Cisco and Aruba compete in the networking hardware category. Aruba has a competitive edge in integration efficiency and user-friendly interfaces, making it appealing for cost-conscious businesses.
Features: Cisco Ethernet Switches offer a power-saving design, robust high-performance routing, and MACSec encryption for security, making them reliable and flexible. Aruba Switches are praised for their ease of use, seamless integration with Aruba's management and security solutions, and a user-friendly GUI.
Room for Improvement: Cisco Switches are criticized for high pricing, complex configuration, and expensive licensing. Users wish for better third-party integration and easier interfaces. Aruba Switches face issues with hardware stability in certain climates and complex user interfaces for less technical users. Improved visibility features are also desired.
Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Cisco is mainly used in on-premises deployments with some hybrid cloud solutions. Customer service experiences vary, with both strengths and delays noted. Aruba also serves primarily on-premises installations with flexibility for hybrid setups, and is generally praised for timely and efficient support.
Pricing and ROI: Cisco Ethernet Switches are typically more expensive, offering a beneficial ROI due to their reliability, but the high initial costs can be a barrier. Aruba’s competitive pricing and cost-benefit ratio are highlighted, particularly for businesses not requiring Cisco's extensive features, enhanced by the absence of certain licensing fees.
Aruba Switches is a network creation solution that enables users to easily manage every aspect of their networks.
Benefits of Aruba Switches
Some of the benefits of using Aruba switches include:
Reviews from Real Users
Aruba Switches are cutting-edge network creation tools that stand out among their competitors for a number of reasons. Two major ones are the warranty that guarantees them and the intuitive way in which they are designed. Aruba Switches are protected by lifetime warranties. If a switch malfunctions or is rendered inoperable, it can be quickly replaced. If the line of switches are still available, HPE will send the user the necessary replacement. Aruba Switches are built to be intuitive for users to customize and manipulate. This allows users to make full use of the solution without requiring them to devote a significant level of resources to training.
The head of technical support at a real estate law firm writes, “One valuable feature about HP is the warranty. All switches are very similar when it comes to most functionalities. Most switches provide a one-year warranty, but with HPE switches, if there's a unit that malfunctions, we call them and they replace it the next business day if that line is still available. We had a switch we reported the other day, it was a 25-10, which we procured way back, around 2014, and they replaced it. In general, HP provides a lot of support for its products. We will be doing some tinkering on the VLAN soon, first the layer two, and then connecting the layer three functionalities for some other departments. The advantage of Aruba compared to other switches is their reliability. If the product is trustworthy, I'll continue to use it.”
A network systems engineer at a financial services firm writes, “Their technical support is great. I have used Cisco products, and as compared to Cisco, Aruba's command-line syntax is not as complex. The command-line interface of Aruba switches is quite intuitive. It also has a graphical user interface. With Cisco, using the graphical user interface for configuration can be complex, whereas Aruba simplifies it, and you can easily use the graphical user interface. The configuration is secured. Their graphical user interface is quite robust.”
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