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Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers vs. WatchGuard Secure Wi-Fi Cloud

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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers

    Score9.1 out of 10
    N/ACisco offers wireless LAN.N/A

    WatchGuard Secure Wi-Fi Cloud

    Score9.1 out of 10
    N/AThe vendor says WatchGuard Wi-Fi Cloud is where you take your access points to unlock their full potential. With a Secure Wi-Fi license, you get patented WIPS security, compliance reporting including PCI, Wi-Fi vulnerability assessment reporting, and every enterprise-grade WLAN feature you’ll need to take your access points into the toughest environments – with features like live floorplan views, hotspot 2.0, application firewall, and role-based access with 802.1x. WatchGuard Wi-Fi Cloud has…N/A
    Pricing
    Cisco Wireless LAN ControllersWatchGuard Secure Wi-Fi Cloud
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    Cisco Wireless LAN ControllersWatchGuard Secure Wi-Fi Cloud
    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 Wireless LAN ControllersWatchGuard Secure Wi-Fi Cloud
    Considered Both Products
    Cisco
    No answer on this topic
    WatchGuard Technologies
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    96%
    Would buy again
    64 Answers
    100%
    Would buy again
    5 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    98%
    Delivers good value for the price
    56 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Happy with the feature set
    97%
    Happy with the feature set
    65 Answers
    100%
    Happy with the feature set
    5 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    98%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    57 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation went as expected
    94%
    Implementation went as expected
    58 Answers
    100%
    Implementation went as expected
    5 Answers
    Best Alternatives
    Cisco Wireless LAN ControllersWatchGuard Secure Wi-Fi Cloud
    Small Businesses
    WatchGuard Secure Wi-Fi Cloud
    Score9.1 out of 10
    No answers on this topic
    Medium-sized Companies
    Cisco Aironet 1800 Series Access Points (discontinued)
    Score8.5 out of 10
    Cisco Aironet 1800 Series Access Points (discontinued)
    Score8.5 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Points
    Score9.2 out of 10
    Cisco Catalyst 9100 Access Points
    Score9.2 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    Cisco Wireless LAN ControllersWatchGuard Secure Wi-Fi Cloud
    Likelihood to Recommend
    9.2
    (89 ratings)
    8.0
    (5 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    8.4
    (3 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Usability
    8.9
    (26 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Availability
    8.2
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Performance
    8.2
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Support Rating
    10.0
    (5 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    10.0
    (2 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Configurability
    7.3
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Ease of integration
    8.2
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    7.3
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Vendor post-sale
    8.2
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Vendor pre-sale
    8.2
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    Cisco Wireless LAN ControllersWatchGuard Secure Wi-Fi Cloud
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Cisco
    I believe that Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers are well suited for the enterprise environment for medium sized to very large companies. While there are smaller WLC appliances for smaller sized businesses, a case can be made for simpler or more cost effective wireless licensing solutions (e.g. Cisco Meraki). Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers are extremely well suited for dense deployments like stadiums, arenas, hospitals, theaters, and large offices because of their ability to support a large number of APs with a very diverse technology feature set.
    Incentivized
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    WatchGuard Technologies
    The WatchGuard Secure Wi-Fi Cloud works well in any scenario. With the number of AP model options, this solution can work at a coffee shop all the way up to a multi-tenant facility with thousands of users.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Cisco
    • The cisco wireless controller allows for very granular access to internal and external systems.
    • The system allows for allowing special needs uses (medical, security, guest) very easy.
    • The system allows for various levels of bandwidth to a variety of users.
    • The security, flexibility and ease of use is phenomenal.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    WatchGuard Technologies
    • enable wireless access on watchguard-based networks
    • ensure reliable performances
    • allow fast wireless data transfer operations
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Cisco
    • Configuring wireless settings is very confusing because various settings are scattered all over the interface in different tabs
    • Lots of settings use Cisco's technical verbiage rather than common phrasing, so it's confusing what a lot of settings will do and requires researching the meaning before modifying the setting
    • The interface could be easier to use to do simple tasks such as reboot an access point
    Incentivized
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    WatchGuard Technologies
    • Better Access Points from WG
    • Map Feature
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Cisco
    Although it is a very good product, support is easy and can manage by Level 1 support persons and downtime is too much less but still there is a cost factor matters which is consider by each organization. Furthermore, organizations also compare with other competitors so it is hard to pursue and defend the high prices.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    WatchGuard Technologies
    No answers on this topic
    Usability
    Cisco
    As I said before, the only thing we miss in our old model is the fact that the management interface never received an improvement in design. It has the same look and feels since it was launched. It's not that it's hard to use. It's just the case of could be modernized.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    WatchGuard Technologies
    No answers on this topic
    Reliability and Availability
    Cisco
    Downtime fear is the first fear which IT persons look and want to eliminate as much as they can but eventually you have to face it as nothing is perfect. Cisco Wireless Lan controller are feasible to use and easy to manage and other than this their issue reported are pretty low so you can get the best up time. now it also depends on scenario as well as environment.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    WatchGuard Technologies
    No answers on this topic
    Performance
    Cisco
    Cisco Wireless Lan controller are feasible to use and easy to manage and other than this their issue reported are pretty low so you get the better uptime. if your get the uptime then it means its a stable product in your environment. Product performance also depends on the product management and Cisco Wireless Lan controller management is easy so you can get the great output.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    WatchGuard Technologies
    No answers on this topic
    Support Rating
    Cisco
    As usual, the support from Cisco's TAC (Technical Assistance Center) is lacking. Granted, they always get the job done, but the amount of lead time on a non-emergency is enough to make you just handle it yourself. The good news is that if you ask for Cisco's assistance and forget about it, they'll jump on by the time you've forgotten where you were in troubleshooting it and have it fixed for you.
    Incentivized
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    WatchGuard Technologies
    The support team is great! I have never had an issue getting the support I needed. They make it a point to stick with the issue until it's resolved to the customer's satisfaction. They do not make you feel like you need to hurry up and close the ticket. They make sure the solution is working as designed.
    Incentivized
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    Implementation Rating
    Cisco
    Originally, when we deployed our first controller it was on a very limited basis. We only deployed it to our administration building and our High School. It was pretty straight forward. Because this was new to us we leaned heavily on our Cisco partner to assist us. With our last upgrade, we upgraded the controllers, added redundancy and expanded the building count along with new SSID's and restrictions. It went much easier, but again, we did rely on Cisco TAC and our partner to clarify and assist as needed. Having already been familiar with the product help tremendously.
    Incentivized
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    WatchGuard Technologies
    No answers on this topic
    Alternatives Considered
    Cisco
    The Aironet access points are used for employee WiFi access, and they integrate well with Meraki. They would offer a separate guest network, too, but the decision was made to physically separate the guest network, so even if a bad actor would gain access to the ethernet port of the AP, they'd still not see any company traffic.
    Read full review
    WatchGuard Technologies
    WatchGuard Secure Wi-Fi Cloud offers the cloud management solution unlike Ubiquiti which needs a controller that you need to setup, configure, update, and maintain. Also Security is offered with Secure Wi-Fi cloud.
    Incentivized
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    Scalability
    Cisco
    Cisco is a brand name and people trust on it. if any one thing about the networking then Cisco is among those brand which is count as trusted brand and people rely on it. Also it support is good so people can use it. Cisco Wireless Lan controller are easy to use and manage so it requires less effort.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    WatchGuard Technologies
    No answers on this topic
    Return on Investment
    Cisco
    • We have had our [Cisco Wireless LAN Controller] 5508s for a very long time now and although they are getting dated, they have earned us our money's worth with consistency, stability, and ease of use. Users have minimal wireless complaints and when they do seldom are they WLC-related.
    Incentivized
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    WatchGuard Technologies
    • It is not the cheapest one by price but with all the features it is it worth
    • They follow costs after buying are not so high because of the centralized and easy deployment and managemet
    • To see where we have a bottleneck is so easy in the WatchGuard Cloud
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    WatchGuard Secure Wi-Fi Cloud Screenshots

    Screenshot of WatchGuard Wi-Fi DiscoverScreenshot of WatchGuard Wi-Fi AnalyzeScreenshot of WatchGuard Wi-Fi EngageScreenshot of WatchGuard Wi-Fi Manage