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Aruba Instant vs Aruba Wireless comparison

 

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:
 

ROI

Sentiment score
3.5
Aruba Instant delivers positive ROI with increased productivity, network stability, and cost-effective manageability despite high initial costs.
Sentiment score
8.4
Many users report positive ROI from Aruba Wireless, citing productivity boosts and cost-effective, downtime-reducing infrastructure solutions despite valuation challenges.
There is no need to buy additional controllers for managing access points.
There are significant time savings, around thirty to forty percent, due to minimal disconnections.
 

Customer Service

Sentiment score
5.8
Aruba Instant's customer service is generally effective, though some users experience delays, preferring better communication and issue resolution.
Sentiment score
7.5
Aruba Wireless customer service varies, with mixed feedback on phone support but generally positive views on online and technical help.
I only needed support once or twice for a replacement, and it was handled smoothly without any difficulty.
I would rate their technical support nine out of ten.
The customer support is good.
 

Scalability Issues

Sentiment score
5.5
Aruba Instant is scalable for small-medium businesses, praised for vendor integration, but limited for large enterprises with compatibility issues.
Sentiment score
8.0
Aruba Wireless scales for diverse enterprises, offering flexible deployment, centralized management, and robust performance despite some hardware limitations.
The solution is scalable, as multiple sites connect seamlessly.
 

Stability Issues

Sentiment score
9.2
Aruba Instant is praised for its consistent stability, ease of management, and reliability despite occasional latency issues.
Sentiment score
8.9
Aruba Wireless is highly reliable, stable, and effective across environments, with minor issues resolved by updates, rated highly by users.
I have been using the product for the last nine years without facing any issues post-installation.
I don't remember it going down during the years it existed.
 

Room For Improvement

Aruba Instant faces critiques on usability, support, scalability, and pricing, with demands for feature enhancement and improved management tools.
Aruba Wireless needs improved usability, stability, security, integration, cost-effectiveness, bug resolution, and enhanced features for better user experience.
An important missing feature is the console port, which allows direct management without the cloud.
Zero-touch provisioning is needed, and although a cloud version is available, like Aruba Central, easier provisioning and configuration would be beneficial in the future.
While the technical specifications are satisfactory, the access points are expensive.
At the time of purchase, the prices were moderate, but now they are quite expensive.
 

Setup Cost

Aruba Instant is cost-effective, with competitive pricing, minimal licensing, and justified value despite regional and project size variations.
Aruba Wireless offers competitive pricing, with costs justified by performance, though initial setup and licensing can be expensive.
We do not sell very expensive devices as we move to other products.
It is very high compared to other products.
The initial prices were more affordable compared to the current high prices.
The pricing seems reasonable compared to other brands; however, it is too expensive for smaller businesses.
 

Valuable Features

Aruba Instant provides easy deployment, robust security, seamless mobility, and cost-effective management, enhanced by features like AirMatch and role-based control.
Aruba Wireless excels in security, scalability, and management, offering integrated solutions with advanced features and cost-effective deployment.
The most beneficial features for network management are the price and the cloud console.
The Aruba Wireless solution has excellent roaming capabilities, ensuring seamless connectivity.
It has many features and is integrated with Azure AD and multiple active directories, making authentication easy.
I do not need to buy a controller for the access point since the Aruba Access Point has a built-in virtual controller.
 

Categories and Ranking

Aruba Instant
Ranking in Wireless LAN
10th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.1
Number of Reviews
50
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Aruba Wireless
Ranking in Wireless LAN
1st
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
147
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of February 2025, in the Wireless LAN category, the mindshare of Aruba Instant is 2.1%, up from 2.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Aruba Wireless is 18.8%, down from 23.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Wireless LAN
 

Featured Reviews

Prashant-Patel - PeerSpot reviewer
A highly stable and easy-to-deploy solution that is free and provides excellent deployment guides
The setup is very straightforward. There is no complexity at all. It took us 15 minutes. We need IP address details, DNS, a gateway, DHCP servers, and SSIDs. Single access points can act as controller-based, controller-less, and cloud-based solutions. That is the beauty of Aruba. If I have an on-premise solution and want to move to the cloud, I don't need separate hardware. The same hardware can be utilized in the cloud. The deployment guides that we get from Aruba are excellent. We have every piece of detail.
Muhammad_Faisal - PeerSpot reviewer
Experience seamless connectivity with top-notch roaming capabilities
The Aruba Wireless solution has excellent roaming capabilities, ensuring seamless connectivity. Once installed, Aruba Wireless works robustly without overheating issues. This is particularly effective compared to other products I've used, like FortiMonitor and FortiAPs, which sometimes heat up. I am very satisfied with the roaming feature, as it ensures connectivity when moving from one location to another. The product's stability, after setting it up, adds to its value.
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Comparison Review

it_user212721 - PeerSpot reviewer
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
Computer Software Company
16%
Manufacturing Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Government
6%
Computer Software Company
17%
Manufacturing Company
7%
Educational Organization
6%
Financial Services Firm
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

Which is better - Ubiquiti WLAN or Aruba Instant?
We researched Ubiquiti and Aruba when looking for a WLAN solution. Ubiquiti offers good WLAN access both indoors and outdoors. It provides an enterprise-level WIFI while remaining cost-effective. U...
What do you like most about Aruba Instant?
I find network management features related to monitoring Wi-Fi usage and visited sites particularly valuable. Content filtering is also important to prevent access to malicious or inappropriate web...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Aruba Instant?
The licensing costs depend on the product. The smaller switch is around one hundred and twenty euros. We do not sell very expensive devices as we move to other products.
What are pros and cons of Aruba 515 Series AP vs. Cisco Meraki or Extreme Networks?
Depends. I have personally used both Cisco and Aruba so I am familiar with them. Extreme I am not, so unless they have some feature that I need or want, I wouldn't consider them. Do you have expe...
Aruba Wireless or Ruckus Wireless?
At my organization, we researched Ruckus Wireless among other solutions but ultimately chose Aruba wireless. What did we like about Ruckus? First, it was very easy to use, and anybody with minimal...
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...
 

Also Known As

No data available
Aruba WLAN, HP WLAN, HP Wireless, Aruba Instant On AP Series Access Point
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Purdue University, Orlando Magic, Brussels Airport Company, Molecaten Holiday Parks
Consulate Health Care, Los Angeles Unified School District, Science Applications International Corp (SAIC), San Diego State University, KFC, ACTS Retirement-Life Communities
Find out what your peers are saying about Aruba Instant vs. Aruba Wireless and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
838,713 professionals have used our research since 2012.