Fortinet FortiExtender vs HPE Wireless WAN comparison

Fortinet and Hewlett Packard Enterprise are both solutions in the Wireless WAN category. Fortinet is ranked #7 with an average rating of 9.0, while Hewlett Packard Enterprise is ranked #6 with an average rating of 9.0. Fortinet holds a 2.1% mindshare in Wireless WAN, compared to Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s 1.0% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Fortinet users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 85% of Hewlett Packard Enterprise users who would recommend it.

Fortinet FortiExtender

Read 9 Fortinet FortiExtender reviews

459 Views
122 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

HPE Wireless WAN

Read 21 HPE Wireless WAN reviews

117 Views
34 Comparison Views

85% willing to recommend

Fortinet FortiExtender

HPE Wireless WAN

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Feb 4, 2025

HPE Wireless WAN and Fortinet FortiExtender are competing products in the enterprise network solutions category. Users tend to prefer HPE Wireless WAN for pricing and support, while Fortinet FortiExtender is favored for its robust features, which many consider worth the price.

Features: HPE Wireless WAN provides reliable connectivity, scalability, and integrated security. Fortinet FortiExtender offers advanced security features, adaptability to complex networks, and comprehensive security suites.

Room for Improvement: HPE Wireless WAN could enhance its security features and adaptability for complex networks. Fortinet FortiExtender may benefit from a simpler setup process, reduced initial costs, and more intuitive user interfaces.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: HPE Wireless WAN is praised for seamless deployment and responsive customer service. Fortinet FortiExtender, while delivering effective deployment strategies, requires more complex setup but provides excellent customer training and extensive technical resources.

Pricing and ROI: HPE Wireless WAN offers competitive pricing with a satisfactory return on investment due to lower setup costs. Fortinet FortiExtender has a higher initial setup cost, justified by its extensive feature set and security benefits, perceived as a worthwhile investment.

To learn more, read our detailed Fortinet FortiExtender vs. HPE Wireless WAN Report (Updated: June 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiExtender vs. HPE Wireless WAN

June 2025

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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

Fortinet FortiExtender

Ranking in Wireless WAN

7th

Average Rating

8.4

Reviews Sentiment

7.5

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

HPE Wireless WAN

Ranking in Wireless WAN

6th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the Wireless WAN category, the mindshare of Fortinet FortiExtender is 2.1%, up from 1.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of HPE Wireless WAN is 1.0%, up from 0.3% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Wireless WAN

Featured Reviews

Özden-Aydın

Technology Consultant at Netwiser

Ensures seamless network continuity with efficient remote management and cost savings

I manage and monitor Fortinet FortiExtender devices across multiple sites by using the FortiCloud feature, which allows me to easily manage and monitor everywhere. I haven't used Fortinet FortiExtender's AI-driven network features for this product. My advice for those who want to implement Fortinet FortiExtender is that if you use this device as a console server for out-of-band management, it has only one USB port; if you need more than one port, you can use an external USB hub for multiple console cables. I am maintaining Fortinet FortiExtender for my customers for one year, and I find that to be sufficient. I rate Fortinet FortiExtender a 10 out of 10.

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SunilNair2

AGM - Infrastructure & Information Security at Aster DM Healthcare

Reliable wireless connectivity supports seamless hospital staff mobility

We use HPE Wireless WAN for hospital purposes. In our hospital, all the staff have laptops and move around, hence the need for wireless connectivity. We also provide guest access to patient rooms, including ICU rooms, where patients stay HPE Wireless WAN provides reliable connectivity. We use it…

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The overall stability deserves a perfect rating."

"For me, the best feature of Fortinet FortiExtender is its integration with an external solution such as a 5G LTE broadband modem, wired modem, and cellular network. I also like that the product can be integrated into one device or a unified device, and that is one of its best features because it allows you to manage and centralize the control of every device."

"The most valuable feature will be that it works."

"The product is easy to use and easy to integrate."

"You don't need to have two different vendors to interoperate and get into comparability issues or inter-operability issues."

"The solution is extremely user-friendly."

"Management can be carried out from a central point."

"The initial setup was was just beautiful. It was straightforward."

More Fortinet FortiExtender pros

"The main benefit of this product is the lifetime warranty, up to 99 years. For example, if your switch card fails after 10 years, and the hardware fails, it will be replaced with the very same switch or the equivalent model available at the time."

"The tool is easy to manage."

"The most valuable features of HPE Wireless WAN are high quality and capability."

"The solution is easy to use."

"The reliability is good."

"HPE Wireless is easy to use. Integration is not an issue. It is easy to integrate HPE Wireless with any operating system and other brands of switches."

"I like their features, such as reliability and high availability."

"It is a new product backed by HPE's expertise in networking and telecommunications. We can also work with 3Com products."

More HPE Wireless WAN pros

Cons

"We would like to see some improvement in the price for 5G models, as they are currently very expensive."

"Though Fortinet FortiExtender has some security features, the product could still be improved by adding features similar to those in FortiGuard, such as antivirus, intrusion, prevention, and detection, as well as web filtering features. The product is also not as user-friendly, so that's another area for improvement. In the FortiGate UTM solution of Fortinet, there's software-defined or SD-WAN, and in the next release of Fortinet FortiExtender, I'd like to see SD-WAN embedded in the product. Most of the communication in Fortinet FortiExtender is related to WAN and Edge, so having an SD-WAN function in the product would be useful for integrating and controlling WAN communication."

"There is a huge downside because we need to remove and insert the SIM to get it working."

"The engineering of the solution has some negative points, especially in terms of troubleshooting. It's difficult to troubleshoot when we have a problem. It's not like other products like Cisco or Palo Alto which make troubleshooting much easier."

"The solution would be a lot better if it was a little bit more intuitive. Additionally, the help menu would be a lot better if it was easier to identify the items that I was looking for. I find the graphical interface a little bit difficult to navigate. And I find the font that is used on the HTML interface not conducive to being able to be read in low light situations."

"The support could be faster and more responsive."

"I would like to see them make it smaller in the next release so that it has a smaller footprint for mobile clients."

"They could improve the remote console server feature and make it more user-friendly for more users."

More Fortinet FortiExtender cons

"The license cost of the product is an area where the prices are neither expensive nor cheap, leaving a scope for the prices to be lowered further."

"I would say that the integration with other vendors in areas such as management or the visibility of other vendors in the management tools could be improved."

"HPE should improve performance and stability."

"Stability could be improved, and technical support needs to be faster."

"The scalability is good, but it could improve."

"The solution works smoothly unless more than twenty users connect to a single access point, at which point it becomes overloaded."

"Integration might be improved, particularly with a single sign-on for Active Directory."

"Scalability is an aspect of this product that should be improved."

More HPE Wireless WAN cons

Pricing and Cost Advice

"The solution is not that expensive."

"I've only used the open-source version of Fortinet FortiExtender, but I know that it has some features that require you to pay for a license."

"I'm not sure what the cost is. However, I anticipate that the purchase price will range between $2,500 and $5,000."

"We don't pay a licensing fee, we purchased the product."

"There is a license for this solution and the license is normally paid annually but this depends on the contract."

"The price is perfect for me."

"The license cost of the product falls under the category of a moderately priced tool."

"We have been satisfied with the price."

"Price wise, it is on the medium end of the scale. It could be lower."

"The solution is quite expensive. You have to pay for every node and it can get expensive fast, it is approximately £3,000 per month."

"The price of HPE Wireless WAN is high."

More HPE Wireless WAN pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

21%

Media Company

11%

Government

Financial Services Firm

No data available

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Fortinet FortiExtender?

The price for Fortinet FortiExtender deserves the highest rating.

See all answers

What needs improvement with Fortinet FortiExtender?

I think it's good, but they could improve the remote console server feature and make it more user-friendly for more users.

See all answers

What is your primary use case for Fortinet FortiExtender?

We use Fortinet FortiExtender for out-of-band management and network continuity because network continuity is very important for us and for mobility. With 3G or 4G, we can put a mobile cellular dat...

See all answers

What do you like most about HPE Wireless WAN?

The tool is easy to manage.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for HPE Wireless WAN?

The price is compatible and not an issue for us.

See all answers

What needs improvement with HPE Wireless WAN?

Stability is an issue, as the access point becomes overloaded with more than twenty connections. Additionally, the current product uses two antennas. Increasing to four antennas could benefit us.

See all answers

Comparisons

Ubiquiti Wireless vs Fortinet FortiExtender

Compared 57% of the time

Cisco Wireless WAN vs Fortinet FortiExtender

Compared 43% of the time

More Fortinet FortiExtender Competitors

No data available

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiExtender

June 2025

Download Fortinet FortiExtender product report

Buyer's Guide

Wireless WAN

June 2025

Download HPE Wireless WAN product report

Also Known As

No data available

Wireless WAN, HP Wireless WAN

Overview

Fortinet FortiExtender is a cost-effective hardware WAN device that is robust, easily scales, and delivers 5G, LTE, and Ethernet options. FortiExtender is designed using Fortinet’s trademark security-focused networking. The solution enables organizations to have enhanced secure network connectivity with cellular and wired broadband network options.

FortiExtender can be used for secure point of sale (POS) systems to transport fleet communications. The device delivers dependable broadband access to the internet and increases the usefulness of the Fortinet Security Fabric integration to enhance seamless business processes that rely heavily on remote device connectivity to get the job done.

FortiExtender delivers super-fast 5G and LTE wireless to connect and quickly scale any WAN edge. Users get 5G/LTE cellular, out-of-band management (OBM), high availability (HA), and dynamic risk security in one comprehensive, reliable solution.

Fortinet FortiExtender Benefits

Failover protection: Users get secure network failover protection with dual SIM, dual modem, and out of band management (OBM) functionalities.
Cloud-based processes: Organizations with a global reach can easily manage processes in the cloud from anywhere. Users can use FortiGate, FortiManager, or FortiExtender Cloud Dashboard to view and easily manage security controls, network changes, and policy and protocol automation.
Integration: Seamlessly integrates with Fortinet Secure SD-WAN for simplified deployment, security, and management.
Improves TCO: FortiExtender is a very cost-effective option when integrated with FortiGate Network Security Platform. FortiExtender implements processes that save money and improve connectivity, functionality, and profitability.

Fortinet FortiExtender Features

Plug-and-play: Out of the box and ready to go, once FortiExtenders are connected to the FortiGate, they are available on the FortiOS management platform. Additionally, FortiOS provides complete visibility, monitoring data usage to ensure limits are not exceeded, resulting in significant cost savings.
Flexible connectivity options:
- LTE/5G : The FortiExtender devices provide dual SIM and dual modem options for four different ISPs. Dual SIM allows for active/passive cellular link for fast failover. Dual modem options provide two active/passive links for super-fast failover and disaster recovery. ISPs can be set for data usage limits and seamlessly switch to other ISPs to balance connectivity and reduce costs.
- WAN connectivity: Using an Ethernet WAN port, users can connect cable, DSL, or another modem. Load balancing and failover options available.
- Hybrid WAN-LAN connectivity: Four LAN ethernet ports enable users to have numerous connections to the LTE connection. Works well for high availability (HA) pairs of FortiGates to connect to FortiExtender. FortiGates then will run in failover or load balancing mode and receive WAN connectivity from the FortiExtender device.

Reviews from Real Users

“Fortinet FortiExtender helps facilitate Fortinet connectivity. When it comes to cell phone towers, you never know what you'll get with global configurations. We use this solution to mitigate switching cell phone towers. The scalability is limitless based on your cell and your internet or your cloud connectivity. It's similar to any other VPN in terms of how simple it is to set up in a global or extended environment with a large number of clients.” - Clement J., Chief Executive Officer at Clemtech LLC

Fortinet

HPE Wireless WAN, a Software-Defined WAN dynamically selects the best path for each app based on policies and real-time network measurements. Flexibly and securely connect users to apps with higher visibility into vital traffic. WAN Portfolio include the following: HPE OfficeConnect OC20 802.11ac Series Access Points, HPE FlexNetwork MSR2000 Router Series, HPE FlexNetwork HSR6800 Router Series and HPE FlexNetwork VSR1000 Virtual Services Router Series.

Hewlett Packard Enterprise

Sample Customers

Black Gold Regional Schools, Amadeus Hospitality, Jefferson County, Chunghwa Telecom, City of Boroondara, Dimension Data

Bell Canada

Buyer's Guide

Fortinet FortiExtender vs. HPE Wireless WAN

June 2025

Free Report: Fortinet FortiExtender vs. HPE Wireless WAN

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