnect Switches is sometimes confusing, especially with the LAN, but for the GUI it is simple."

"Dell is sometimes slow to provide updates to firmware."

"The IOS software that is used on the switches could be improved."

"More stable firmware releases would be an improvement because we have had them randomly power on and off."

"There should be more port options in this switch. Currently, it has 24 or 48 ports. However, some of our customers require only 8 ports, but I have to put a switch with 24 ports. They should provide smaller solutions and complimentary access point for companies like ours with a low quantity of work. The main issue with this product is branding. They should improve their branding and promote their brand more in Mexico. Customers are more aware of brands like Cisco as compared to Dell."

More Dell PowerConnect Switches [EOL] cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I remember that when our customers were offered the Arista Networks Platform, they used a checklist to compare the prices between Arista and Cisco for their requirements, and found that the prices were almost the same."

"The price of the Arista Networks Platform could be less expensive for the hardware and license."

"If one is cheap and ten is expensive, I rate the product price as seven out of ten."

"Cost wise, Arista Networks Platform is more expensive than other networking solutions."

"Arista Networks Platform was cheaper than Cisco. I have heard that the product is affordable for enterprise-sized companies."

"There is an annual license required to use the Arista Networks Platform."

"It is pretty pricey for a networking platform. It is on par with Cisco."

"The customer price for an Arista router is approximately $7,000 USD, while Cisco's is around $18,000."

More Arista Networks Platform pricing and cost advice

"Cheaper than its competitors"

"The solution is less expensive and more cost-efficient."

"Its price is okay. Sometimes, it is lower than a Cisco solution."

"Inexpensive"

"I would rate the pricing as a seven or eight."

"If one is the cheapest price and ten is the most expensive, I rate the product price as an eight or nine. The tool is not cheap."

"In my opinion, it is a product that is priced somewhere in the middle, making it a well-priced solution in the middle. It is not a very cheap product."

"The initial cost was high but since they have lasted for over ten or twenty years they are worth it."

More Dell PowerConnect Switches [EOL] pricing and cost advice

See which vendors are best for you

Use our free recommendation engine to learn which Data Center Networking solutions are best for your needs.

See recommendations

911,473 professionals have used our research since 2012.

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Financial Services Firm

10%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Comms Service Provider

Construction Company

26%

Outsourcing Company

10%

Financial Services Firm

Manufacturing Company

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	18
Midsize Enterprise	7
Large Enterprise	12

By reviewers
Company Size	Count
Small Business	21
Midsize Enterprise	6
Large Enterprise	6

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Arista Networks Platform?

The initial setup cost is high compared to others, and I find the initial setup cost to be very high.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Arista Networks Platform?

Arista Networks Platform could improve its command line management. Coming from a Cisco background, the adjustment period was challenging. While similar in some areas, the AOS concept, especially a...

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Arista Networks Platform?

I have worked with deploying Arista Networks Platform in data center environments, particularly for spine and leaf architectures. The configurations involved Zero Touch Provisioning, which went ver...

See all answers

Ask a question

Earn 20 points

Comparisons

Cisco Catalyst Switches vs Arista Networks Platform

Compared 21% of the time

Juniper EX Series Ethernet Switches vs Arista Networks Platform

Compared 7% of the time

Cisco Ethernet Switches vs Arista Networks Platform

Compared 6% of the time

Cisco Nexus vs Arista Networks Platform

Compared 4% of the time

Nokia Ethernet Service Switch vs Arista Networks Platform

Compared 4% of the time

More Arista Networks Platform Competitors

Cisco Catalyst Switches vs Dell PowerConnect Switches [EOL]

Compared 23% of the time

NETGEAR Switches vs Dell PowerConnect Switches [EOL]

Compared 17% of the time

HPE ProCurve vs Dell PowerConnect Switches [EOL]

Compared 16% of the time

Dell PowerSwitch N-Series vs Dell PowerConnect Switches [EOL]

Compared 12% of the time

ExtremeSwitching vs Dell PowerConnect Switches [EOL]

Compared 8% of the time

More Dell PowerConnect Switches [EOL] Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Arista Networks Platform

August 2026

Download Arista Networks Platform product report

Buyer's Guide

Dell PowerConnect Switches [EOL]

August 2026

Download Dell PowerConnect Switches [EOL] product report

Also Known As

7000 Series

PowerConnect Switches

Overview

Arista Networks Platform offers ultra-low latency and scalability with high bandwidth while simplifying network management through its intuitive dashboard. It enables robust support for EVPN and VXLAN, making it a top choice for modern data centers requiring efficient and effective networking solutions.

Designed to minimize complexity, Arista Networks Platform integrates seamlessly with a single operating system, providing streamlined operations. With automation capabilities via EOS and CloudVision, it enhances visibility and provisioning. Platinum and titanium power supplies contribute to reduced carbon footprints, aligning with sustainability goals. While configuration complexity and high pricing pose challenges, it remains a preferred choice for data center networking, offering premium performance and cost-effectiveness. It excels in environments like smart cities and finance, providing stability and scalability essential for demanding applications.

What are the key features of Arista Networks Platform?

Ultra-Low Latency: Ensures prompt data transmission and network responsiveness.
Scalability: Easily adapts to growing network demands and data loads.
High Bandwidth: Supports increased data transfer rates for efficient network operations.
Intuitive Dashboard: Enhances manageability and monitoring with streamlined interfaces.
EVPN and VXLAN Support: Provides flexible and robust networking options.
Platinum and Titanium Power Supplies: Reduce carbon footprint while ensuring reliable performance.
EOS and CloudVision Automation: Improves visibility, provisioning, and network operation efficiency.

What benefits should users look for in Arista Networks Platform?

Cost-Effectiveness: Balances premium performance with investment value.
Reduced Complexity: Streamlined integration simplifies network management.
Improved Visibility: Enhanced automation capabilities offer better monitoring and control.
High Throughput: Supports demanding applications with reliable data handling.
Sustainability: Eco-friendly power options align with environmental goals.

Arista Networks Platform is widely implemented across industries such as finance and smart cities, supporting critical applications in network security and scalable infrastructure. It is instrumental in data center networking, video production workflows, and robotic automation. Users benefit from its spine-leaf architectures and wireless connectivity, particularly in sectors requiring high throughput and reliability.

Arista

PowerConnect Switches family offers a set of flexible, manageable and comprehensive switch solutions supporting up to 10 Gigabit Ethernet (GbE) and optimized Internet iSCSI (iSCSI) performance with Dell Storage solutions, ideal for enterprise and campus LAN environments alike.

Dell Technologies

Sample Customers

American Internet Services

Amerijet Holdings Inc., CGD Securities, MavenWire, Tulane University

Buyer's Guide

Data Center Networking

August 2026

Download Free Report

Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco, Arista, Dell Technologies and others in Data Center Networking. Updated: August 2026.

DOWNLOAD NOW

911,473 professionals have used our research since 2012.

See our list of best Data Center Networking vendors.

We monitor all Data Center Networking reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.