ZyXEL GS1910-24 Smart 10/100/1000Mbps Gigabit Smart Managed Switch ZyXEL GS1910-24 Smart 10/100/1000Mbps Gigabit Smart Managed Switch

Pros: GigE switches used to be expensive and, most-importantly if used in your house, NOISY. They were all fan-cooled and since they were thin, the fans were fast-rotating and sounded like a jet airplane, more or less.

This one is fanless -- meaning silent. It has Vlan capability, QOS and even guest access (authentication capability which, if it fails, can assign traffic to a "default" VLAN) which is very useful.

Management works, SNMP works, it just all works. The menu system is reasonably-understandable even for novices, but "it's all there" for experts. I had it set up and integrated into my partitioned network (internal and external) in under 15 minutes.

Oh, and the price is right too.

Has rack wings in the box along with rubber feet for tabletop use.

Rather nifty CPU monitor tells you how hard the switch is working, and so far despite pounding it pretty good I can't annoy it in terms of load, nor get it to misbehave.

Cons: One niggle -- there is no facility to name the ports that I can find. That's kind of a bummer as doing so is very handy. I would prefer the LEDs on the port jacks themselves instead of to the left (makes it easier to know which ports are linked and in what mode at a glance) but this is more of an aesthetic than functional thing.

No rack screws in the box; make sure you have the proper size if you're rack-mounting it. No printed manual either; you have to download it.

None of this is a big deal IMHO.

Other Thoughts: This little guy provides impressive performance for the money; it is a simply unbeatable value and the fanless design just adds to the attraction.

If you need a managed 24-port Gig-E switch it's darn hard to argue with the value for the money spent.

Pros: Everything you need from a managed switch with the inclusion of remote web management!

Cons: None that I've found so far.

Other Thoughts: I own one of these already and will definitely be ordering another one when I have the money. This switch is listed as a smart switch but it is really a managed switch. Smart switches are normally listed between basic unmanaged and managed devices because they provide custom configuration via web interfaces and very little on the console side. This switch can be managed via both methods. Zyxel has also obviously gone through some serious planning on the layout and implementation of the web interface, as it is far better and way easier to navigate then any D-Link or HP switch I have dealt with so far. The menus are listed in a tiered style which makes it very easy to find and view things. If you're considering buying a new managed/smart switch then look no further. If you're still debating between this switch and its competitors then maybe you don't deserve such an amazing product!

Pros: Good price, managed, full featured, built in power supply, metal case, stable.

Cons: Management interface could use some work. Wish it had lights on the ports instead of on the panel.

Other Thoughts: Been running 60 days with no hangs and no reboots. Two VPNs in use.

Pros: 1) Management interface isn't too clunky, seems like someone that had worked on networks before designed it, unlike the NETGEAR procrap line and all of the unmanaged garbage out there
2) Speeds are great, I haven't even enabled jumbo frames, or done any performance configuration yet and it has drastically improved speeds throughout my flat
3) Metrics all over the place, NTP, syslog, SNMP
4) Shipped in a carefully designed container, not trashed by the post

Cons: More of a peeve than a con, it comes configured at 192.168.1.1 which is typically your router address when you leave your consumer hardware at its default network, otherwise, nothing yet

Other Thoughts: I got this for $200. That is a steal for a 10GbE capable managed switch. Try finding something like this elsewhere in a $400 range, good luck.

ZyXEL has really had a renaissance. They've stepped up the game all over the place.