Mobile devices like phones, tablets, and laptops are being used for work more than ever, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic. Remote work and hybrid workplaces are the new normal, making mobile devices ubiquitous in enterprise settings. Mobile devices improve employee productivity and efficiency and make them vulnerable to privacy, data, and security leaks unless they are managed appropriately.
MobileIron and Microsoft Endpoint Manager (MEM) Intune are pioneers in MDM and provide end-to-end Unified Endpoint Management (UEM) for devices in a network. This article will help you weigh the pros and cons of using MobileIron or MEM Intune as an MDM software for your organization.
Click here for a case study of 802.1X deployment on mobile devices in an Intune environment.
What is Mobile Device Management?
Mobile device management (MDM) is a term that encompasses conditional exchange access, mobile application, and content management. Mobile Device Management software makes mobile devices secure while also protecting the network through Unified Endpoint Management. UEM helps the IT team control and secure the entire technical environment endpoints consisting of mobile, tablets, desktops, laptops, and user data on the devices.
Here are five factors to consider before you pick an MDM software for your organization:
- Security management is a critical feature of an MDM as it ensures the safety and security of data, content, and devices. Employees can access data and information anywhere and anytime. This could leave the network vulnerable to data theft if the device isn’t properly secured. A good MDM software should ensure proper security measures like authentication credentials are in place. Passwords as credentials could still leave the network vulnerable, so certificate-based authentication support in an MDM becomes a prudent choice for an organization looking to secure its network.
- Application Management is another critical factor, as most organizations have a lot of task-specific and business-specific apps. An MDM should have application management as an integral part of their solution, and you should also look at how these apps are distributed on user devices.
- Pricing is generally based on organizational needs and could be in bulk or a per-device plan. Most MDM providers offer a free trial for a certain period so that you can try the product. You should try the product hands-on before making a final decision to opt for the product.
- User Experience for after-sales and support functions is essential to an MDM solution. You will require good support while it is deployed across all the devices in the organization. Check for user reviews, especially on peer review sites, to know more about their after-sales support before you make a decision.
- A good MDM solution should provide a smooth onboarding solution to avoid misconfiguration, which leaves the network vulnerable to penetration.
MobileIron vs. MEM Intune- Feature Comparison
Based on the five factors mentioned above, let’s see how MobileIron and MEM Intune measure against each other.
- Security
- Application Management
- Pricing
- User Experience
- Onboarding
Intune is built by and for the Microsoft ecosystem, whereas MobileIron is more neutral and apt for use in a heterogeneous environment with various systems. Both MobileIron and MEM Intune are feature rich and provide support to control multiple devices at the same time.
MDM Security
Both MobileIron and Intune have a proven track record of top security features. Let’s compare them here.
MobileIron Security
MobileIron includes Zero Trust with most of its offerings and services. MobileIron helps protect data at rest through encryption of data using FIPS 140-2 cryptographic modules and protects data in motion through a per-app VPN. They have also implemented Zero Trust principles in their Mobile Threat Defense (MTD) service, which is an addition to their UEM. It helps MobileIron shield iOS or Android devices against phishing, instrument, or network-level attacks.
MTD uses machine learning algorithms, thus eliminating the need to be connected to the internet at all times. These algorithms are capable of continuously detecting important threats. They also check for suspicious URLs in emails, SMS, etc. MobileIron’s UEM functionality includes authentication methods like single sign-on and multi-factor authentication.
MEM Intune Security
MEM Intune uses the Azure Active Directory (Azure AD) to secure your devices and resources. Conditional Access is already accessible to the premium Azure AD (Microsoft Entra ID) users, and MEM Intune utilizes the same node to ensure Mobile Device Compliance and Mobile Application Management (MAM) features. Intune uses Conditional Access Policies to help configure devices and users to your network.
The Conditional Access Policy also helps devices not in the network through Intune to gain Access. The Mobile Threat Defense Partners helps get compliance reports for any devices integrated into Intune. Microsoft’s endpoint detection and response (EDR) is an added layer of security that provides extra protection in conjunction with Microsoft Defender Antivirus.
Application Management
MobileIron Application Management
MobileIron Mobile@work is an enterprise application management software that helps users manage in-house and third-party apps. Apps@work allows the IT department to approve and curate a set list of apps via a storefront and publish apps directly for the app stores. MobileIron Access will enable devices to access resources based on the device’s posture.
Authentication traffic is managed on the app through their MobileIron Tunnel, and AppConnect uses the AppTunnel for authentication. MobileIron provides excellent features like automated onboarding, application management, security monitoring, and retirement of devices.
Integration
- MobileIron integrates with business cloud service providers at deployment.
- Integration with IdPs to set conditional policies for Access, blocking, and warnings
- MobileIron also prevents unauthorized devices from accessing the internet through MobileIron Access.
MEM Intune
MEM Intune
Microsoft Intune allows users to synchronize apps that they purchase from Apple Business Manager by managing the licenses and location tokens. Apple Business Manager also includes the Apple Volume Purchase Program (VPP), allowing admins to deploy multiple public and private software such as a self-service app, books, etc. Microsoft released the Cloud Policies by Microsoft 365 which lets the admin administer and deploy policies by a self-service app and provides better customization to MEM Intune users over the competitors.
Integration
- MEM Intune provides a TeamViewer Connector for remote integrations, which is very easy and user-friendly to operate.
- The TeamViewer enables organizations to track and securely access all remote devices across multiple operating systems anytime without using VPNs.
- It also provides access to Microsoft Graph API and Mobile Threat Defense, providing security and boosting the team’s overall efficiency.
Pricing
MobileIron
MobileIron supports small, medium, and large business enterprises. They don’t charge a set-up fee and they have a quote-based pricing model. MobileIron also offers a free trial for the basic model i.e. the Secure UEM.
MEM Intune
MEM Intune offers three pricing packages that cater to the needs of various customers from schools and small businesses, to advanced requirements for enterprise solutions. The pricing for MEM Intune starts at an average of $10.60 per user.
User Experience
MobileIron has a rating of 7.4/10 on Peerspot while Intune has a rating of 7.8/10, so it is quite obvious that they are in close competition with each other. MobileIron manages an umbrella of devices and whereas Intune mainly manages a Windows environment along with Android.
Let’s take a closer look at the user experience for these MDMs from real-time user reviews:
MobileIron UX
MobileIron supports a mixed device environment including iPhones, Ipads, Macs, Android devices, Windows, Zebra, and Oculus. MobileIron is pretty device agnostic and can be deployed on the cloud as well as on-premise giving employees more choices to pick their endpoint.
Customers find it easy to manage as they have everything in a single place, but feel that the interface could be better. The customer service by MobileIron seems to be a big draw for users as they feel that the support is tremendous. However, a very common review among customers was a need for more documentation and detailing despite excellent product features.
MEM Intune
With MEM Intune, users have great things to say about its ability to secure and manage devices. However, the lack of support for a diverse environment is a keenly felt need. Its dashboards, security, and customization capabilities empower end-users in numerous ways. Users also find Intune suitable for software update management, operating system version updates, and security policy enforcement.
Onboarding Solution for MDMs
MobileIron and MEM Intune are leaders in MDM solutions, but when it comes to onboarding and enrollment, neither has a perfect solution. Relying on end-users to configure devices risks misconfiguration, one of the leading causes of network vulnerability. Enter SecureW2, a solution that configures and auto-enrolls managed and BYOD devices for certificate-based authentication and can deploy certificates through any MDM via API Gateways.
SecureW2 is an official partner for both MobileIron and MEM Intune. Our product addresses the entire lifecycle of certificates and has more certificate management features than any MDM.
Click here for pricing for the perfect onboarding software for your managed and BYOD devices.
