Cisco Catalyst IE3400 Rugged Series Switches vs. Dell PowerConnect Switches (discontinued)

Amazing network management and extremely perfect network security production and its notification options are very responsive. Creating real time analytics and the visualization capability is fantastic. This Cisco Catalyst platform has effective insights gathering tools and its data quality control functions are good and quick on process reports preparation and workflow easy management product.

Incentivized

We work in the electric industry. These should not be used in a high-heat environment. We like to keep the temperature of the room in the low 60's so they are not suited for our Substation locations due to extreme heat and cold. However, they perform great in a server room.

Incentivized

• It runs no matter how hot it gets. It's actually operated at times when it was exceeding its operational limits and continued to work.

Incentivized

• Reliable.
• Excellent hardware support from Dell including 4 hour parts/replacement.
• Excellent technical support from Dell on software, troubleshooting, and configuration.
• More affordable than its main enterprise competitors.
• Easy to use CLI.

Incentivized

• The portdensity is poor (when compared to competition) which means that the IE-switches takes more space then competition.
• The price is not competitive, only possible to ship/sell to customers that are set on the Brand. To say that Cisco has more features (to motivate that these units cost more then the double) is not correct, the competition solves the same stuff differently.

Incentivized

• Precarious graphical (GUI) mode, needing to be updated for more efficient technologies such as HTML5
• Short support time, given how much these devices support in terms of use. I have owned the devices for years, but no longer have a warranty

Incentivized

The features are excellent. We have been able to utilize and customize the features

Incentivized

The Dell PowerConnect switch is a great switch in certain use cases. It really works well when training users to set up their own vlans in a technology class. We have a lot of different scenarios happening at this company, with 8 different buildings and multiple different affiliate entities. For some of the departments, the budget is the most crucial element. That is where the Dell PowerConnect switches are a really great option.

Incentivized

The support team cares about fast workflow. They have been helpful

Incentivized

Dell ProSupport is outstanding. Dell ProDeploy is likewise outstanding. I prefer them even over traditional Cisco support. I've had repeated cases where Dell immediately addressed or fixed an issue with US-based support, including firmware hotfixes. Not even Cisco can boast that.

Incentivized

For certain cabinets where space is limited or industrial cabinets with harsh environments (dust, moisture, temperature), Cisco Catalyst IE3400 Rugged Series Switches are a good fit.

Incentivized

I selected Dell mainly due to previous experience using them in a business environment. I've never had a unit fail on me and when my budget for equipment like network switches has been less than a training class on how to use those switches, it's incredible to be able to find quality equipment at the price point Dell offers and even more so when their enterprise support has been as excellent as I have been accustomed to dealing with. In all honesty, even if I had a larger budget, I would have bought these same switches since they were exactly what I needed to suit my needs. We looked into HPE/Aruba network switches, and while they would have performed everything we needed and more, they were almost four times the cost of these Dell network switches. That's a hard sell when it comes to planning a tight budget.

Incentivized

• Before implementing these switches, production lines were constantly stopped due to network failures. This had a huge financial impact on the company.
• In addition to mitigating those flaws, you now have complete network monitoring with the joint implementation of the Cisco Industrial Network Director.

Incentivized

• Reports are easily created and very useful.
• Quick creation of different network connections.
• Excellent and secure channels for multiple data management.
• Great data visualization options offered by Dell PowerConnect Switches.

Incentivized