Is a wireless card in a MP a waste of extra $?

[AppleWorking]

I know it's chump change, but hey I'm curious... Do you think it's just a waste of money? Or does it actually come in handy? Is it useful to you?


Thanks

[Markleshark]

I've never once used the wireless built into my Mac Mini, I have ethernet cables running through my house, but you never know. For the extra £30 or whatever it was, I got one in my config.

Shame it's extra (I mean, it really should be included, considering how much I'm already spending), but the card is 802.11n, so future proofed, and you just never know when it's going to come in handy.

[grue]

I've never once used the wireless built into my Mac Mini, I have ethernet cables running through my house, but you never know. For the extra £30 or whatever it was, I got one in my config.

Shame it's extra (I mean, it really should be included, considering how much I'm already spending), but the card is 802.11n, so future proofed, and you just never know when it's going to come in handy.

They can't just include it, because many government and private labs and such do not allow wireless networking hardware, even if it's turned off. Same reason they'd be out of their minds to build a camera into the 30" Cinema Display.

That having been said, I wouldn't have a problem with it being a deletable option, so you can REMOVE $50 from the machine price by deleting it.

[Hot Snowboarder]

It was a waste of money in the wireless b/g era. But with n speed... its serves a purpose.

[thelongmorrow]

That having been said, I wouldn't have a problem with it being a deletable option, so you can REMOVE $50 from the machine price by deleting it.

I can see them doing that and raising the price of the machine $50, so they still make money! :confused::o:o:(:cool:

[kevink2]

My mp is my only 802.11n client, and led to my AP purchase.

[bozz2006]

before i bought my mac pro, i thought it was a waste....

until i needed a wireless connection. then it was a HUGE hassle to track down the card, since i have the original mac pro and the card wasn't in stock anywhere. I swear I found the only Apple Authorized Shop in the Minneapolis area that had it. $50 for the card, and $60 for the install.

In hindsight, I should've just forked over the extra $50 when i bought the machine.

[KelchM]

before i bought my mac pro, i thought it was a waste....

until i needed a wireless connection. then it was a HUGE hassle to track down the card, since i have the original mac pro and the card wasn't in stock anywhere. I swear I found the only Apple Authorized Shop in the Minneapolis area that had it. $50 for the card, and $60 for the install.

In hindsight, I should've just forked over the extra $50 when i bought the machine.

You paid someone 60.00 to stick a card in a slot? :eek:

[bozz2006]

You paid someone 60.00 to stick a card in a slot? :eek:

it's not readily easy to get my hands on the card in the first place, especially since it was not even being produced anymore. I had to find a shop which had new old-stock. They wouldn't sell me the card straight away. It was the only place that i could actually find the card. it's not a user-installable part. meaning that if i did it, my warranty could have been void. if i needed service and took it in, and the apple store manager was having a bad day, he could have proclaimed my warranty void.

edit: just wanted to add that i never did need service, and since i'm doing a processor upgrade today, my applecare is going to be void anyway! didn't know that then, and the fact remains that it was literally the ONLY place i found that actually had the card.

[grue]

it's not readily easy to get my hands on the card in the first place, especially since it was not even being produced anymore. I had to find a shop which had new old-stock. They wouldn't sell me the card straight away. It was the only place that i could actually find the card. it's not a user-installable part. meaning that if i did it, my warranty could have been void. if i needed service and took it in, and the apple store manager was having a bad day, he could have proclaimed my warranty void.

edit: just wanted to add that i never did need service, and since i'm doing a processor upgrade today, my applecare is going to be void anyway! didn't know that then, and the fact remains that it was literally the ONLY place i found that actually had the card.

Actually, no, that's not how it works.

1. Apple Authorized Service Centers have contracts with Apple which specifically say they may not sell you service parts unless they install them. That's why they wouldn't do it.

2. If you managed to get one somewhere and install it yourself, your warranty is NOT void. HOWEVER, if the computer were damaged in the process of it being installed OR you used non-genuine parts that could be shown to have caused a failure, then that part of the warranty would no longer be valid.

Just because someone installs an Airport card doesn't mean their PSU no longer has a warranty, etc.

[bozz2006]

OK thanks for the clarification.

[wedgehammer]

i never use wireless with my imac so i didn't order wireless with my mp 09... with my imac, i use the aztech homeplugs (ethernet over power) which provide more reliable/stable connections

with the airport, i frequently get lags/disconnections when i'm playing world of warcraft... something which doesn't happen when using the homeplugs

[kastenbrust]

It was a waste of money in the wireless b/g era. But with n speed... its serves a purpose.

Why? Theres no way your home broadband can saturate G's speed unless you work for Nasa. However N's range and dual band compatibilities make it desirable. You never know when you'll need it, even if your internet goes down and you need to hijack your neighbors wireless.

[m1stake]

It's a waste of money if you're not going to use it. This is why it's not a standard option. Why should Apple pay for something not everyone will use, and why should it's customers pay for something they won't use?

[jrnewhouse]

You paid someone 60.00 to stick a card in a slot? :eek:

It's not quite as simple as sticking the card in a slot. I bought one from FastMac and installed it myself. You have to remove drive bays 1 and 2 to get enough room to work. Then you find and attach the two airport antenna wires to the card (a royal pain), insert the card into the slot on the logic board and secure it with screws. Not exactly plug and play, but it works fine.

[belvdr]

Interesting, so the antenna wires are inside the case? For some reason I thought it had an external antenna. Maybe the original ones did.

[Fomaphone]

Interesting, so the antenna wires are inside the case? For some reason I thought it had an external antenna. Maybe the original ones did.

my ppc g5 had an external screw-in antenna that i think was for the airport card (which i installed myself very easily), though maybe that antenna was for bluetooth now that i think about it.

[bozz2006]

antennas for bluetooth and airport are internal. you just have to pull them out from behind the logicboard.

[Abidubi]

It took me about 10 seconds to install an airport extreme card in my G5 last year. It just slides right in, then you plug the antenna into the little slot. There is nothing to screw in. The little antenna you plug into the back doesn't screw in either, you just pop it in like anything else. Maybe it was a bluetooth antenna that you had to screw in for your G5.

I'm really surprised they turned such a simple install into such a pita. And I'm not sure if the airport extreme was user installable in the G5s, but an apple service center had no problem providing me with the card in it's plain white cardboard box for me to install.

[roybfr]

If you have any of using it I would just get one. In my experience getting one afterward was a pain, all the local stores that sell them "have" to install it for you, which left me to find a place online. For what you are originally paying for the machine it's not much more and of all the parts they do over charge IMO it is not one of them.

[grue]

all the local stores that sell them "have" to install it for you

Their contract with Apple dictates this. Just how it works.

[Macpropro80]

I am forced to use wireless I am no where near an ethernet cable connection. But the wireless on the Mac pro is top notch. I am able to torrent and play COD4 at the same time all over wireless. My old dell couldn't even play Counter strike over wireless. So i would def. recommend the wireless card.

[Hot Snowboarder]

Why? Theres no way your home broadband can saturate G's speed unless you work for Nasa. However N's range and dual band compatibilities make it desirable. You never know when you'll need it, even if your internet goes down and you need to hijack your neighbors wireless.

Wireless 'n' wasn't created for internet use. I use it to connect to a home network which includes a server and hard drives. Try running apps or video over wireless g.

[sboerup]

I use the wireless/n with my MP and its great. Although I think my Airport Extreme has been giving me issues with downtime and needing to restart constantly.

Other than that, the wireless is fast and secure. Apple even recommends that using the wireless card is "more secure" than ethernet. Who knows how true it really is, but I love mine.

A local Apple authorized store sold me the card without requiring the installation labor. The antenna pins were a PAIN in the butt to get in, but it works great.

[bozz2006]

yeah, the antenna pins suck. My bluetooth was wired incorrectly, as was apparently standard operating procedure for my generation machine. Reconnecting all the wires was rough.

[Glen Quagmire]

Before getting a wireless router, I used it to connect my Wii to the internet, using Internet Sharing. Worked a treat!

[vogelhausdesign]

I personally have a very minimalist approach on Apple's design aesthetic as it pertains to my office. I don;t like wires, anywhere.. So I got the wireless card, bluetooth mouse and keyboard and tucked away all those white power cables behind my Furman power conditioner. So the appearance is more pleasing :) but thats just me.. and I'm a freak about my office

[amoergosum]

Hmmm...I still have to decide regarding the wireless card.

[Cliff3]

Is it useful to you?

No, and I didn't order one. The machine will be in my office where the cable modem, gigabit switch, and APE are located. It won't be moving around at all - that's what I have a MBP for.

[mchalebk]

I didn't buy the AirPort option on my G4 Quicksilver and ended up regretting it. When we moved last year (yes, I'm still using the Quicksilver), there was no wired ethernet connection in the room where I put the computer. I researched the AirPort card I would need to add and it was something like $150. I tried a USB wi-fi dongle, but that was hit or miss. I ended up routing some ethernet cable through the attic to connect.

When I get a new MacPro later in the next few months, I plan to order it with the wi-fi card. Even though I don't need it now, it'll be a lot cheaper/easier than adding it later. Plus, at $50, the cost is pretty nominal.

[sigmadog]

I'm getting one in my Mac Pro when I order.

I work from home. Home is out in the woods. Once or twice a year, we lose power due to weather issues. We have a generator, but it only powers the main house, not the office; so if the power is out for long, I have to move my computer into the house, where our wireless signal is strong, but ethernet plug-ins aren't handy.

It's a small, $50 insurance policy that allows me to stay connected when I wouldn't be able to otherwise.

Plus, I think it would be fun one day to strap that baby on my back and go to Starbucks.

[aaquib]

Plus, I think it would be fun one day to strap that baby on my back and go to Starbucks.

:D