We performed a comparison between Cisco Catalyst Switches and Dell PowerConnect Switches based on our users’ reviews in four categories. After reading all of the collected data, you can find our conclusion below.
Comparison Results: Users feel Cisco Catalyst Switches provide great stability, intuitive reliable analytics, seamless scalability, excellent PoE capabilities, and solid robust security. However, users are happier with the pricing of Dell PowerConnect Switches.
"A good feature of Cisco Catalyst is that it records crash log files which can be used to literally identify the cause of a crash because there is a lot of information. And Cisco Catalyst supports the use of external flash disks for storing of images and file systems."
"The most valuable features are performance, speed, and durability."
"They are stable. We haven't had any particular problem with them."
"They have a robust monitoring system."
"Perpetual POE is a valuable feature, because when the switch reboots, access points do not."
"We heavily use the SmartPort features. It has really helped us. The U.S. policies are handled by the auto SmartPort feature"
"The best feature is the technical support."
"The product is reliable."
"The most valuable feature of Dell PowerConnect Switches for me is the throughput. I also like that the product has more compatibility with Dell infrastructure, especially with EMC and new generation Dell servers. Dell PowerConnect Switches can also easily integrate with Dell servers, and this is another pro."
"It's easy to set up. We can put it in production in a couple of minutes."
"This is a very reliable solution."
"The security is the most valuable aspect of this solution. It also has good storage and resource handling."
"Dell offers very good support."
"The functionality is very good."
"PowerConnect Switches' stability is satisfactory."
"Their support has been excellent, and it has been quite stable and easy to set up."
"The product is expensive."
"I think one switch should go beyond the 10 gig connectivity to 40 gigs."
"In the future, I would like to see better security for this product."
"All other modules have comparatively many more functions or power than regular Catalyst switches."
"Cisco Catalyst Switches could improve by having more integration with third-party products."
"Cisco Catalyst Switches do not have an open architecture and you have to buy into the Cisco architecture to be able to use them."
"Currently, Catalyst is completely proprietary with Cisco. They should have programmability options, through open-source controllers."
"The only drawback I saw with Cisco Catalyst Switches is that it's not cloud-managed."
"The network features are not good."
"The solution's ROI for generic networking is not extraordinary."
"It would be great to have modules that integrate with SDN solutions such as Cisco ACI, Arista SDN, Huawei Agile, and IBM."
"More stable firmware releases would be an improvement because we have had them randomly power on and off."
"The product needs to improve in terms of reports and backups."
"The one issue you face in the industry there is always some planned obsolescence in these switches."
"Dell is sometimes slow to provide updates to firmware."
"I expect it to be a zero-touch or a plug-and-play device. To some extent, it is, but we need to know the architecture, and we need to know what exactly we are doing. It is not so easy to implement. It depends on what exactly we are doing and it is still not a plug-and-play or zero-touch device. In the upcoming version, they can make it zero-touch, where we can just power it on and start using it. They can have some templates for different scenarios, such as when you are using it for the data center or adding it to your existing infrastructure."
Cisco Catalyst Switches is ranked 1st in LAN Switching with 171 reviews while Dell PowerConnect Switches is ranked 3rd in LAN Switching with 30 reviews. Cisco Catalyst Switches is rated 8.6, while Dell PowerConnect Switches is rated 8.0. The top reviewer of Cisco Catalyst Switches writes "Reliable and stable catalyst switch; can be easily installed". On the other hand, the top reviewer of Dell PowerConnect Switches writes "Excellent support, good pricing, and easy setup". Cisco Catalyst Switches is most compared with Arista Networks Platform, Cisco Nexus, HPE ProCurve, ExtremeSwitching and Aruba Instant On Switches, whereas Dell PowerConnect Switches is most compared with Cisco Nexus, HPE ProCurve, NETGEAR Switches, Arista Networks Platform and Dell PowerSwitch N-Series. See our Cisco Catalyst Switches vs. Dell PowerConnect Switches report.
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We monitor all LAN Switching reviews to prevent fraudulent reviews and keep review quality high. We do not post reviews by company employees or direct competitors. We validate each review for authenticity via cross-reference with LinkedIn, and personal follow-up with the reviewer when necessary.