Cisco Catalyst 9120 Access Point vs Cisco Embedded Wireless Controller

Likelihood to Recommend

Cisco Switches are most suited to larger organizations. Small networks would not really benefit from the large cost outlay and would be better off with a switch from a lower tier of Cisco's product line, or something from another manufacturer. For the 9120 range of Access Points, I would say that if you are an organization that has hardware that supports the latest WiFi 6 or the 802.11AX standards, then it is definitely worth considering getting these.

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Muhammad Mulla

Systems Administrator, Core Infrastructure & Microsoft Systems

Cancer Research UKNon-Profit Organization Management, 1001-5000 employees

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Overall I could see myself recommending these to others if they have the right set of circumstances at their place of business. Those would be like ours, if they had a location that couldnt be served by a WLC. Once setup they are easy to manage and self healing as in they wont go down when one is offline.

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Verified User

Administrator in Information Technology

Government Administration Company, 501-1000 employees

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Pros

First off, the overall physical design. Slim, light, and can be mounted anywhere. Blends into ceilings/walls and is easy to mount. (Clients are very picky with overall look sometimes).
Easy to deploy and configure, making the setup very quick, minimizing any potential downtime during installation and/or maintenance upgrades.
Fast and reliable at a decent price point for the clients.

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NAKIA EPLEY

Network Field Technician

Z Networks Computer Services CorporationComputer Networking, 11-50 employees

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Offers enterprise-class security that keeps the network protected
Cost-effective connectivity
Deploying WiFi 6 network without complexity or added expense
Controlling access points and clients

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Val Langenburg

Managing Director IT Operations and Governance

Markel CorporationInsurance, 1001-5000 employees

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Cons

The Cisco Catalyst 9120 Access Point is very different from traditional AireOS devices so there is a higher learning curve.
Bugs in some of the codes.
Getting it to join a legacy Wireless LAN Controller is harder.

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Verified User

Manager in Information Technology

Mining & Metals Company, 501-1000 employees

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Some bugs in the interface.
Issues with licensing and Cisco DNA integration.
Frequent software patches needed,

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Verified User

Engineer in Information Technology

Government Administration Company, 501-1000 employees

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Pricing Details

General

Free Trial

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Free/Freemium Version

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Premium Consulting/Integration Services

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Entry-level set up fee?

No

Starting Price

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General

Free Trial

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Free/Freemium Version

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Premium Consulting/Integration Services

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Entry-level set up fee?

No

Starting Price

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Usability

Cisco Catalyst 9120 Access Point 10.0

Based on 1 answer

The Cisco Catalyst 9120 Access Points have been a solid deployment for me. Using their interface is a mix of new and old. They run IOS, so if you know the CLI, you can easily navigate around them. You can join them to an older controller if it supports a certain version, you can join it to a new 9800 controller--very straight forward--and you can run the embedded wireless controller on them directly. I've found this to be very useful at smaller sites. The Cisco Catalyst 9120 Access Points are not limited to feature sets like the older generations' mobility express platform.

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Verified User

Manager in Information Technology

Mining & Metals Company, 501-1000 employees

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No score

No answers yet

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Support Rating

Cisco Catalyst 9120 Access Point 10.0

Based on 1 answer

Cisco has been very good at correcting early issues with their code. Their TAC support has been fantastic when I would open a case with issues I was facing. Even though the hardware was new, they were very familiar with the interfaces and issues I was having. In the past I've been concerned about adopting a new product right away because of support issues. That was not the case here. Once I had the deployment up and running, they have had a good run of reliability.

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Verified User

Manager in Information Technology

Mining & Metals Company, 501-1000 employees

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No score

No answers yet

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Alternatives Considered

Perfect integration into an otherwise already up-and-running Cisco environment

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Verified User

Employee in Information Technology

Hospital & Health Care Company, 501-1000 employees

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Cisco Embedded Wireless Controller provides the ability to manage and deploy the wireless network from a web UI or mobile application, and without the expense or complexity of a wireless controller appliance.

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Val Langenburg

Managing Director IT Operations and Governance

Markel CorporationInsurance, 1001-5000 employees

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