Cisco Catalyst Switches vs. Cisco Ethernet Switches

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Cisco Catalyst Switches
Score 9.2 out of 10
N/A
Cisco's Catalyst is one of that company's brand of network switches.N/A
Cisco Ethernet Switches
Score 9.1 out of 10
N/A
Cisco offers Ethernet switches.N/A
Pricing
Cisco Catalyst SwitchesCisco Ethernet Switches
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Cisco Catalyst SwitchesCisco Ethernet Switches
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Cisco Catalyst SwitchesCisco Ethernet Switches
Top Pros
Top Cons
Best Alternatives
Cisco Catalyst SwitchesCisco Ethernet Switches
Small Businesses

No answers on this topic

No answers on this topic

Medium-sized Companies
Extreme Networks Wired Access - Switches
Extreme Networks Wired Access - Switches
Score 9.2 out of 10
Extreme Networks Wired Access - Switches
Extreme Networks Wired Access - Switches
Score 9.2 out of 10
Enterprises
Cisco Nexus Series Switches
Cisco Nexus Series Switches
Score 9.2 out of 10
Cisco Meraki MS
Cisco Meraki MS
Score 9.2 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Cisco Catalyst SwitchesCisco Ethernet Switches
Likelihood to Recommend
9.2
(617 ratings)
9.2
(12 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
10.0
(31 ratings)
9.0
(1 ratings)
Usability
9.8
(32 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Availability
9.4
(9 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Performance
10.0
(8 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Support Rating
9.6
(30 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
In-Person Training
7.1
(3 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Online Training
7.3
(1 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Implementation Rating
8.5
(8 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Configurability
9.7
(7 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Ease of integration
9.1
(5 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Product Scalability
10.0
(9 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
8.1
(30 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
8.4
(31 ratings)
-
(0 ratings)
User Testimonials
Cisco Catalyst SwitchesCisco Ethernet Switches
Likelihood to Recommend
Cisco
I think the most suited ones will be of course, for example, a supermarket where you have more than 50 plus devices because there are like 48 ports in a switch. We can just use a lot of devices and connect them to it. A less use case will be, I think it depends at the end of the day how your topology looks like. If you have a very few devices, you shouldn't be going for these catalyst switches because they are of course much bigger, more processing power and all those things. If you have, again, it comes to topology. If you have the number of users who are using these switches is less than 15, it's less than 15, then you can just go for any other option and not use them.
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Cisco
Cisco is a name well known in the IT field. The technology is tried and true and they have built a reputation on a solid platform. Though many people do not like the cost of the devices and the continued fees associated with long term ownership, you get what you pay for. I dont hesitate to recommend Cisco because I know people will get a solid product that will last a long time.
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Pros
Cisco
  • Great hardware. I've hardly had a device fail due to hardware.
  • Throughput. These devices handle quite a bit of processing power.
  • Extreme conditions. We have 9300s in NEMA cabinets that reach well into the 110 range and beyond.
  • Very diverse. These devices can be placed in an office IDF, outside in a NEMA cabinet, or in an MDF.
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Cisco
  • Easy setup and configuration. While the web UI has its quirks, setting up VLANs and other tasks which can be exceedingly complicated on other switches, are much easier on Cisco SG switches. You also have the ability to upload an existing configuration to switches, which can speed up the task of deploying many identical switches.
  • Features for the price. Getting a 48 port L3 switch with PoE+ for less than $2,000 is a great value.
  • Reliability. We have hundreds of the SG switches in dozens of client sites, many in harsh conditions, and they just keep going.
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Cons
Cisco
  • The Cisco Catalyst Switches 9k line is fairly high. A lower cost option like a 9200X would be an improvement.
  • The Cisco Catalyst Switches 9k line lacks a higher port density fanless switch.
  • More blade combinations for the Cisco Catalyst Switches 9k chassis switches are needed.
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Cisco
  • The web UI has taken a turn for the worse with the latest firmware on the SGx50 models -- the bifurcation between basic and advanced modes and the changes to the way VLANs are modified is a step backward in my opinion.
  • The power bricks on smaller models are enormous. I'm sure, however, keeping this circuitry external to the switch is what keeps my switches running year after year in hot environments.
  • Fans can be a bit loud on larger switches -- this is true of pretty much any 1U device though.
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Likelihood to Renew
Cisco
They are consistently reliable and this switch in particular is a very affordable solution. We can place the Cisco Catalyst 1000 Series Switches gear in areas that we normally would not place a switch because it is affordable enough to make it justifiable. And because it is a reliable solution, we are confident it will continue to provide service over the long haul.
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Cisco
for their relialiabilty
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Usability
Cisco
Cisco by and far does a great job with the Catalyst line. From a layer 2 dumb switch all the way up to ISP carrier grade switching within the Catalyst portfolio. The best part about it is command parity among the various tiers of product. The only differences are going to lie in what features are available per switch.
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Cisco
No answers on this topic
Reliability and Availability
Cisco
We have very few is any outages due to a Cisco hardware failure. Some of our gear is exposed to some pretty harsh environments, and they keep on ticking!
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Cisco
No answers on this topic
Performance
Cisco
No, the packets flow. Sometimes you will see collisions and broadcast storms can happen which will slow performance but that can be fixed and the packets will flow.
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Cisco
No answers on this topic
Support Rating
Cisco
We rarely have issues with the product. I have only had to contact support one time since we put it in and that was to see if another vendor was giving me accurate information on an issue I was having.
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Cisco
No answers on this topic
In-Person Training
Cisco
Cisco Networking Academy partners with many local Colleges and High Schools to provide great hands-on training. You do need to drive to learn the topic. The in-class session only go so far. You really need to apply this to the real world. Cisco makes it easy for business to connect via CLC or Cisco Learning Credits.
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Cisco
No answers on this topic
Implementation Rating
Cisco
The implementation of the Cisco Catalyst 1000 Series Switches is fairly seamless, especially if you are familiar with Cisco products. We have had Brocade switch gear in place too, and the differences between the manufacturers [are] not a major issue.
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Cisco
No answers on this topic
Alternatives Considered
Cisco
We do have other vendors. For example, Juniper, Fortinet, and there are quite a few others. And Cisco is pretty good because we know the workflow, we know how the operating system works. We are much more familiar with Cisco products and we know the support system behind it. So in terms of comparing with others, I think it stands out. It's one of our top products to go to
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Cisco
Cisco is more enterprise level, more reliable, and generally more feature rich but also very expensive. That being said old or refurbished Cisco switches are much more affordable and in comparison to even new switches from the competitor they are still a great value even though they are used. I like Ubiquiti switches as well but Cisco is usually better overall.
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Scalability
Cisco
We are exclusive Cisco at our organization. In truth part of the reason is, with one type of switch and one manufacturer, it is easier to support. It is also easier to give consistent training to our staff in our tech department
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Cisco
No answers on this topic
Return on Investment
Cisco
  • energy costs dropped by around 11 per cent on the access layer
  • management has become easier with DNA Center
  • ISSU software upgrades and fabric deployments have significantly reduced "planned" down times
  • network speed has increased, latency is at an all-time best within our own LAN
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Cisco
  • Failure on Cisco Switches, from my experience, is rare in the first 5 years the device is up.
  • I have see the Cisco 6500 switches go 5 years without a reboot, which is nothing short of amazing.
  • The service that you get is top notch and available 24/7, and you really cannot put a price on that.
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ScreenShots

Cisco Catalyst Switches Screenshots

Screenshot of Screenshot of Catalyst 9200 SeriesScreenshot of Catalyst 9300 SeriesScreenshot of Catalyst 9400 SeriesScreenshot of Catalyst 9400 Series Additional ViewScreenshot of Catalyst 9500 Series