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Aruba Instant On Access Points vs WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 31, 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

Aruba Instant On Access Points
Ranking in Wireless LAN
8th
Average Rating
8.6
Reviews Sentiment
6.5
Number of Reviews
32
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi
Ranking in Wireless LAN
24th
Average Rating
7.8
Reviews Sentiment
6.4
Number of Reviews
7
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of October 2025, in the Wireless LAN category, the mindshare of Aruba Instant On Access Points is 1.4%, up from 0.9% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi is 0.5%, up from 0.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Wireless LAN Market Share Distribution
ProductMarket Share (%)
Aruba Instant On Access Points1.4%
WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi0.5%
Other98.1%
Wireless LAN
 

Featured Reviews

Theesula Majuwanagamage - PeerSpot reviewer
Reliable roaming and connectivity with room for more global flexibility
I am responsible for meeting customer expectations with the most appropriate IT solutions. I provide equipment recommendations based on customer needs and availability. Additionally, I have worked with Aruba access points, among other equipment My role involves distinguishing the best products…
WarrenWilliams - PeerSpot reviewer
A solution that offers excellent support and makes it easy to manage networks
To utilize the solution properly, you need some training and guidance on that. Getting it working is easy, but if you're going to use it with feature sets that make WatchGuard worthwhile to use, it's probably not the easiest to set up. I'd rate the initial setup a seven out of ten. The time taken to deploy the solution depends on the project scope you're doing. Do you need ten WiFi access points or one? You could deploy the solution in an hour. We need one person to deploy the solution. But the number of people required for deployment depends on where the access points are deployed. Like, if it's the ceiling or whatever. The way we do it, we usually have an on-site technician who sets up the backend. We usually have two people when deploying the solution, but you can do it with one person. We have a team that manages the solution. But if you have ten people on a site to manage the solution, 15 minutes daily is enough.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The app and the provisioning are the best features of the product. It was really impressive that I was able to just provision it remotely. I didn't have to be on-site with my friend, and we were just able to get everything up and operational. So, the app is great. It sends me notifications when things are down, and it tells me how everything is doing."
"I find Aruba Instant On Access Points easy to monitor and appreciate the notifications they provide if there is a problem in the network."
"The roaming feature and connectivity during disconnections are valuable."
"The product is incredibly stable and meets our needs excellently."
"I would rate the stability of this solution a ten out of ten."
"When an error or alert happens, I receive it in the application. I do not have to be there to know if something is wrong."
"Aruba Instant On Access Points are almost enterprise-level equipment but designed for end users who might not have an IT specialist on staff. They can be used in scenarios similar to those in enterprises. The security features, like easily deploying with RADIUS and dot1x, are efficient and satisfactory, providing enterprise-class security. The solution is future-proof and adapts well to changing connectivity needs. It is easy to extend the network, although there are some limitations. For large buildings, you can separate the network into floors or areas, each containing up to fifty access points, and give them one SSID and password. There might be a small gap when switching between sites, but overall, it can be extended effectively."
"The product is scalable. It has 20 users."
"The configuration part of WatchGuard is very flexible."
"It makes it easy to obtain all information about the client experience."
"They're very easy to set up and get running."
"The solution has been stable."
"The Wi-Fi security features of this solution have been great for our customers who need to strictly control access to their network."
"We like that WatchGuard works and integrates directly with the firewalls we use."
"Cloud analytics that provide all its attributes."
 

Cons

"With Aruba, the documentation on the website is not too easy to use, and some information is not found."
"The customer service and support are terrible."
"The pricing could be a little cheaper."
"Stability largely depends on how access points are installed and managed. While Aruba cannot entirely ensure connection reliability, the deployment approach can minimize wireless link downtime."
"The solution's range could be better."
"When there are a lot of people connected, especially during video streaming demonstrations, the connection can get a bit choppy."
"The tool's pricing is not good."
"The product's machine or equipment can cater to around 20 connections and cannot go beyond 50 simultaneous connections, because of which I think the tool's scalability is limited."
"The solution can be scaled but it has limitations from my experience."
"If a client device had issues with authentication due to out of date browser or similar difficulties, it would be nice to have the ability to migrate the client onto the portal via one click."
"Inability to import a user with one click."
"I don't think they're available at the best price."
"One of the things is if you buy it with a certain subscription, you can't easily change the subscription level."
"The support response can be time-consuming because sometimes issues are very sensitive and require instant attention."
"The price of this solution needs to reviewed, as it is currently high enough to deter customers from trying it."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"It is expensive."
"The price of Aruba Instant On Access Points is reasonable. They are competitively priced. I've even used it in my home at one time because of the low price."
"The product's price falls on the cheaper end of the spectrum. The price of the product is one of the biggest benefits that it offers."
"You buy it for $165 an AP, which is what we paid."
"There is a need to make yearly payments towards the standard licensing charges associated with the product. There are some additional costs associated with the product since I have seen customers who purchase three-year or five-year plans."
"It is competitively priced. It was at a price point that made sense for me to put in my home, and that says something. The cost of the solution includes everything we need to manage and upgrade our Wi-Fi network, including the mobile management app. Having the licensing and all the functionality built into the base price of the product is really important for me. There are no extra costs for the security feature or automatic software/firmware updates, which is really important to me."
"It needs a license."
"Aruba Instant On Access Points are license-free. It's a very good and cheap solution for wireless networks. It can be compared with solutions from Ubiquiti and TP-Link, but it is in a different class. Aruba Instant On Access Points are cheaper than those from Cisco, Ruckus, and Motorola. It's perhaps the cheapest one. They do not use licenses, so it is a solution from the box. You don't need to pay extra money or deal with hidden payments."
"WatchGuard is on the upper scale for pricing."
"The solution is priced high compared to competitors. However, for the features that are included in the solution, the price becomes more reasonable."
"Your licensing and cost, as would be required for many other solutions, being considered for eighty to two hundred and eighty different physical locations, is just about the same amount per access point."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
9%
Performing Arts
7%
Hospitality Company
7%
Government
6%
Computer Software Company
12%
Non Profit
12%
Comms Service Provider
10%
Retailer
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business22
Midsize Enterprise4
Large Enterprise9
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business5
Midsize Enterprise2
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Aruba Instant On Access Points?
It's really easy to set up. And, you don't have to pay for the cloud solution. That's really interesting for our clients. And the other thing is, the roaming is also quite good.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Aruba Instant On Access Points?
The cost of Aruba Instant On Access Points is reasonable; however, I do not have information on the exact pricing, such as cost per user or annual license fees.
What needs improvement with Aruba Instant On Access Points?
We can improve Aruba Instant On Access Points by tuning some of the parameters of the radio. The default configuration can be overridden to enhance performance beyond the default settings.
What needs improvement with WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi?
The support response can be time-consuming because sometimes issues are very sensitive and require instant attention. Also, when an incident occurs, the impact can be significantly huge. A recent p...
What is your primary use case for WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi?
We use WatchGuard Secure Wi-Fi because we have used different tools as well, like Ubiquiti. The complexity of Ubiquiti is much more compared to WatchGuard, which provides more flexibility and is ea...
What advice do you have for others considering WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi?
We recommend using WatchGuard Secure Wi-Fi, but when incidents occur, it can be very difficult to identify why they happen. Normally, the issues are simple to fix, but we recently faced a major inc...
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Portsmouth Grammar School, HILOTEC
Find out what your peers are saying about Aruba Instant On Access Points vs. WatchGuard Secure Wi‑Fi and other solutions. Updated: September 2025.
869,566 professionals have used our research since 2012.