Meraki MS Switches and Aruba Switches are both prominent in the network switches category. Meraki appears to have an advantage in terms of pricing and customer support, while Aruba offers superior functionality and value that justify its cost.
Features: Meraki MS Switches provide seamless cloud management, enhanced network visibility, and user-friendly solutions. Aruba Switches offer advanced security, scalability, and feature-rich solutions, appealing to businesses that demand robust performance.
Room for Improvement: Meraki users notice limitations in network customization, integration with different vendor equipment, and flexibility. Aruba users seek more intuitive network configuration tools, streamlined setup processes, and usability enhancements.
Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Meraki MS Switches are known for straightforward deployment and excellent support, allowing quick team onboarding. Aruba Switches have mixed reviews on deployment complexity but benefit from reliable customer service.
Pricing and ROI: Meraki MS Switches are seen as having higher initial setup costs, but they often deliver strong ROI through reduced operational expenses and ease of management. Aruba Switches provide long-term value with lower setup costs and high performance, making them cost-effective for larger infrastructures.
If the devices are licensed, the support team will assist you depending on the severity level of the case.
Cisco's tech support is pretty good, and I would rate it an eight out of ten.
Improving the distribution network across regions would be beneficial.
Meraki should also consider improvements in stacking features, particularly in the lower-end models like NS130, where stacking isn't supported, unlike with Cisco traditional switching.
There are compatibility issues with certain Power over Ethernet (PoE) devices, which we would like to see resolved.
Most people are familiar with the Cisco commands, and it would be beneficial if the switch could be accessed by GUI configuration and by normally accessing the console.
I would rate the scalability of the product an eight out of ten.
The pricing of some products, such as the 6300M switch, is considered a significant cost.
Meraki pricing is a little premium compared to other vendor products.
Pricing is affordable, and licenses for the cloud need to be purchased every three to five years.
I have sites that have been running for many years with no issues.
If something happens to the device or hardware, Cisco will automatically change the device by the next business day.
We faced issues following firmware updates, which we now handle by performing updates outside of working hours.
In the hotel sector, IGMP 3 is particularly valuable for IPTV.
The control plane is in the cloud, and the data plane is local, allowing manageability from anywhere.
The most valuable feature is the ability to access devices from anywhere in the world through the cloud.
One of the most valuable features of Meraki MS Switches is its precise traffic analytics capabilities, allowing us to query the system for any place at any time.
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.”
Meraki MS Switches are first-line cloud-managed access and aggregation switches that combine the benefits of cloud-based centralized management with a reliable access platform. With cloud management, thousands of switch ports can be configured and monitored instantly over the web.
Meraki MS Switches Features
Meraki MS Switches have many valuable key features. Some of the most useful ones include:
Meraki MS Switches Benefits
There are many benefits to implementing Meraki MS Switches. Some of the biggest advantages the solution offers include:
Reviews from Real Users
Meraki MS Switches is a solution that stands out when compared to many of its competitors. Some of its major advantages are its accessibility, application visibility, and flexibility features.
Jóhann T., IT Manager at Sund Upper Secondary School, says, “Accessibility is what I find most valuable in Meraki MS Switches, because I'm able to check things and see if they're working, without being on-site at all times.”
A Senior Network Engineer at a tech services company mentions, "The top feature of Meraki MS switches for me is Layer 7 application visibility. Another positive in general is that you don't need to set up a console to the switch itself; it dials into a single dashboard where you can completely manage all your network devices."
John M., user at Baseline Consulting, LLC, comments, "I like the flexibility of the Meraki firewall. It gives you the ability to lock things down. Having multiple VLANs is helpful for the switching infrastructure and firewall. It's crucial when you have a public-facing VLAN, a private-facing VLAN, and a secure VLAN."
PeerSpot user William M., Consulting Engineer at IV4, expresses, "It is easy to deploy, maintain, and update. It has been trouble-free so far. I am still a Cisco command-line bigot, but the web interface makes it a lot easier for our help desk to interact with a client. When the clients call in and say that they aren't able to connect, it takes the help desk 10 minutes or less to look at everything in the enterprise or location. They can look at the firewall, switches, or access points in the dashboard. That's why I like the dashboard."
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