Cisco 1000 Series Connected Grid Routers (CGR 1000) vs. Cisco 500 Series Network Convergence System (NCS 500)

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Cisco 1000 Series Connected Grid Routers (CGR 1000)
Score 8.4 out of 10
N/A
The Cisco 1000 Series Connected Grid Routers (CGR 1000) are ruggedized routers for sub-stations, pole tops, and other harsh environments, for utilities providers.N/A
Cisco 500 Series Network Convergence System (NCS 500)
Score 7.7 out of 10
N/A
The Cisco 500 Series Network Convergence System (NCS 500) is a highly secure and highly available access-routing platform for service providers.N/A
Pricing
Cisco 1000 Series Connected Grid Routers (CGR 1000)Cisco 500 Series Network Convergence System (NCS 500)
Editions & Modules
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Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Cisco 1000 Series Connected Grid Routers (CGR 1000)Cisco 500 Series Network Convergence System (NCS 500)
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoYes
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details——
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Cisco 1000 Series Connected Grid Routers (CGR 1000)Cisco 500 Series Network Convergence System (NCS 500)
Top Pros
Top Cons
Best Alternatives
Cisco 1000 Series Connected Grid Routers (CGR 1000)Cisco 500 Series Network Convergence System (NCS 500)
Small Businesses

No answers on this topic

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Medium-sized Companies
Cisco Routers
Cisco Routers
Score 8.4 out of 10
Cisco Routers
Cisco Routers
Score 8.4 out of 10
Enterprises
Cisco Routers
Cisco Routers
Score 8.4 out of 10
Cisco Routers
Cisco Routers
Score 8.4 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Cisco 1000 Series Connected Grid Routers (CGR 1000)Cisco 500 Series Network Convergence System (NCS 500)
Likelihood to Recommend
8.2
(1 ratings)
8.1
(3 ratings)
User Testimonials
Cisco 1000 Series Connected Grid Routers (CGR 1000)Cisco 500 Series Network Convergence System (NCS 500)
Likelihood to Recommend
Cisco
Cisco Routers do well at everything from small home office networks that require basic security to large scale service provider implementations that include SD_WAN security. Their routers scale well and they have everything from small 4 port access routers to large enterprise Core routers that function as the backbone of very large networks.
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Cisco
Well suited for10G aggregation at network edge. Small managed networks such as school districts or distributed enterprise campus. Not well suited to RPHY aggregation at network core — queuing in NCS540 results in jitter and poor RPHY performance. Allow port license purchases in smaller units. Better support for SLA performance monitoring capabilities would allow use as a box for 10G aggregation for Carrier Ethernet NNI handoff.
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Pros
Cisco
  • Segments the network.
  • Provides security through the use of Access Control Lists.
  • Makes routing decisions using routing protocols such as OSPF, RIP, BGP etc ...
  • Provides fault tolerance.
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Cisco
  • Switching.
  • Routing.
  • Access.
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Cons
Cisco
  • Cisco Routers are more expensive than other competitors.
  • Cisco Routers require leaning of the command line interface, complicated stuff for non-technical people.
  • Interchangeability is limited with some other manufacturers because Cisco sometimes uses proprietary protocols.
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Cisco
  • MPLS feature set on NCS520
  • Full support for RFC2544, Y.1564 across the product line
  • Greater clarity of the impact of smaller buffers on NCS540 when compared to other Qumran chipsets — some use cases like RPHY aggregation at network core are not a good fit.
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Alternatives Considered
Cisco
Cisco and HPE Routers are comparable products. Both do the job well without many differences. I would say HP Routers are easier to configure but come with a small performance hit compared to Cisco routers of the same size/scope. Cisco has the brand recognition and many more certified professionals using them though.
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Cisco
Cisco NCS is smaller and for us newer. Better cost with similar capabilities.
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Return on Investment
Cisco
  • Cisco products have 99.9999% up time availability and it allows a quick ROI in terms of our production network being available when its needed.
  • Cisco routers perform network security tasks well and keeps our network secure without slowing down our business transactions.
  • Cisco productrs last longer than our previous vendors, this ROI has been significant in lower replacement costs.
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Cisco
  • Relatively low cost access layer device.
  • Very cost effective means of getting 10G interfaces.
  • Some features available on other devices out of the box are more complex or absent on the NCS without licensing or assistance.
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