- Network Admin
Network Switches Explained: Managed vs Unmanaged
11 Mar, 2026





£330.96 inc. VAT
AI-generated summary
For £275.86 ex-VAT, the NETGEAR GS724TP-300EUS is the kind of switch that makes sense when you need **managed switching with PoE** without going full “enterprise core” spend. It’s a good fit for UK SMEs, office networks, clinics, and light warehouses where you’ve got a mix of **IP phones, Wi‑Fi access points, and cameras** and you want VLANs/traffic control to keep things sane as you grow. The value here is that you’re paying for management features and PoE in one box—less faff than cobbling together separate devices or going unmanaged and then fighting broadcast/segmentation later.
That said, I wouldn’t buy it if you’re expecting heavy routing or big-lane L3/L4 features—managed “L2/3/4” marketing can sound grand, but what matters is whether you’ll actually use it. If you only need basic PoE plus simple switching, this is likely **overkill for the money**. Also, if you’re deploying lots of high-draw PoE devices (e.g., multiple Wi‑Fi 7 APs at full power or PTZ cameras), you should double-check your real power budget and cabling plan—otherwise you’ll end up throttling where you’d rather not. Overall: a solid, practical choice for a **managed PoE edge/access layer**, but only worth it if you’ll genuinely use the management side.

Netgear
NETGEAR Plus GS305EPP - Switch - smart - 5 x 10/100/1000 (4 PoE+) - desktop, wall-mountable - PoE+ (120 W)

Netgear
NETGEAR AV Line M4250-10G2XF-PoE+ - Switch - L3 - Managed - 10 x 10/100/1000 (8 PoE+) + 2 x 10 Gigabit SFP+ - side to side airflow - rack-mountable - PoE+ (240 W)

Netgear
NETGEAR Easy Smart GS105EPP - Switch - high-power - L3 - smart - 1 x 10/100/1000 + 4 x 10/100/1000 (PoE+) - desktop, wall-mountable - PoE+ (120 W)

TP-Link
TP-Link JetStream TL-SG3452P V3.26 - Switch - L2+ - Managed - 48 x 10/100/1000 (PoE+) + 4 x Gigabit SFP - rack-mountable - PoE+ (384 W)