[spockz]

At first glance the difference is proxy on the node and not per pod. It is also K8s centric where L5d is easier compatible and has way more more powerful configuration options and runs on vms as well.

I would say that L5d 2.0 would be the direct competitor. They are both: small, simple, opt-in, K8s centric, and support SMI.

[hardwaresofton]

I think you compared it to linkerd v2 (formerly known as Conduit) -- Linkerd v1 was used primarily per-node though it was also capable of per-pod...

l5d v1 is the direct competitor, but is just theoretically lacking k8s integration, though it actually is usable with k8s, I've written about it on my tiny tiny k8s cluster.

Basically what I'm wondering is how much better the integration is for Maesh

[0]: https://vadosware.io/post/up-and-running-with-linkerd-v1/