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Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches vs NETGEAR Switches comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Nov 3, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch E...
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
17th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
7.5
Number of Reviews
12
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
NETGEAR Switches
Ranking in Ethernet Switches
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.0
Number of Reviews
56
Ranking in other categories
LAN Switching (4th), AV Over IP Switching (2nd)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the Ethernet Switches category, the mindshare of Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches is 0.7%, up from 0.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of NETGEAR Switches is 8.7%, down from 9.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Ethernet Switches
 

Q&A Highlights

AJ
 

Featured Reviews

OusaidAbaz - PeerSpot reviewer
Doesn't have many proprietary protocols but some models have stability issues
We had stability issues with Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches 6250. One issue is with licensing. When migrating from TDM to VoIP/ToIP solutions integrated on the same architecture, Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches don't have the same skill level or follow the same development path as companies like Cisco. They started integrating these solutions later, which is why there's a noticeable difference in advancement. Their main focus has been IP PBX solutions like OXO and OXE. They developed their IP environment and switches later, but not as deeply as other vendors. For example, they use Aruba access points and controllers for wireless solutions rather than developing their own portfolio. A specific challenge I've faced is with access points. Due to country code restrictions, the model sold in one region (like Europe) may not work properly in another. This affects channels and features related to the electronic environment specific to each country. To resolve this issue, I've had to reconfigure access points with the correct country code. The solution uses basic protocols. It doesn't have proprietary features like Cisco's EIGRP or advanced BGP features; it's based on standard protocols.
Umang Shah - PeerSpot reviewer
Efficient routing and access control with an easy setup
We use NETGEAR Switches for networking, particularly for switch-to-switch connectivity. We connect them with core switches, especially for camera installation NETGEAR Switches have increased the throughput and speed of internal communication, and have improved our network efficiency. The most…

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"The solution has a very good web interface. It makes it easy to manage everything."
"The product's initial setup phase is not complex. It is easy to install the tool."
"The product is stable. It does have only one power supply. They don't have a redundant power supply."
"OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches' best features are it's easy to deploy, manage, and maintain, with services coming through one vendor."
"The most valuable feature for me is the stability of the switches."
"This is a dependable switch which will help you sleep at night."
"Enables direct access to clusters."
"It's easy to extend the stack, We don't use the smaller switches, but it's going well for the rest."
"The solution is simple to use. I am also impressed with the tool's GUI and CLI."
"Remote management is the most important thing for us. And monitoring, of course, allows us to see when something is wrong with a client. We get notified that an access point is down, for instance, or that there are too many clients on one access point, so that we can log into the portal and manage the solution with the client instantly, from either a laptop or a cell phone, with the Insight app."
"The stability is good. I would rate the stability a ten out of ten."
"The solution helps transfer data."
"SFP, speed, and 10-Gigabit are the most valuable aspects of this solution. We're an architecture firm and we sometimes deal with large files. Anything we can do to eke out even a fraction of a second less time to get something done over the course of a year adds up. If I can get 10-Gigabit running in my server room, which I am right now, even though we're only gigabit to the desktop, due to the client computers we have, I can get more performance from everybody. I'm ready to start bringing in 10-Gigabit Ethernet to the desktop once I get the hardware to do that."
"The company provides a lifetime warranty."
"The tool is stable."
"We use these switches to help us leverage and connect more devices."
 

Cons

"In future versions, I would like to see improvements in networking speed."
"The commands for the switches could be easier as I find them more complex compared to those of Cisco."
"We had stability issues with Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches 6250. One issue is with licensing. When migrating from TDM to VoIP/ToIP solutions integrated on the same architecture, Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches don't have the same skill level or follow the same development path as companies like Cisco. They started integrating these solutions later, which is why there's a noticeable difference in advancement."
"The commands for the switches could be easier as I find them more complex compared to those of Cisco."
"The product would be better if it were completely compatible with other switching products."
"technical support response time is sometimes very slow."
"I find the CLI hard to use. I wish we could do more in the GUI interface."
"I could see them possibly creating a more intuitive software. It's very user-friendly, but there are some things that aren't very intuitive when programming the switches."
"The tool does not offer extra firewall security."
"The web interface has been a little sketchy on occasion. Sometimes I have to reload the page to get things to show up properly, but the switch itself seems fine. The web user interface is a little wonky at times."
"One thing I have asked for, something that NETGEAR lacks that I would love to see — and from what I understand it's in the works — is a REST API to programmatically interface with multiple switches. That would be a great feature."
"NETGEAR Switches could be more secure. Scalability could also be better. This infrastructure is a bit old, and we need something that will be more secure. Something that will introduce WLAN, and we will need the knowledge to go with that. Some of the switches were used for more than seven years. I think it was just their lifespan that was exhausted. But other than that, there haven't been any issues that required us to complain or get concerned."
"There is a technical problem they can't seem to solve. It doesn't support multicast packets. In layman's terms, Mac computers can't print over the network."
"There's a lack of chips and, consequently, a lack of deliveries. They're out of stock at their European warehouse."
"I'd like to see a little bit of slowdown on the firmware updates. They've been doing a lot of them. I don't know if that's just because it's such a new product line, but the firmware updates have been a little annoying because they've been coming once a week. For a switch, that's a little extreme."
"The main negative thing is the speed. When you use the portal, if you have a lot of customers and locations in the portal, and you need to scroll through those clients or those locations, it takes a pretty long time to load those pages and to select the client. That's the problem in the portal on the laptop, and it's the same problem in the portal on the app."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is an expensive solution."
"Pricing is cheap compared to other vendors. When we benchmark the tool against Meraki, Cisco, and others, it is usually more affordable."
"The pricing is reasonable compared to Aruba and HPE."
"The licensing for OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches is a one-time purchase with no additional costs."
"Insight pricing is okay. It's very competitive. The costs of the hardware and additional services weren't low because Unify is much cheaper, but the costs conformed to the market. When you look at the hardware specs, the price and the warranty, the complete package was much better than any other vendor. If you consider those three main aspects of Netgear Insight and Netgear Insight devices, and you put them next to Ubiquity or Cisco Meraki, or even TP-Link, in our opinion, it's better hardware, it has a better warranty, and for the price you have to pay, it's a pretty good product."
"I believe that the pricing is reasonable."
"There are two parts to the pricing. There's the pricing of the device itself, which is good. Their licensing model needs work, though. The licensing model doesn't fit the way MSPs do business."
"It is a slightly expensive product."
"I sold someone a SonicWall and they had to redo their subscription every year. It was a $300 or $400 subscription they had to pay every year... With NETGEAR... it's only a $10 or $20 subscription per device for the whole year... and you have your license and you have all your support."
"They're good value. They're good entry-level switches. I know Cisco generally has a lot more capability. But, for an organization this size, we don't need that. So they're good value for the cost and what we need."
"NETGEAR pricing is the best on the market by far. I was shocked when I saw what their price came out as for their subscription. It's extremely reasonable."
"We used HPE previously. The reason I switched to NETGEAR was because of pricing differences, which are huge, when you go into 10GB networking... The pricing is quite good... The total cost of the deployment was about 11,000 euros or so. If I had gone with HPE it would have been at least twice as much."
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Answers from the Community

AJ
Feb 15, 2022
Feb 15, 2022
My last experience with Netgear wasn't good but it was a long time ago. It may be better now. As for me, it would be Cisco because it is easier to find network engineer with knowledge of Cisco products and many supervision or orchestration tools will support them well. Regarding my experience, they are reliable assets but the cost might be sometime a good reason to go for something else.
2 out of 4 answers
EK
Nov 29, 2021
For an Enterprise? I would definitely go with Cisco. Cisco has a wide range of products to accommodate all present and future needs of an enterprise organization.  Cisco support is very professional in case something goes wrong.  Cisco products are very stable, have lots of features to satisfy every need of an enterprise and in my experience, they don't easily fail. 
RI
Nov 29, 2021
cisco ethernet switches
 

Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
11%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Financial Services Firm
9%
Retailer
8%
Computer Software Company
13%
Manufacturing Company
8%
University
7%
Comms Service Provider
6%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches?
The new web graphical interface is much better than before. We now have easy access to the command lines. They're all functional.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches?
In terms of pricing, Alcatel is cheaper than Cisco, however, MikroTik is the cheapest. I cannot comment on the pricing reasonability as I am a technical person, and decisions are made by those who ...
What needs improvement with Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches?
The commands for the switches could be easier as I find them more complex compared to those of Cisco.
How do NETGEAR switches compare with Cisco ethernet switches?
NetGear switches have a lot to offer. They have high availability, zero-downtime stacking, L2 and L3 functionality, and are AV-over-IP ready. NetGear switches also have a command line interface and...
Which switches are better - Ubiquiti Unifi or Netgear?
Ubiquiti Unifi offers a great set of features. For starters, it is easy to configure and implement, and also doesn’t require a learning curve because it is easy to use. It is also simple to reconfi...
What do you like most about NETGEAR Switches?
Stability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten. I have not faced any issues with the product whatsoever.
 

Also Known As

Alcatel-Lucent Ethernet Switches, OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches
NETGEAR Insight Managed Switches, NETGEAR GC Series, NETGEAR M Series
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Bayonette, California State University (CSU), Centre Hospitalier Carcassonne, Centro Universitšrio de Brasilia (UniCEUB), China Tianchen Engineering Corporation Co. LTD, Citta Della Speranza, City of Frankfurt, City of Ogden, City of Vila Franca de Xira
Blaze Networks
Find out what your peers are saying about Alcatel-Lucent OmniSwitch Ethernet Switches vs. NETGEAR Switches and other solutions. Updated: June 2025.
856,873 professionals have used our research since 2012.