Cisco Networks have long been known for their innovation in the industry, and they're set to turn things on their head yet again. The new Cisco Refresh initiative brings an entirely new spin on the prospect of buying a refurbished or used Cisco router.
Previously, secondhand Cisco routers and other hardware was available through a variety of outlets, both authorized and not. They already had an official Refurbished Cisco program in place, but they realized there was far more that could be done to keep putting refurbished hardware into people's hands.
The result is Cisco Refresh, and it's opening up brand new alternatives for even small businesses to get a strong start in the world's most-installed brand of hardware.
What Cisco discovered is that most businesses don't hang onto their older networking equipment for too long. Sure, some is moved into secondary or tertiary roles as it ages, but generally speaking, a company upgrading its network is going to end up with a lot of excess hardware they no longer need.
So, they trade it in towards the cost of new hardware, creating a constant flow of gently-used hardware into Cisco's laboratories.
Now, thanks to the large global scales Cisco works on, they have the capacity to offer 100% certified and refurbished equipment side-by-side with new equipment. Even current-gen new releases are generally available through Cisco Refresh very shortly after release.
The benefits this can bring to a small-to-medium sized business are substantial.
1 - Every piece is fully certified.
In terms of functionality, there's simply no difference between Cisco Re-fresh and a new product. Every certified remanufactured Cisco router and other hardware has been thoroughly rebuilt and tested by Cisco before being released to their partner outlets, and is guaranteed to be absolutely equivalent to new hardware.
There's no sacrifice in quality. In fact...
2 - Remanufactured Cisco gets the exact same warranty guarantees.
If you need more evidence that Cisco intends to truly stand by their routers, just look at the warranty protections. You get the exact same warranty as buying new, period.
Cisco Refresh still means Cisco Certified.
3 - You get all the same services.
Software isn't compromised in any way either, if you opt to purchase certified remanufactured hardware. You still get the same version of IOS you would with a new product, and access to all the same services such as SmartNET. This isn't a case of being a "second-tier" customer. All services are delivered regardless of whether you've purchased new or Refreshed routers.
4 - You can freely mix-and-match.
Depending on your needs, or the desires of your upper levels of management, you might want to deploy a mix of new and Refresh hardware. That's no problem. You're free to choose either\or as you see fit, whenever you add more Cisco hardware to your growing network.
This also provides a great opportunity to slowly invest in next-gen technologies, even if you don't have the money for a full rollout. The monetary difference between new and Refresh often means you can go ahead and invest in hardware that's a "level" or two above what you'd normally be able to afford.
5 - Nearly any hardware should be available.
Obviously, there may be cases where a particular item is out of stock or simply not being traded-in. However, we have Cisco's assurances that remanufactured Cisco will be an option most of the time. There are also options for a waiting list, if you want to be notified when a particular Cisco router or switch becomes available via refresh.
Cisco is all about helping small-to-medium sized businesses embrace Cisco early, so they never have to change network architectures again. The greatly reduced prices on these refurbished products put them into reach of virtually any business.
Want to learn more? Contact Hummingbird today for more details.