Cisco Secure Firewall 1220 (1220CX) vs Ubiquiti UniFi Dream Machine Pro Max: Specs & Price Comparison

Cisco Secure Firewall 1220 (1220CX)

★ 3.2 Value Score

Firewall Throughput: 15 Gbps (ASA stateful inspection, 1500B UDP); 12 Gbps (ASA multiprotocol)
Threat Prevention Throughput: 9.0 Gbps (FW + AVC + IPS, 1024B packets); 9.0 Gbps (NGIPS); 1.5 Gbps (TLS decryption)
IPsec VPN Throughput: 10 Gbps (Threat Defense, 1024B TCP w/ Fastpath); 12 Gbps (ASA, 450B UDP L2L)
Max Sessions: 300K concurrent sessions (with AVC); 300K concurrent firewall connections (ASA)
New Sessions/sec: 50K connections/sec (with AVC, Threat Defense); 250K connections/sec (ASA)
Interfaces: 2x 10GbE SFP+ (1/10 Gbps); 8x 1000BASE-T (RJ-45); 1x management 1000BASE-T; console (USB Type-C and RJ-45); 1x USB 3.0 Type A
Form Factor: Desktop/compact appliance (not rack units); optional rack or wall mount kits (CSF1200C-RACK-MNT=, CSF1200C-WALL-MNT=)
Max VPN Peers: 300
Max Virtual Routers (VRF): 10 (Threat Defense only)
Storage: Integrated 480GB SSD
Power: Single external AC supply, 100-240V AC, 50-60 Hz, 40W max (confirm for 1220CX), no PoE
Cooling: Integrated blower, side exhaust
Weight: 3.09 lb (1.40 kg)
Operating Temperature: 32 to 104u00b0F (0 to 40u00b0C)

✔ Pros: Compact desktop form factor suits branch offices and small sites; 15 Gbps stateful firewall throughput and 300K concurrent sessions for its class; 2x 10GbE SFP+ uplinks plus 8x 1GbE copper ports; runs either ASA or Threat Defense software, so migration paths exist for existing ASA estates; supports up to 300 VPN peers and 10 VRFs (Threat Defense); integrated 480GB SSD and optional rack or wall mounting
✘ Cons: Threat prevention throughput drops to 9 Gbps with IPS enabled, well below the 15 Gbps headline firewall figure; TLS decryption is only 1.5 Gbps, a significant limit for encrypted-traffic inspection; only two 10GbE ports, so it is not suited to high-speed aggregation; no PoE; performance figures are lab-measured and vary with features enabled and traffic mix; requires separate Cisco subscription licensing for threat features; retail pricing is widely dispersed across retailers and the official Cisco list price could not be confirmed
Est. Price: $3,299 - $4,562

Ubiquiti UniFi Dream Machine Pro Max

★ 5.0 Value Score

Firewall Throughput: Not published by Ubiquiti. Third-party tests: about 3.8-4.7 Gbps internet (WAN) throughput; about 3.0 Gbps inter-VLAN routing
Threat Prevention Throughput: 5 Gbps IDS/IPS (Ubiquiti spec)
IPsec VPN Throughput: Not published by Ubiquiti. Unverified third-party estimate of about 1.8-2.2 Gbps
Max Sessions: Not published
New Sessions/sec: Not published
Interfaces: 2x 10G SFP+ ports; 8x 1GbE RJ45 LAN ports; 1x 2.5GbE RJ45 WAN port (sources conflict on WAN; one lists a 25GbE WAN port)
Form Factor: 1U rackmount

✔ Pros: 5 Gbps IDS/IPS rating from Ubiquiti; 10G SFP+ ports for fast uplinks or LAN; Multi-WAN support with 2.5GbE WAN; Integrated UniFi Network controller and UniFi OS for centralized management; Built-in NVR bay for UniFi Protect cameras; Rackmount 1U form factor suited to server racks
✘ Cons: Ubiquiti does not publish firewall, VPN, or session-rate figures; Real-world WAN throughput in independent tests is about 3-4.7 Gbps, below the 5 Gbps IDS/IPS rating; Port layout and WAN specs differ between sources; Costs about 2x the UDM Pro (about $220 more) for a modest throughput gain; Limited 1GbE LAN port count compared with dedicated switches; Requires UniFi ecosystem for full feature set
Est. Price: $599 - $660

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