AirPort Extreme 802.11n (5th Generation)

by Apple

• Ships in Certified Frustration-Free Packaging
• Package Content: AirPort Extreme Base Station, Printed documentation, Power cordFeatures, 1-Year Limited Warranty
• Connect your DSL or cable modem to the AirPort Extreme Base Station, then set it up with the AirPort Utility, available as download.
• AirPort Extreme works simultaneously on both the 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands, allows all devices on the network to use band automatically.
• Set up a separate Wi-Fi network with a separate password for your visitors.

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 6.5 x 1.3 inches ; 1.7 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 3.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B0057AVXJA
• Item model number: MD031LL/A
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (521 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #81 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)
  • #5 in Electronics > Computers & Add-Ons > Routers
  • #14 in Electronics > Computers & Add-Ons > Networking Products
• Date first available at Amazon.com: June 21, 2011

Product Description

Amazon.com

The perfect wireless solution for home, school, and business, the Apple AirPort Extreme Base Station blankets your space with a blazing-fast, secure wireless network opening up a world of possibilities for home entertainment, backups, printing, and more. This 5th generation version of the AirPort Extreme operates in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands simultaneously to ensure top performance for all your devices, and it provides a Guest Networking option for easy Internet sharing. It also enables you to share your entire wireless network with up to 50 users at the same time as well as turn a USB hard drive into a shared drive that's accessible wirelessly on your network and now over the Internet.

 

Simultaneous Wireless-N Dual-Band Support

The Apple Airport Extreme is based on the Wireless-N (IEEE 802.11n) specification and it uses multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) to transmit multiple data streams simultaneously--resulting in data transfer speeds up to five times those of 802.11g wireless networks while also providing up to twice the range. It's compatible with Mac computers, PCs, and wireless devices such as iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch that use 802.11a, 802.11b, or 802.11g technologies.

Additionally, some Wi-Fi devices use the 2.4 GHz wireless band (such as the iPhone, iPod touch, and other devices using 802.11b/g). And other devices can use both the 2.4 GHz spectrum as well as the higher speed 5 GHz spectrum--such as 802.11n-based Mac computers and Apple TV.

The Airport Extreme operates simultaneously on both bands, without you having to choose one spectrum over the other--enabling your Wi-Fi devices to receive optimal performance in speed and range. Plus, devices that can connect to the Airport Extreme on either band will automatically use the best available band.

See how the Airport Extreme delivers fast wireless networking to any home or small business.

Gigabit Ethernet

In addition to Wi-Fi networking, the AirPort Extreme Base Station includes three Gigabit Ethernet ports for fast wired connectivity with desktop computers, network drives, and more.

Airport Utility on the Mac.

Easy Setup

Launch AirPort Utility and you're just a few short steps away from creating the ultimate Wi-Fi environment. Mac users can access the AirPort Utility located in the Utilities folder in the Applications folder, while Windows users can access AirPort Utility by selecting Start > All Programs > AirPort.

Guest Networking Capabilities

Allow guests to use your Internet connection without sharing your password or giving them access to the rest of your network. Simply enable the guest networking feature using the AirPort Utility application and create a separate Wi-Fi network just for your friends. You can set up this guest network with a different password or with none at all. Your primary network--including your printer, attached drives, or other devices--remains secure.

Share both a hard drive and a printer using a USB hub (sold separately).

Sharing a Hard Drive

The AirPort Extreme can turn an external USB hard drive into a drive you can share with all the users on your network and access securely over the Internet. This feature--AirPort Disk--is a simple and convenient way to share files among everyone in your family, office, or class.

Just connect the external hard drive to the USB port on the back of your AirPort Extreme and all the documents, videos, photos, and other files on the drive instantly become available to anyone on the secure network--whether they use a Mac or a PC.

Wireless Printing

With its wireless printing capabilities, you can plug a printer into the AirPort Extreme, add it to the printer list on your Mac or PC, and start printing--all without a cable tethered to a computer. AirPort Extreme uses the Mac- and PC-compatible Bonjour networking technology to let everyone on the network take advantage of one centrally available printer.

If you want to share a hard drive as well as share a printer across a network, you can connect a USB hub to the AirPort Extreme and attach your devices to the hub. Share both a printer and a hard drive, multiple printers, multiple hard drives, or a combination.

Specifications

Wireless Protocols IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n Frequency Bands 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz simultaneously Compatibility Interoperable with Wi-Fi Certified 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, or 802.11n enabled Mac computers, iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, and Windows-based PCs NAT, DHCP, PPPoE, VPN Passthrough (IPSec, PPTP, and L2TP), DNS Proxy, SNMP, IPv6 (6to4 and manual tunnels) Size and Weight 6.5 x 6.5 x 1.3 inches (LxWxH) 1.66 pounds

Interfaces One Gigabit Ethernet WAN port for connecting a DSL or cable modem Three Gigabit Ethernet LAN ports for connecting computers or network devices USB 2.0 port for connecting a USB printer or USB external hard drive 802.11n wireless Security Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA/WPA2) Wireless security (WEP) configurable for 40-bit and 128-bit encryption MAC address filtering NAT firewall Support for RADIUS authentication 802.1X, PEAP, LEAP, TTLS, TLS, FAST Time-based access control

What's in the Box

AirPort Extreme Base Station, power supply with cord, printed documentation

Product Description

The AirPort Extreme Base Station from Apple is a compact Internet router with powerful wireless capabilities. The router allows you to share your Internet connection between several computers via the draft 802.11n wireless protocol. It also features three standard 10/100/1000Mbps RJ-45 Gigabit Ethernet ports. The router is also fully backwards compatible with legacy 802.11a/b/g devices. A USB port is present for printer and hard disk sharing. The router also features a firewall to protect you from malicious software that can attack your computer from the Internet, as well as wireless security to insure that your data remains private. It includes configuration software for both Mac OS X and Windows, making it a true cross-platform solution. Power Requirements AC: 120VAC, DC: 12VDC, 1.8A.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

400 of 420 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars High performance WiFi (yes), my own cloud (cool), and easy setup (nice) July 26, 2011

By Cary Champlin

Amazon Verified Purchase

Although setup is quick, it is the high performance 802.11n dual RF bands and the creation of my own cloud storage (HD on USB port) that makes the AirPort Extreme a best-in-class choice!

Setup:
After reading the other reviews, I knew this was going to be quick and easy. I started a pot of coffee thinking I could enjoy a cup while plugging in the AirPort Extreme Base Station (AEBS) and configuring it. Here are the steps:

1. Attached an ethernet cable from the AEBS to my ISP connection. Plugged in the AC adapter and power cord. AEBS powered up. Status light flashed green for a second, glowed amber for several seconds, then flashed amber until the AEBS was configured from a computer.

2. From my MacBook Pro (wireless access works fine for this step), the airport utility app had already launched and was waiting for me (otherwise, go to Applications\Utilities\AirPort Utility.app). Followed instructions that included typing in a router name and two passwords. The default AEBS configuration selects channels and RF bands automatically to optimize speed.

3. Plugged a spare hard drive (in my case: Mac OS Extended (Journaled) formatted 1 TB HD) into AC outlet and the USB port. As soon as the HD had started, it showed up as a MBP network drive device on 'Finder'. I then created a folder, transferred a file, and read it back.

At this point, the coffee machine beeped to let me know my coffee was ready. I was done before the coffee was even ready - about three minutes from opening the box to being operational! Gotta luv it.

Basic Performance Testing:
Not about to let the coffee go to waste, I proceeded with some performance testing. I conducted some very basic data throughput tests by transferring files from the MBP through the AEBS to the HD. This test arrangement kept my ISP download and upload data rates out of the equation. For the wired tests, the MBP was connected to one of the three AEBS Gigabit ports.

Test 1 (a control test configuration between MBP and HD via USB on MBP):
Write to HD: 33.8 MBytes/sec
Read from HD: 34.3 MBytes/sec

Test 2 (wired data transfer)
From MBP to AEBS via Gigabit port, then from AEBS to HD via USB): 13.6 MBytes/sec
From HD to AEBS via USB, then from AEBS to MBP via Gigabit port): 18.3 MBytes/sec

Test 3 (wireless data transfer - 5 GHz RF band)
From MBP to AEBS, then from AEBS to HD via USB): 7.8 MBytes/sec
From HD to AEBS via USB, then from AEBS to MBP): 12.6 MBytes/sec

Test 4 (range test, 5 GHz RF band between MBP and AEBS with a max capacity of 300 Mbits/sec):
3 ft, devices in close proximity: 300 Mbits/sec
50 ft, indoors, no ext walls in path: 243 Mbits/sec
70 ft, outdoors, one ext wall in path: 144 Mbits/sec
80 ft, outdoors, one ext wall in path: 104 Mbits/sec

Default settings seem to provide high bit-rate connections. Using 'manual setup' in Airport Utility.app, I tested several variations on the configuration without improving the rate/range for the 802.11n wireless provided by the default setting of the APBS. Reading data from the HD back through the AEBS to the MBP was always faster than writing data to the HD. Including ethernet into the data transfer path (Test 2 compared to Test 1) reduced data rates in half. Including WiFi into the data transfer path (Test 3 compared to Test 2) reduced data rates to 2/3. Range test performance was very good for distances within 50 feet.

My own storage cloud:
Originally, I envisioned just using the HD (USB port on AEBS) as a network drive for a SVN (i.e., software version control) repository in support of software development on my MBP. But, I realized that this drive is a common storage location for all my devices (MBP, iPad, iPhone, iTouch) that is accessible wirelessly on my local WiFi. And with a VPN connection, from anywhere with WiFi access to the internet. Simply stated, I have my very own cloud! We aren't talking about a skimpy few GB either, but a full TB of dedicated exclusive mine-only cloud. Now, that's cool.

Why buy the 5th generation AEBS:
- High performance 802.11n wireless performance
- Easy and quick setup
- USB port for attaching a hard drive or printer
- Capability to create my very own AEBS WiFi storage cloud for all my devices
- Guest access to ISP without access to other devices or attached USB device
- Sleek clean stylish look

I am so completely pleased with this purchase.

185 of 198 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Router I have used July 6, 2011

By J. A. Reyes

Just to be clear on this, I did try the Cisco E4200, which, according with people who knows about wireless networking, is the best wireless router out there but the range was not as good as the Airport Extreme. I have a town house and the router needs to be in the basement, the E4200 signal did reach the second floor, but with more than two devices connected to the router, the signal dropped so much that was unusable. With the Airport Extreme, no problems at all, the signal is fast enough with two or more devices connected. An additional perk is that with the E4200 you can use the USB port just for storage but not for a printer, but with the Airport Extreme, you can connect an USB Hub and have a printer an a external Hard Drive connected at the same time. This router is a keeper.

My setup: 2 iPads, 2 iPhones, 1 PC, 3 Macs.

94 of 103 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Delightfully fast and stable November 16, 2011

By Louise

I live in an apartment building with many routers and my own apt. is narrow, but almost 100 feet long with many thick walls etc. I was using the new dual band Asus and was pleased, but needed more responsiveness from 75ft on. A Netgear range explander provided some signal improvement but the whole system slowed.

So, not being an Apple fan at all, I closed my eyes and bought the new Airport Extreme N because I'd read and heard many times about its speed and range and how outstanding they were. I deliberately purchased it so that I could return it without penalty. But I'm not taking it back to the store!

The Asus Black Diamond is a good router - but the Airport Extreme provided a much snappier connection at a notably greater distance. Once settling into position and speed, it is quite stable and impressively solidly built.

Four stars are because of the lack of clarity on the Apple site in finding the installation utility for Windows (7) and the fact that even their tech support wasn't very knowledgeable about Windows installation. The software could be better designed for Windows. Tech support should be more knowledgeable - they wouldn't discuss my Droid finding the router connection - they'd only talk about an iphone!

For Windows - two important hints: As of November, 2011, you are looking for the installation file called Airport Utility 5.5.3 for Windows; google was the fastest way to locate it. There also seems to be difficulty getting the setup utility to recognize the router when on 5g. Just move your connection to 2.4 and I've had no problem having the software recognize the router instantly in case you want to make channel changes etc.

So it's 5 stars for the Airport Extreme and I took back one star because of difficulties in dealing with Apple personnel and their site when it came to setting up for windows and/or any phone other than an iphone.

Louise