Airport Express or Extreme

[absolut_mac]

I'd like to set up a wireless router at home for my Mac Mini, my daughter's Mac Book Pro and my son's PC, so I obviously don't need the capacity to hook up 50 people as per the Extreme.

Other than the extra capacity for more people to log on to it, what other advantages does the Extreme offer over the Express? Is it faster, more secure etc?

Of course the smaller size and cheaper price of the Express makes it a viable alternative, but it's not the type of thing that I'll be lugging around on the road with me. More than likely it will just be staying put once I set it up.

Or are there better wireless routers out there that I should be considering?

Thanks in advance for your help and advice.

 

[flopticalcube]

dual band, hard-drive capable, wired connections.

 

[dbwie]

I have had both

I have had both the Airport Express and the Airport Extreme. Both are fantastic products, and both will serve up wireless internet for the computers you describe. The previous poster mentioned all of the additional benefits of the Extreme. Having some wired ethernet ports that comes with the Extreme may be handy for some uses (e.g. connecting a blu-ray disc player to the internet, etc). The Express will suit your expressed needs, but the Extreme will give you more flexibility for unanticipated future needs. Also, dual band is nice, so you can have an open "g" network, without security, for visitors to the house to join with their laptops, and still have a separate, secure "n" network for the family computers.

 

[danny_w]

I have not had an Express, but have had an extreme (Gigabit, so single-band only) and I love it. I needed something for a new apartment so I though about a new Express, but I got a used Extreme just like the one I already had for the same price. I have heard also that the signal strength on the Extreme is much better, so if you have computers on the opposite ends of a large house it may be a better option for you.

 

[devburke]

Here's how I see it, aside from the dual-band thing:

Express: AirTunes
Extreme: Time Machine (you can hook up a hard drive to it for wireless backups)

I really, really wish they'd offer one product with both of these features, but they don't, so unless you wanna buy both, you can choose which one's more important to you.

 

[absolut_mac]

Thanks a lot for all your helpful responses.

I'll probably go with the Express because it's cheaper and smaller, just in case I need to take it on the road with me.

 

[SqB]

The extreme is a router/firewall solution. It will protect the computers on your home network like the routers you would buy from linksys or netgear.

The express does not have a firewall function. It is meant for more limited use. The express also has much smaller range than the extreme. I usually can't hit it from the other side of my house while the extreme works great all over.

I have both and I would definitely recommend the extreme for what you are describing. If cost is a factor, go with a less expensive "N" router that has firewall capability.

 

[danny_w]

The extreme is a router/firewall solution. It will protect the computers on your home network like the routers you would buy from linksys or netgear.

The express does not have a firewall function. It is meant for more limited use. The express also has much smaller range than the extreme. I usually can't hit it from the other side of my house while the extreme works great all over.

I have both and I would definitely recommend the extreme for what you are describing. If cost is a factor, go with a less expensive "N" router that has firewall capability.

Or get a used Extreme like I did for the same price as an Express.

 

[SqB]

Or get a used Extreme like I did for the same price as an Express.

Excellent idea. They should be getting pretty cheap soon as folks (like me) put their old ones out there as they upgrade to the new dual-bander.