Used 1st gen Airport Express - speed

toroncan said:

I found a cheap first gen Airport Express on Craigslist. I'm interested in buying it primarily to use AirTunes. My question is whether the first gen model will give me the same speeds for general internet browsing/downloading as my current ISP-supplied modem/router (all-in-one) does? My internet is rated at 25mbps down.

Also, are there any significant drawbacks to using a 3-4 year old router?

TIA

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1st gen Airport Express only does 802.11g if I remember correctly which is only 54mb wifi. Granted it probably won't hurt your internet speeds, but it is far from "new" tech.

toroncan said:

Hmm I see. I'll clarify with the seller. The ad says that it was purchased in 2009, and it linked to the tech specs I posted above, so it would seem to be the "first gen" (aka second model released). If that's the case, would it support 802.11/n?

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There was the Airport Express (1st Gen) that was sold from like 2004-2006 or 7. It was 802.11g, 54Mbps throughput.

The next version was the Airport Express 802.11n (1st Gen) sold from 2006(7?) to last year, which of course supports N-speed throughput.

If it was purchased brand new in 2009, it will most likely be a "802.11n" 1st Gen. But definitely clarify with the seller.

toroncan said:

So to my original question - if it's the 802.11n 1st gen, would I see speeds comparable to my ISP-provided router? I'd really like to use AirTunes but not if it means that my everyday browsing and downloading is going to suffer.

Thanks for all the help everyone

edit: another question: can this model be used as a wifi bridge, or can it only be used as a straight router (ie. ethernet must be plugged in)?

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I've used that model for a couple years now. As long as the distance is reasonable and interference is minimal, you will have sufficient throughput from the AE for a 25Mbps internet pipe and Airtunes. Airtunes really doesn't use that much bandwidth compared to downloading and surfing.

And yes, you can set it up for wifi bridging. I have one set up for use on the patio, it provides Airtunes as well as wifi bridging for surfing on my laptop and iPad.