Apple Time Capsule 2TB MD032LL/A [NEWEST VERSION]

by Apple

Product Details

• Item Weight: 3 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 5.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B0057AVXP4
• Item model number: MD032LL/A
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8 in Computers & Accessories (See Top 100 in Computers & Accessories)
  • #42 in Electronics > Computers & Add-Ons > External Data Storage > External Hard Drives

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

With the Apple Time Capsule, you'll be able to give your computer automatic, constant protection over a blazing-fast, secure wireless connection. Time Capsule includes a wireless hard drive designed to work with Time Machine in Mac OS X Leopard or later. Just set Time Capsule as the designated backup drive for Time Machine, and that's it.

One-click continuous backup for your Mac using Time Machine.

 

 

Works with multiple Macs.

This 4th generation version of Time Capsule features a 2 TB hard drive. It also 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. You'll be able 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.

One-Click Continuous Backup

Time Capsule is your one place for backing up everything. Its massive 2 TB server-grade hard drive gives you all the capacity and safety you need. So whether you have 250 songs or 250,000 songs to back up, you won't run out of room.

Depending on how much data you have, your initial backup with Time Capsule could take overnight or longer. After it completes, only changed files are backed up--automatically, wirelessly, and in the background--you'll never have to worry about backing up again. And new technologies in Time Capsule and refinements to Time Machine make backing up to Time Capsule even faster than before.

If you have multiple Mac computers in your house, Time Capsule can back up and store files for each Mac running Mac OS X Leopard or later on your wireless network--no need to attach an external drive to each Mac every time you want to back up.

Works with Mac and PC

Time Capsule with Time Machine in Mac OS X Leopard or later is the ideal backup solution. But that doesn't mean Mac OS X Tiger, Windows XP, and Windows Vista users can't enjoy the benefits of Time Capsule, too. Because Time Capsule mounts as a wireless hard drive, Tiger and Windows users simply access Time Capsule directly from the wireless network for exchanging and storing files quickly and easily.

Simultaneous Wireless-N Dual-Band Support

The Apple Time Capsule 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.

Time Capsule 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 Time Capsule on either band will automatically use the best available band.

Share a printer with your networked Macs and PCs.

Gigabit Ethernet

In addition to Wi-Fi networking, Time Capsule includes three Gigabit Ethernet ports for fast wired connectivity with desktop computers, network drives, and more.

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.

Wireless Printing

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

Specifications

Storage 2 TB Serial ATA server-grade hard disk drive 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 7.7 x 7.7 x 1.4 inches (LxWxH) 3.5 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

Time Capsule, power supply with cord, printed documentation

Product Description

Time Capsule - 2TB

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

63 of 66 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars easy, fast, just works, June 26, 2011

By 

JoshJosh - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Apple Time Capsule 2TB MD032LL/A [NEWEST VERSION] (Personal Computers)

I've had two hard drive failures recently. I didn't want that to happen again, and Apple's release of revised Time Capsules this week was a signal to do something about it.

It's a fairly small unit, with simple hookups - the power cord, one LAN in, three LAN outs, and one USB port. There's only one light, which only shows two colors - amber (for something requiring attention) or green (for everything running smoothly). My setup was to be using the Time Capsule for Wi-Fi, while piggybacking off a router required by my ISP. Once I hooked up everything, I loaded AirPort Utility on my Mac, which walked me through setup of the Wi-Fi network and TIme Capsule. After setting it up, the unit rebooted and the light started blinking amber, indicating a problem. Here's where the Time Capsule was proven to be worth the money.

Over the years, I've spent a lot of time dealing with network hardware and traversing through the router's confusing interface. The blinking amber light gave me flashbacks to those days. But, this was different. I loaded up AirPort Utility, and it walked me through all indicated problems along with recommended solutions. After five minutes it was running correctly, indicated by a steady green light. I hooked up my PS3 and Xbox 360 to the Time Capsule Ethernet ports and they connected to their services flawlessly.

The summary here: Thirty minutes after taking the Time Capsule out of the box, I had a perfectly running Wi-Fi network, 2 devices running through the ethernet ports, and all my data being backed up to the hard drive. I've used a lot of consumer-level network hardware over the years, but nothing was as straightforward and pleasant to use as Time Capsule. I don't know why every company doesn't make it this easy, but it is how it should be. Highly recommended.

Edit: I just got a printer and hooked it up to the Time Capsule a few days ago. As with everything else, setup was absolutely no-fuss. Through USB, everything set up automatically and all I had to do was add it to the printer list in preferences.

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Incredible Value, September 15, 2011

By 

J. Rhoades "photogirl" (Olive Branch, Ms) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Apple Time Capsule 2TB MD032LL/A [NEWEST VERSION] (Personal Computers)

I'm a professional photographer with three Macs in my studio and a pc. Before I purchased the Time Capsule I was using an Airport Extreme dual-band. Since my place is two stories, I was also using an Airport Express to expand my network downstairs, basically because my old Airport Extreme did NOT send signal through both floors. The 4th Gen Time Capsule absolutely covers both floors and I no longer need the Airport Express. That's pretty impressive in itself. I currently have the 4th Gen Time Capsule connected to two quad-core iMacs with Cat6 gigabit cables, and the connection is fast! Super fast. Basically as fast as USB 2, not quite as fast as Firewire 800. The 2TB hard drive inside the Time Capsule allows me to share huge galleries between all the computers in my studio. It's certainly a lot more convenient than moving external hard drives around between computers. With my old Airport Extreme I tried hooking up a 2TB hard drive to the USB port on the back, but the transfer rate was abysmal. The transfer rate from the 4th Gen Time Capsule is soooo much faster and has really solved all our problems.

I want to take a minute to talk about value. First, think about how much a good dual-band wireless router costs. You can get an average router for $50, a decent one for $100, and a super fast router for $150. The range and speed of the 4th Gen Time Capsule are both comparable to the fastest routers sold by Netgear or Linksys, which by themselves would cost you $150. Now think about how much a 2TB external hard drive costs. You can get one on sale for like $70-90 sometimes, but you often see them for $150. So to reproduce what you get with the 4th Gen Time Capsule, you would have to spend anywhere from $200-$300. Now, how much is the Time Capsule - $300. As you can see, the Time Capsule is an incredible value! But it also gives you some advantages that you can't get if you buy alternative products. For example, the Time Capsule is an all-in-one product so it saves space and looks good sitting on your desk out of the way. Even better, the Time Capsule syncs as a Time Machine with ALL the Macs in your house. Last night my MacBook Pro's Time Machine synced wirelessly with Time Capsule in about 90 minutes, sending a little over 50GB. That's pretty quick for wireless. Over a Cat6 gigabit cable Time Machine basically runs as fast as a USB2 hard drive. The final advantage the Time Capsule gives you is a network hard drive available to all the computers in your home/studio. One hard drive to rule them all. And don't forget, because it's an Apple product, the Time Capsule is incredibly easy to setup. So it's an incredible value: a dual-band router, an external hard drive, a Time Machine for all your Macs, network storage for all your Macs, all-in-one form factor, and easy to setup.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Dead simple!, August 6, 2011

By 

TheTerrorBeyond (Tartarus) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Apple Time Capsule 2TB MD032LL/A [NEWEST VERSION] (Personal Computers)

This item would be a complete revolution were it not for the price. The setup is incredibly simple and takes no real thought or effort; just follow the prompts, really. Setting up Time Machine on your Mac is as simple as searching for your Time Capsule under "select disk" and saying "use backup disk." The drive is ONLY useable as a backup drive, so don't think that you will be making a network startup disk with it.

The initial backup was terribly slow when I tried backing up wirelessly, so I cancelled the backup, connected with gigabit and started again. This increased the speed greatly and got things going. I went back to wireless after the initial backup and it has worked perfectly since. Keep this in mind if your initial backup seems way too slow... just hardwire it for the initial backup.

Once the initial backup has been completed, Time Machine will only backup files that have changed, so ongoing backups are super fast and don't slow your machine down. Even with this in mind, be sure to disable Time Machine when you are working in critical applications such as Pro Tools where the backup could slow performance and possibly cause unwanted latency.

My only complaint is the price, but you can't miss in the areas of ease of use and functionality. Apple continues to produce the best and easiest to use hardware in the world and this is no exception.