Apple Airport Card - Network adapter - AirPort - 802.11b

Other products by Apple

Product Details

Product Manual [245kb PDF]

• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• ASIN: B00005RD8T
• Item model number: Card
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: December 7, 2006

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Apple's AirPort wireless networking technology lets you surf the Internet from almost anywhere in your home or business, and enables schools to provide Internet access to multiple students without installing expensive cabling.

With AirPort-enabled Macintosh systems it's a snap to exchange files or play multiplayer games at data transfer rates of up to 11 Mbps. And because AirPort uses radio waves for communication, it can even work through walls.

Since AirPort antennas are built into all new computers from Apple, all you need to add is an internal AirPort card for each system you want to bring onto your wireless network, and an AirPort base station.

Apple's new AirPort base station provides a wireless connection between Macintosh systems with AirPort cards and your Internet connection. It even works with PCs using the same IEEE 802.11b protocol. It can be used in conjunction with a telephone line through a modem, or with an Ethernet connection (such as for a cable modem, DSL modem, or Ethernet network) through the integrated Ethernet port.

Product Description

Have you ever wanted the freedom to use your computer and surf the Internet from anywhere in your home? Or how about being able to use more than one computer to surf the Internet at the same time? Now there's a simple, affordable way to bring the Internet to every room in your home.Instead of using traditional cabling to create a network, AirPort is a wireless LAN technology that provides efficient, reliable wireless communication between multiple computers and the Internet. With no ugly, messy cables to tie you down, you'll enjoy unprecedented freedom to move about the home or classroom. What's more, AirPort enables everyone at home to simultaneously surf different web sites and access e-mail through a single Internet service account. There's no more waiting for your turn to dial into the Internet. Students can move about the classroom freely with their computers and learning takes place wherever it needs to, not just where the computer cable is located. An AirPort Card is about the size of a credit card. It fits easily into a conveniently located slot inside each AirPort-ready Apple computer.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Apple Airport Card and Linksys WAP11, February 25, 2002

By	"goateater_dude" (Las Vegas, NV) - See all my reviews

I bought an Apple Airport card for my Titanium Powerbook G4 and also a Linksys WAP11 Wireless Access Point. Initially, I had some trouble maintaining a consistant connection (the Powerbook would connect to the WAP11 but if I put it to sleep or restarted it, it would not find it again unless I rebooted the WAP11).

Well, after updating the firmware in the WAP11 and Airport card to their latest versions, I'm happy to say they work just great together!!! I love Apple stuff but $299 for their Airport Base Station is just a bit too pricey for me. So, I bought the WAP11 for around $150 and I'm a happy camper.

I haven't tested network printing and/or Appletalk. I think the WAP11 supports Appletalk but you will want to be sure of that if that is important to you. For browsing the web and any other TCP/IP related uses, it works just fine.

By the way, I'm using 128-bit encryption feature on both the Airport card and the WAP11. That involves entering in a "password phrase" in the WAP11 configuration software. The software then converts the phrase into a 128-bit hex number. It's a long number so you'll want to write it down.

When your Airport finds the WAP11, you'll want to the 128-bit key in the password field but make sure it is preceded by a "$" sign. After that, you should be able to connect.

One other thing to consider, you will need a PC with a USB port in order to update the WAP11 firmware. I tried updating the firmware using the Mac and Virtual PC but it would not recognize the WAP11. So, you might want to sneak into work at night or on the weekend to update the firmware...hehehe

Long live Apple!!!!!!!

Happy computing!!! :-)

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars No More Wires!, December 28, 2001

By	Shannon D. Moore (San Antonio, Texas USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

When folks who have already dipped their feet into the waters of wireless breathlessly tell you, "You don't know what you're missing," BELIEVE THEM! The ability to use a computer without a wired network connection -- especially when working with portable computers -- is astonishing.

There are a considerable number of wireless networking options available. As a result, I did a lot of casual research before choosing Apple's Airport card for my Titanium Powerbook G4 (Tibook). My existing network consisted of one Linksys 4 port Etherfast Cable/DSL Router (model BEFSR71), one Toshiba cable modem, three wired desktop PCs (two running Windows 2000 & one running Windows XP) and the Tibook running OS X 10.1.2 that I desired to connect wirelessly.

Given the relatively high cost of the Airport Base Stations, I quickly began looking at the Linksys wireless access point (model: WAP11) as a potential solution. Owing to the 802.11b standard, an Apple Airport card can and does successfully work with a Linksys wireless access point -- using 128 bit WEP (Wireless Encryption Protocol) security, no less. There are some things to be aware of when configuring an Airport with a third-party wireless access point, but they're relatively minor and fairly well documented on Usenet discussion groups and sites accessible via search engines.

As a result, within a day of getting my Airport card I had it successfully installed and fully functional in my Tibook, and could check and respond to email from the comfort of my couch downstairs -- no more 50 foot Ethernet cable snaking through my house like a diver's umbilicle hose! The Airport's range is good, with still over 50% signal strength when I'm downstairs and on the opposite side of my home from the wireless access point. Limited usage outside a typical home may even be possible (such as it is for me), depending on the number of walls and other obstructions between the Airport card and WAP. Experiment with the placement of your WAP to find the optimal location.

The most annoying thing about the Apple Airport Card, at least for Tibook owners, is having to install it. Installing an Airport card (or hard drive, for that matter) in a Tibook requires removing 8 Philips screws from the bottom case and gingerly prying the ultra-thin titanium sheet off to expose the portable's innards. Once exposed, installing the Airport Card is very easy, right down to the integrated Airport antenna that's standard in all modern Apple portables. The benefits to the Airport Card residing *inside* the computer are 1. it's always with you when you need it, 2. it doesn't occupy a valuable "PC Card" slot and 3. you don't have to worry about breaking off the delicate external antenna of a PC Card-based wireless networking card.

After reassembling your Apple portable and restarting, the Airport should be alive, albeit without anyone to talk to. That's where properly configuring your wireless access point -- be it an Airport Base Station or third-party device, like my Linksys WAP11 -- comes into play. Do that correctly, and your Airport card will indicate it "sees" that wireless network is within range. Connect, enter the wireless network's password (if required), and you've joined the ranks of the No More Wires club!

Be sure to keep up-to-date on Apple's software updates, as they periodically release new firmware updates for the Airport Cards and Airport Base Stations.

Via wireless connection,
- A happy Airport/Tibook owner

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars NOTHING BUT NET (well, wireless Net), July 14, 2002

By	Kaotic1 - See all my reviews

I'm not a Mac guy. I am responsible for the wireless network at my place of work. We run Cisco 350 Series AP in two seperate buildings with primarily Cisco wireless pc cards.

I buy several other brands of wireless cards for testing (compaq, xircom linksys) and picked up an AirPort card as well. I have to admit I was a little confused at first, but I think the problem was my lack of understanding when it comes to Apple terminology. Airport? Is that the base station or the client?

As soon as I figured it out, I poked around in OS X and saw the settings for the wireless card. I input the SSID and the WEP key and a few other settings, and it picked up the signal, associated, autheticated and was browsing perfectly.

The true test was when I took it home to my wireless network. It switched between the two seamlessly. Even at Starbucks (at least the locations that have wireless access) it worked great. They broadcast their SSID, I associcated with their access point, signed in and was off and running with chat and email while sipping a mouth full of esspresso roast. You can set up wireless profiles, so if you go between wireless network, you don't have to make any changes. They are already stored for you and ready to use when you arrive...very nice.

So a PC guys opinion of this wireless card??? Five stars.

And just as a side not for all you Mac fans out there, the Cisco LMC-352 wireless card will also fit into your iBook underneath the keyboard as well.

Hope this helps.

Kevin