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Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN vs Huawei Enterprise Routers comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Sep 16, 2024

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

Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN
Ranking in WAN Edge
2nd
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
92
Ranking in other categories
Network Management Applications (6th), Software Defined WAN (SD-WAN) Solutions (2nd)
Huawei Enterprise Routers
Ranking in WAN Edge
8th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
25
Ranking in other categories
Routers (4th)
 

Featured Reviews

Igor Van Den Ouden - PeerSpot reviewer
Enables secure and flexible branch connectivity with application-aware routing
The valuable features of Cisco SD-WAN include its security policies and zone-based firewall that are applied to every site, as well as application-aware routing. Security is standard compliant, eliminating config drift that was prevalent before manual configurations. Application-aware routing offers flexibility in using different lines for traffic, depending on the policy implemented.
Udochi Ododo - PeerSpot reviewer
Easy to configure and troubleshoot, but they need more visibility in the licensing model
Huawei needs to be a bit more open with their licensing model. What I find is that when you buy equipment, you expect that you have a particular feature. By the time you want to use that feature, you realize that you need to acquire a license for it. That is the one thing that I think they need to improve on. Essentially, they need to open their licensing model such that when a customer buys a device, they have a full view of all of the available licenses for it. It's not at the time of use that the customer will now be informed that they need to purchase an additional license.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"Using SD-WAN to combine services can result in better up time, higher speeds, and much lower costs."
"The most valuable feature is the application-level routing."
"The product helps to aggregate network links. The tool increases security and makes it possible for you to have remote workers."
"Cisco SD-WAN's collaborative features are unique and sustainable. I also like the protocols, which use two SD-WAN."
"The deployment is quite simple and straightforward."
"Cisco SD-WAN is a very good product."
"The availability of services and combining different connections is most valuable."
"The initial setup is straightforward and easy to deploy."
"I have been able to connect the solution to many platforms such as Windows, Apple, and Android."
"When we started, the connection was amazing for the 100G between the switches and the co-switch. What the students typically use for school is a maximum is 40 so they now have faster technology."
"Internet access is a good feature."
"There is a lot of information available about routers and how to configure Huawei Routers right now."
"The most valuable feature of Huawei Enterprise Routers is if have two networks at different geographical locations with a great deal of distance they work together as if they are on the same cloud network."
"The solution offers good customer support and good performance."
"The setup is simple."
"This product uses a non-proprietary command line, which makes it compatible across many different systems."
 

Cons

"The product's application delivery feature needs improvement."
"Cisco SD-WAN's clustering mechanism needs to be improved. If there are more than five milliseconds of latency time between installations of the VM manager, the cluster automatically breaks down."
"The deployment is complex."
"All of the configurations are based on templates, and we need to spend a lot of time doing the templates. It's good because that means that all of the configurations will be equal in the network. However, we need to spend a lot of time implementing the templates and doing the customizations."
"The licensing model needs to be improved."
"The Cisco way of thinking is to create umbrella-like solutions. I would prefer it if this solution was separate from the entire monstrous Cisco portfolio."
"The solution is a bit complicated."
"Its license model needs to be improved. They always make the license model too complex. There are too many license models and too many options. They should have a flexible license model. They can improve a lot of things in terms of scalability, templates, and automation, mainly automation for onboarding a number of sites. If you want some new features, it can take quite a long time. If you want a feature and it is not yet developed, you need to have the support of the business units to have the feature developed. If the feature is not on their roadmap, it can take quite some time before you get the feature."
"They should include features like IPS for security and response."
"In my country we don't have Huawei technology, we only have Huawei routers for ISP. There is no agent for Huawei in Egypt."
"Lacks sufficient market availability."
"Huawei Enterprise Routers can improve by enhancing their security. The software architecture and the operating system that runs on their router and the security capability are not as strong when compared to Cisco."
"It would be better if local storage management was more flexible, so that unused data could be easily removed."
"There is not much of a technical team for Huawei available in Pakistan as compared to Cisco with respect to very complex networks."
"The solution's technical support could be improved."
"We'd like the product to be more flexible so that we could more easily manipulate some of the features."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We can only buy three-year licenses, not monthly. The cost seems high for us, especially since we're in Vietnam, which isn't a rich country. But we still like the product because it is good."
"The pricing of this solution is very expensive."
"You have to pay between 3000 and 10,000 euros, or something in that range. The core switches Nexus cost me between 10,000 and 20,000 euros."
"The product is not too expensive."
"There is a monthly subscription to use this solution."
"I give the price a seven out of ten."
"The price is high."
"The cost is reasonable. I would rate the price as seven out of ten."
"The price is reasonable compared to Cisco's."
"The tool's licensing is yearly."
"The solution's price is reasonable."
"The product is inexpensive, but there is an extra cost for replacement of the device."
"These routers are not too expensive."
"The product is expensive."
"There are additional licensing costs. I am aware of additional licenses and which services are added to the router."
"Huawei offers a cheaper enterprise router solution than Cisco."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
45%
Computer Software Company
12%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Manufacturing Company
4%
Financial Services Firm
12%
Computer Software Company
12%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Educational Organization
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Cisco SD-WAN?
When considering the most valuable features of Cisco SD-WAN, the decoupling of self-monitoring stands out significantly.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Cisco SD-WAN?
The pricing for Cisco SD-WAN is rated eight out of ten, with some variability depending on the reseller discounts and the size of the enterprise. It is also relatively cost-effective for smaller bu...
What needs improvement with Cisco SD-WAN?
The main area for improvement in Cisco SD-WAN is the lack of documentation, which often lags behind the software releases. This is especially notable since Cisco acquired the solution and is still ...
What do you like most about Huawei Enterprise Routers?
The solution provides support for 5G connectivity.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Huawei Enterprise Routers?
The product is very cheap and offers a huge discount as they are trying to enter the market. However, you have to pay extra for some services and support.
What needs improvement with Huawei Enterprise Routers?
The documentation is somewhat lacking and not easy to navigate. There are some errors and misleading information. The general appearance of the company site is also not user-friendly for downloadin...
 

Also Known As

Cisco SD-WAN
No data available
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Doyle Research, Ashton Metzler & Associates
Bus Online, VisionChina Media Inc. (VisionChina), China Network Television (CNTV), Chengdu Shuangliu International Airport, ABC, BovenIJ hospital
Find out what your peers are saying about Cisco Catalyst SD-WAN vs. Huawei Enterprise Routers and other solutions. Updated: March 2025.
845,040 professionals have used our research since 2012.