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Fortinet FortiExtender vs Ruckus Wireless WAN comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive Summary

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

Fortinet FortiExtender
Ranking in Wireless WAN
8th
Average Rating
8.2
Number of Reviews
8
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Ruckus Wireless WAN
Ranking in Wireless WAN
2nd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
55
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of January 2025, in the Wireless WAN category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiExtender is 1.3%, down from 1.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Ruckus Wireless WAN is 37.9%, up from 36.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Wireless WAN
 

Featured Reviews

Mohammad Al-Zard - PeerSpot reviewer
Seamless with excellent integration capabilities and flexibility
What most of my clients are telling me is the price is a problem. That would be the best thing to start with. They agree on the value, and we have a very solid argument with the clients that proper service and value comes at a proper price. However, we hope to have more flexible pricing. That would be the first point to be mentioned. The product management team has asked to have a Multi-SIM device. We've had this for one year. Covid just drove everything towards working from home regarding teleworking and all of that stuff. The product is mature enough. Mainly, that would be the price. If they could therefore have some more, let's say, enhancements on it, then we can make more of a financial case. One feature that was discussed with the product management team of Fortinet FortiExtender was to have the ability to have the possibility to upload our own drivers. For example, the Extender itself could be dealing with the SIM card directly, where you install it, and then you're ready to go. Or, you may install a USB dongle into the Extender itself. Some mobile carriers here in Jordan do not allow users to relocate the SIM card from within their biscuit or USB dongle and install it in their own modem or their own Extender. However, with particular scenarios, we would appreciate having the possibility to upload a third-party driver for simplicity, integrating whatever sales provider facility we have into the Fortinet technology.
Udit Narayan - PeerSpot reviewer
Offers robust outdoor connectivity, but signal strength and support need improvement
In Cisco, there is a configuration where it automatically switches from the 2.4 GHz to 5.2 GHz frequency. But with Ruckus, usually, we need to manually define whether we want to use the 2.4 GHz or 5.2 GHz. Another point is that its penetration power is low when we are using it in any location with more walls, as the signal strength diminishes. So, the signal strength and the penetration power of the signal should be improved. It is not like Cisco. We are using Cisco APs also, but Cisco APs perform better when we compare them with Ruckus. In future releases, I would like to see automatic switching between 2.4 GHz and 5.2 GHz frequencies. We should not have to set it manually. It should automatically change its frequency based on the load. For example, if the number of users increases, then its frequency should change automatically, switching to the less congested band.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"You don't need to have two different vendors to interoperate and get into comparability issues or inter-operability issues."
"For me, the best feature of Fortinet FortiExtender is its integration with an external solution such as a 5G LTE broadband modem, wired modem, and cellular network. I also like that the product can be integrated into one device or a unified device, and that is one of its best features because it allows you to manage and centralize the control of every device."
"The most valuable feature will be that it works."
"The initial setup was was just beautiful. It was straightforward."
"Management can be carried out from a central point."
"The solution is extremely user-friendly."
"We appreciate that this solution can be used as an active secondary link as well as a backup."
"The product is easy to use and easy to integrate."
"Its build quality is good and quite robust."
"The stability provided is very nice."
"The analytic solution is good and should be improving further."
"We found the technical support to be helpful."
"The most valuable solution is its simplicity. The solution is simple and easy to use."
"The most valuable feature is the good coverage of about 60 meters."
"The most valuable features are the ease of deployment, the coverage that it offers, and the reliability."
"The solution can scale well."
 

Cons

"The support could be faster and more responsive."
"The solution would be a lot better if it was a little bit more intuitive. Additionally, the help menu would be a lot better if it was easier to identify the items that I was looking for. I find the graphical interface a little bit difficult to navigate. And I find the font that is used on the HTML interface not conducive to being able to be read in low light situations."
"What most of my clients are telling me is the price is a problem."
"We would like to see some improvement in the price for 5G models, as they are currently very expensive."
"I would like to see them make it smaller in the next release so that it has a smaller footprint for mobile clients."
"Though Fortinet FortiExtender has some security features, the product could still be improved by adding features similar to those in FortiGuard, such as antivirus, intrusion, prevention, and detection, as well as web filtering features. The product is also not as user-friendly, so that's another area for improvement. In the FortiGate UTM solution of Fortinet, there's software-defined or SD-WAN, and in the next release of Fortinet FortiExtender, I'd like to see SD-WAN embedded in the product. Most of the communication in Fortinet FortiExtender is related to WAN and Edge, so having an SD-WAN function in the product would be useful for integrating and controlling WAN communication."
"The engineering of the solution has some negative points, especially in terms of troubleshooting. It's difficult to troubleshoot when we have a problem. It's not like other products like Cisco or Palo Alto which make troubleshooting much easier."
"There is a huge downside because we need to remove and insert the SIM to get it working."
"There is a significant issue with wireless functionality in Apple devices, particularly during video calls."
"The product needs to improve its latency and performance."
"The license model offered by the product is an area of concern where improvements are required."
"I would like to see the billing system improved by adding a billing system integration."
"Pricing could be improved in Ruckus Wireless WAN because obviously, everybody wants things to become cheaper. Another room for improvement in the product is from a delivery perspective, particularly the heavy delivery delays because of the chip shortage that a lot of manufacturers have to deal with. The chip shortage is not coming to an end, but Ruckus Networks has to make a plan because the ETA has slipped out from the average of three months on switches to fourteen months, which is very, very rough on the industry at the moment. Ruckus Wireless WAN could lose business to Chinese competitors, for example, HTC has a good wireless solution that I haven't tested yet, other than on POC, and it works great. I haven't yet experienced the HTC wireless solution in large deployments, so you never know how it's going to go, but HTC has managed to circumvent the chip shortage, so the ETA provided by HTC is much more preferred than the ETAs provided by Ruckus Networks, Cisco, and Aruba products."
"The documentation they do have is very difficult to understand. There should be some scenarios, deployments, complications, or techniques to follow. They are inadequate in that regard, and the documentation needs to be greatly improved."
"The solution could use a better user interface."
"The solution's AI offering and pricing could be improved."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"I'm not sure what the cost is. However, I anticipate that the purchase price will range between $2,500 and $5,000."
"The solution is not that expensive."
"I've only used the open-source version of Fortinet FortiExtender, but I know that it has some features that require you to pay for a license."
"The product's pricing is aggressive."
"I rate the tool's pricing a seven out of ten."
"It is less expensive than Aruba and Cisco."
"The cost is quite high, and over the past year, there has been a substantial increase, nearly reaching around seventy percent."
"On a scale from one to ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive, I rate the solution's pricing a six out of ten."
"Sometimes they sell it for Rs.20,000, and other times, they sell it for Rs.30,000. Then, suddenly, they ask for Rs.70,000. There should be a tiered pricing structure based on the quantity. We understand that if you buy more, the price should be lower, and if you buy less, it may be higher."
"It's expensive but you get more coverage."
"The product has competitive pricing."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
27%
Insurance Company
10%
Government
9%
Media Company
8%
Comms Service Provider
14%
Computer Software Company
11%
Financial Services Firm
8%
Educational Organization
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Fortinet FortiExtender?
The product is easy to use and easy to integrate.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiExtender?
The solution is not that expensive. I rate pricing a six out of ten. The product has a yearly subscription. The clients must pay only for the license. They need not pay any additional costs.
What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiExtender?
The support could be faster and more responsive.
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...
What do you like most about Ruckus Wireless WAN?
Ruckus Wireless WAN is an easy-to-use solution.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Ruckus Wireless WAN?
The pricing is reasonable for us as partners since we receive discounts. However, I believe for non-partners, it might not be considered cheap, though it isn't the most expensive either.
 

Learn More

 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data
American University of Sharjah, Dordt College, Drew University, Lamar University, Raroa School
Find out what your peers are saying about Fortinet FortiExtender vs. Ruckus Wireless WAN and other solutions. Updated: January 2025.
831,158 professionals have used our research since 2012.