What is our primary use case?
I am an Ekahau partner in Brazil, and it's part of my business. My company provides wireless professional services, and we use Ekahau Site Survey daily for clients like NTT, British Telecom, and Orange Group. This is my day-by-day use case.
How has it helped my organization?
I used Ekahau Site Survey Pro with IPEdge to check the RF interference in a large bank in Brazil.
Ekahau Site Survey can be crucial for troubleshooting our Wi-Fi network.
Moreover, the automatic network planning tool helps me not lose time when it comes to Wi-Fi deployment, which is very important for us. It saves time.
What is most valuable?
The optimization capabilities of Ekahau Site Survey are good.
The Sidekick version 2 is a valuable feature. When you work together in real-time with Ekahau Site Survey, it's very good, and no other competitor offers that.
The simulation feature is very good for predictive projects. It's better than other solutions like AirMagnet or iBwave. It's the first solution for that.
What needs improvement?
Ekahau needs to enhance the view of materials and make some adjustments to the reports. Currently, it's possible to make changes to the Word report using Python, but it could be improved. For example, when I create an AP on a survey report, information like the cable view, distance, and support assessments could be enhanced.
Only one comment about Ekahau Optimizer. It needs improvement. I tried to upload site products, and for five products, I needed to involve Ekahau's supply chain.
When I try to solve that, it's not possible. For example, I uploaded one product for a large bank, and the optimizer didn't finish. I needed to involve Ekahau support, and they sent me the file two or three days after I opened the case.
For how long have I used the solution?
I have experience with Ekahau Site Survey.
I have been using it since 2004.
What do I think about the stability of the solution?
I would rate the stability an eight out of ten.
What do I think about the scalability of the solution?
I would rate the scalability a seven out of ten. It's always possible to improve features.
How are customer service and support?
The customer service and support were nice.
For example, when I try to solve the problem related to Optimizer, it's not possible. For example, I uploaded one product for a large bank, and the optimizer didn't finish. I needed to involve Ekahau support, and they sent me the file two or three days after I opened the case.
How would you rate customer service and support?
How was the initial setup?
Most of my customers are in complex environments, like large banks, Unilever, PepsiCo, and Coca-Cola. They use Ekahau for design and troubleshooting.
So it can be complex to set up. For example, deployment can take six months for big projects.
For instance, I work on a big warehouse site with Juniper. The design phase takes two or three months, and the implementation phase is six months.
What about the implementation team?
Six people are needed for the deployment process. Their job title is a senior wireless engineer.
My team has eight people; two sales, four technical, and two CIO/CTO.
What was our ROI?
In our case, we provide professional services in designing, troubleshooting, and implementing solutions. The investment is paid off. There is around 20% ROI.
What's my experience with pricing, setup cost, and licensing?
The pricing is high, but for us, we serve Ekahau products and provide professional services in designing, troubleshooting, and implementing solutions. The investment is paid off.
What other advice do I have?
I would recommend using it.
Overall, I would rate the solution a nine out of ten.
*Disclosure: My company has a business relationship with this vendor other than being a customer: Partner