Aruba Instant vs Ubiquiti WLAN comparison

Hewlett Packard Enterprise and Ubiquiti Networks are both solutions in the Wireless LAN category. Hewlett Packard Enterprise is ranked #9 with an average rating of 8.5, while Ubiquiti Networks is ranked #7 with an average rating of 7.8. Hewlett Packard Enterprise holds a 2.1% mindshare in Wireless LAN, compared to Ubiquiti Networks’s 5.1% mindshare. Additionally, 97% of Hewlett Packard Enterprise users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 81% of Ubiquiti Networks users who would recommend it.

Aruba Instant

Read 50 Aruba Instant reviews

3,199 Views
2,484 Comparison Views

97% willing to recommend

Ubiquiti WLAN

Read 42 Ubiquiti WLAN reviews

8,118 Views
7,795 Comparison Views

81% willing to recommend

Aruba Instant

Ubiquiti WLAN

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 31, 2024

Ubiquiti WLAN and Aruba Instant are key competitors in the wireless LAN solutions market. Ubiquiti seems to have an edge due to its cost-effectiveness and ease of deployment, while Aruba Instant is favored for its advanced features and security.

Features: Ubiquiti WLAN provides an easy deployment process and robust performance with features like a free controller system, remote management, and straightforward configuration. It is competitively priced, making it appealing to users. Aruba Instant excels in cloud capabilities, security features, and seamless integration, offering centralized management and a strong end-user experience with its robust feature set.

Room for Improvement: Ubiquiti WLAN could improve its management features, support, and scalability as stability issues and limited troubleshooting tools have been noted. Aruba Instant needs enhancements in its management interface and support for larger deployments, with additional improvements in coverage and cloud management features necessary.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Ubiquiti WLAN is appreciated for its straightforward deployment process, adaptable to various environments, but has faced criticism for less responsive technical support compared to larger players. Aruba Instant also has a simple deployment process, benefiting from its Installation On feature, although its customer support availability and responsiveness have received mixed reviews.

Pricing and ROI: Ubiquiti WLAN is noted for its affordability, offering lifetime licenses and cost-effective pricing that appeals to small to medium environments without ongoing fees, resulting in a positive ROI when environmental needs are met. Aruba Instant, with a slightly higher initial cost, is favored for its comprehensive features despite the greater upfront price, delivering positive ROI when user requirements align.

To learn more, read our detailed Aruba Instant vs. Ubiquiti WLAN Report (Updated: January 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Aruba Instant vs. Ubiquiti WLAN

January 2025

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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

Aruba Instant

Ranking in Wireless LAN

9th

Average Rating

8.6

Reviews Sentiment

6.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Ubiquiti WLAN

Ranking in Wireless LAN

7th

Average Rating

7.6

Reviews Sentiment

7.1

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2025, in the Wireless LAN category, the mindshare of Aruba Instant is 2.1%, down from 2.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Ubiquiti WLAN is 5.1%, down from 7.7% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Wireless LAN

Featured Reviews

Prashant-Patel

Senior Presales Consultant - Networking Solutions at Mannai

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.

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Geoff Rubin

CEO at Forward Thinking Network Consultancy Ltd

Useful for network management and far more competitive than the other leading American brands

As an importer and distributor, we don't spend any time installing Ubiquiti WLAN products ourselves. We only resell the products to installers and don't do any installations directly. From my knowledge, though, the installation process is extremely straightforward. We get very few technical questions from our customers who do the installations. Based on our experience as distributors, I can say that virtually every installation we deal with now is centered around the UniFi Gateway. Although we don't handle installations directly, more companies rely on Ubiquiti gateways instead of standard options like FortiGate switches as routers. With the new UDM Pro Max product, Ubiquiti WLAN has covered the whole spectrum from home installations to the largest possible enterprise installations.

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The product's initial setup phase was straightforward, considering that the tool offers a ZTP feature."

"The most beneficial features for network management are the price and the cloud console."

"I've worked with other products, but I prefer Aruba because of its cost and simplicity."

"If you don't need heavy-duty filtering and things like that, it's a cheap solution. And, you have central management, and it works."

"The product is easy to configure."

"The most valuable feature is that it provides a redundant wireless connection for a client."

"The simplicity of the dashboard is one of the most valuable features. It's easy to use, and manage and the security features are robust. We can block unauthorized connections and create secure SSIDs."

"The solution is stable, and we are satisfied."

More Aruba Instant pros

"For me, the ease of configuration is a valuable feature."

"Ubiquiti WLAN is stable."

"The management features are valuable."

"Ubiquiti provides good connectivity for the end-user, so I think it's stable."

"The initial setup is easy."

"The pricing is very competitive and the feature sets are very good. It compares well against more expensive options."

"The solution is very easy to install."

"You can save backups of this controller locally and then I can export it to wherever I want."

More Ubiquiti WLAN pros

Cons

"Aruba Instant can improve by increasing the gigabit range of the switch or by adding additional management features and tools. It can be helpful."

"They could provide a centralized system to manage switches incorporated into multiple branches."

"The restart time should be improved."

"My biggest problem with Aruba Instant was the DHCP implementation. The DHCP server needs to ping an IP address to connect to the internet. In some cases, we don't have a DHCP server in the network, and it was really a problem."

"For some people, price is a concern."

"If you need to access the master access point the integration between the two becomes quite expensive."

"In a corporate environment or a larger network, where more advanced filtering or MAC-based filtering is needed, I don't think the IAPs would be sufficient."

"It is good as it is. If anything, its reporting could be improved."

More Aruba Instant cons

"They could enhance their products by integrating cloud access into each device."

"The product must provide better warranties."

"Big networks with more than 80 access points are a problem. The network controller stops sometimes, and I think it's because of the high number of access points."

"The logs are not detailed enough. You can't clearly see what is being blocked in Ubiquiti WLAN, making the troubleshooting process a little bit harder."

"The product could be improved with more extensive documentation or resources for network engineers."

"Ubiquiti WLAN only supports 2.4GHz Wi-Fi radio and would be improved by including support for 5GHz."

"Largely we're happy with the product, however, the firmware deployments could maybe be managed a little bit differently."

"The strength of the signal from the access points could be improved."

More Ubiquiti WLAN cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We pay about $300 per access point."

"I personally would rather pay that little bit more and get what I need because I know what I'm getting, as opposed to going for something cheaper that's not as manageable and doesn't give as much."

"I rate the product’s pricing a two out of ten."

"It's a one time cost, including the upgrades, but you have to pay on a yearly basis if you want support. The price is in the middle in comparison to that of competitors' products."

"The solution's pricing is reasonable."

"Some in the hospitality industry use the solution because it's cheaper and doesn't require licenses."

"The licensing cost is somewhere around $20,000."

"Aruba Instant is a free subscription with a limited lifetime warranty."

More Aruba Instant pricing and cost advice

"It’s an expensive product but has all the essential qualities and functionality."

"I would rate the solution's pricing a nine out of ten. It is high."

"The tool's price is good and falls somewhere in the middle."

"Ubiquiti WLAN is less expensive than Ruckus, but its price could be improved to make it more affordable and accessible."

"Its cost is reasonable."

"Ubiquiti WLAN is a low-priced product."

"Ubiquiti WLAN is fairly well priced and available as a one-time purchase."

"The tool's price is very friendly."

More Ubiquiti WLAN pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

16%

Manufacturing Company

Government

Comms Service Provider

Computer Software Company

14%

Manufacturing Company

Comms Service Provider

Educational Organization

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...

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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...

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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.

See all answers

Is Ubiquiti Wireless better than Ruckus Wireless WAN?

Ubiquiti Wireless is extremely easy to set up and is an excellent option for small businesses, offering enterprise features for a one-time fee and no ongoing licensing fees. Ubiquiti Wireless is ve...

See all answers

What do you like most about Ubiquiti WLAN?

Anyone can buy the product off the shelf and configure it.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Ubiquiti WLAN?

The solution is cheap. I rate its pricing as three out of ten.

See all answers

Comparisons

Omada Access Points vs Aruba Instant

Compared 32% of the time

Ruckus Wireless vs Aruba Instant

Compared 16% of the time

Cisco Meraki Wireless LAN vs Aruba Instant

Compared 14% of the time

Huawei Wireless vs Aruba Instant

Compared 10% of the time

Aruba Wireless vs Aruba Instant

Compared 4% of the time

More Aruba Instant Competitors

Aruba Wireless vs Ubiquiti WLAN

Compared 18% of the time

Fortinet FortiAP vs Ubiquiti WLAN

Compared 17% of the time

Huawei Wireless vs Ubiquiti WLAN

Compared 16% of the time

Cisco Wireless vs Ubiquiti WLAN

Compared 9% of the time

SonicWall SonicWave Access Points vs Ubiquiti WLAN

Compared 1% of the time

More Ubiquiti WLAN Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Aruba Instant

January 2025

Download Aruba Instant product report

Buyer's Guide

Ubiquiti WLAN

December 2024

Download Ubiquiti WLAN product report

Learn More

Hewlett Packard Enterprise

Video not available

Ubiquiti Networks

Overview

Aruba Instant delivers the only controllerless Wi-Fi solution that is easy to set-up, and loaded with security and smarts needed to accelerate your business without breaking your budget.

UniFi is a revolutionary Wi-Fi system that combines Enterprise performance, unlimited scalability, a central management controller and disruptive pricing.

Sample Customers

Purdue University, Orlando Magic, Brussels Airport Company, Molecaten Holiday Parks

NASCAR Grand-AM, Maritime Parc, Outdoor Music Festival, One Republic Tour, British Armed Forces, Arcadia School District, Bartlett School District, Universidad del Azuay, Estelar Hotels, Intercontinental Bali, Moscow - Enforta, Miami - Sling Broadband, Manhattan - MST, Ecuador - Aire.EC

Buyer's Guide

Aruba Instant vs. Ubiquiti WLAN

January 2025

Free Report: Aruba Instant vs. Ubiquiti WLAN

Find out what your peers are saying about Aruba Instant vs. Ubiquiti WLAN and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.

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