Apple Officially Discontinues AirPort Wireless Router Lineup [Updated]

[theluggage]

Since everyone now has a free router in their home provided by their internet company, I guess the vast majority of people don't ever think about buying a router.

Bingo.

Certainly here in the UK, pretty much any broadband package comes with a free, or very heavily discounted, pre-configured WiFi router. If its a ADSL phone line or VDSL/Fibre-to-the-cabinet connection then that will be an all-in-one WiFi/Router/Modem (In the early days of fibre you might have got a separate VDSL modem, but not now) so if you want to use AirPort you'd have to get a separate modem (so the AirPort "just works" advantage is right out the window) For any non-technical person I'd strongly recommend sticking with what the ISP provides, for ease of support - and the more techy types are more likely to want more sophisticated control than you get with AirPort.

The big hole seems to be the one left by Airport Express as a remote audio player for people who want to stream sound to their perfectly good HiFi.

 

[TComm]

Nope.
I don't blame Tim Cook for retiring the current SKUs.
What you don't seem to see is the apparent change in product philosophy. Now Apple doesn't serve the hole digital chain - from cloud to device - any longer.

Perfect!

 

[D.T.]

I almost bought one of the last Airports at the Apple store and I'm glad I didn't. Time to jump ship to a better wireless router system.

I picked up a used 6th gen a few months ago, mint with original packaging for $75, using it as an AP downstairs (wired to a second one up in the the "network closet"), works terrific, if it makes it to a year, it was a good bang-for-the-buck

 

[bopajuice]

While I understand everyone’s annoyance over Apple neglecting yet another product which they have come to love and rely on, I think much of the criticism here is unjustified.

For one, people are not buying iPhones and iPads because they are using an AirPort router in their house. It's a silly assertion. In addition, needing to buy a third-party wireless router is not going to lower the value found with the broad Apple ecosystem that includes smartphones, tablets, smartwatches, laptops, desktops, and the software/services that combines it all.

Apple likely made the decision that there just wasn’t any point to continue dedicating resources and attention to take on chipmakers like Broadcom in order to come out with some kind of differentiated router. Instead, it would make more sense to just remove the features from AirPort routers that users do want, like wireless music playback, and put the functionality into new kinds of Apple device.

For example, we have the homepod, which handles airplay. Apple TV handles HomeKit. We will likely see other products in the future which replicate any other desired functionality of the airport routers.

Overall, I think this is a good move by Apple. I don’t think this decision is being driven by money. Instead, management is simply reallocating precious resources on products that can utilize Apple hardware, software, and services to produce an experience that improves users lives.

Apple management is neither being clueless nor reckless here.

I appreciate your optimism, but I have to wonder. Since they pretty much gave up on wireless networking in 2016, yet still support Time Machine as an integral part of their OS, makes me wonder how much they thought this through. Sure there are a bunch of other companies that offer Time Machine support, etc., but Apple has not officially endorsed any alternatives as far as I can tell. They offer alternatives on their site, but what would have been a smart move would have been to offer certified alternatives then drop their product line. In my opinion they pretty much just dropped the wireless product line most likely because it was not making them enough money, leaving it up to the end user to figure out which products support Time Machine.

As far as the eco system goes, I think most people don't realize that every time they visit a hotspot, an airport, a Starbucks or wherever, they are connecting to third party routers. If you are using multiple devices on the same network the eco system works as it should. Having an "All Apple products" set up including the router is not necessary to enjoy the eco system when it comes to networking.

 

[ccsicecoke]

It hasn’t been updated in 5 years. The router market is a lot more mature now than it was in 1999.

You could say that for mobile phone market too. They better stop selling iPhone

 

[1738]

Apple has officially ended development on its AirPort line of products, which includes the AirPort Express ($99), the AirPort Extreme ($199), and the AirPort Time Capsule ($299).

"We're discontinuing the Apple AirPort base station products. They will be available through Apple.com, Apple's retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers while supplies last," an Apple spokesperson told iMore.

Apple has not updated its AirPort products since 2012 (Express) and 2013 (Extreme and Time Capsule), and in late 2016, Bloomberg said that Apple had stopped development on the AirPort lineup with the AirPort engineers reassigned to other products.

Apple reportedly began shutting down its AirPort unit in early 2016, in an effort to "sharpen" its focus on the "consumer products that generate the bulk of its revenue."

Following news that Apple had shuttered the AirPort unit, the company began selling third-party routers in January of 2018 when it offered the Linksys Velop Mesh Wi-Fi System.

Apple's AirPort base stations provided unique benefits that are not available through third-party options like built-in Time Machine backup support in the Time Capsule and AirPlay functionality for the AirPort Express.

While the AirPort line is being discontinued, Apple will be providing service and parts for current generation AirPort Base Stations for the next five years. iMore says Apple also plans to share some knowledge-base articles in the coming weeks to assist customers who are transitioning away from the AirPort Express, Extreme, and Time Capsule.

Apple plans to continue to sell the three AirPort products online and in its retail stores until available supplies are exhausted. No price drops have been implemented at this time.

Update: Apple has shared a new support document offering tips on choosing a Wi-Fi router to use with Apple devices. The company recommends a router that offerrs 802.11ac, dual-band support, WPA2 Personal encryption, and MIMO or MU-MIMO.

Article Link: Apple Officially Discontinues AirPort Wireless Router Lineup [Updated]

[doublepost=1524831739][/doublepost]I think we're seeing a change in Apple and I don't mind it. For years Apple had these hobbies such as the Airport lineup or the Server and they never got much love, they didn't see many update, they were always easy to use, but never the best in class.

With Apple's Cisco partnership, I think this is Apple realizing that they do it best and Apple's going to let them do their thing and not try to compete with them with a product on that Apple side that is only a hobby.

 

[rdthompson]

I owned many various routers for my businesses and home. It seemed no matter what the brand I would need to reboot the routers about once a month or so when suddenly the internet would stop working. After I bought an AirPort Extreme I discovered a router that never needed rebooting. I’m telling you, I don’t know how Apple did it but I never have my stores calling me complaining about the internet being down. Well, I do, but it’s never the airport router, but some other internet problem like the modem or the line. These Apple routers just never have to be rebooted! One store is going on 4.5 years of never rebooting the AirPort Extreme! How did Apple do this so well and my other routers were all flaky? That’s a big deal in a retail environment! Our point of sale needs to be online and even a momentary loss of internet causes a headache if we have customers. I am very sorry to hear that people didn’t realize what good routers these are.

 

[one more]

No drama, there are lots of great routers out there and Apple can put their time/energy on improving their existing products and services.

 

[BigDO]

Most people just plug in an external drive. Honestly that’s the faster solution but it’s not the most convenient one. Hooking up a drive every time you want to back up is much less convenient than backing up to the TC wirelessly while you work.

You can make a "TC" out of any AP with a plugged in USB disk.

 

[chama98]

Great! So what can I use now to backup all my Macs? I use time capsule to backup all my Mac devices.

Any suggestions?

 

[belvdr]

I owned many various routers for my businesses and home. It seemed no matter what the brand I would need to reboot the routers about once a month or so when suddenly the internet would stop working. After I bought an AirPort Extreme I discovered a router that never needed rebooting. I’m telling you, I don’t know how Apple did it but I never have my stores calling me complaining about the internet being down. Well, I do, but it’s never the airport router, but some other internet problem like the modem or the line. These Apple routers just never have to be rebooted! One store is going on 4.5 years of never rebooting the AirPort Extreme! How did Apple do this so well and my other routers were all flaky? That’s a big deal in a retail environment! Our point of sale needs to be online and even a momentary loss of internet causes a headache if we have customers. I am very sorry to hear that people didn’t realize what good routers these are.

There were plenty of options prior to the Airport Extreme that were solid, but a ton of research was required. These days, I don't see much difference in the consumer router space. They all just work.

Running a business on consumer gear seems risky. If you only need routing and NAT, I would highly suggest you take a look at Ubiquiti's EdgeRouter line. Specifically, you could get an EdgeRouter-X for $50 and it is solid performer with more features, if ever required. You can even centrally manage the devices.

Great! So what can I use now to backup all my Macs? I use time capsule to backup all my Mac devices.

Any suggestions?

How about a NAS, such as Synology, or another Mac or a Linux box? So many choices for this. You can still keep the TC; nothing says you have to ditch it.

 

[bopajuice]

I owned many various routers for my businesses and home. It seemed no matter what the brand I would need to reboot the routers about once a month or so when suddenly the internet would stop working. After I bought an AirPort Extreme I discovered a router that never needed rebooting. I’m telling you, I don’t know how Apple did it but I never have my stores calling me complaining about the internet being down. Well, I do, but it’s never the airport router, but some other internet problem like the modem or the line. These Apple routers just never have to be rebooted! One store is going on 4.5 years of never rebooting the AirPort Extreme! How did Apple do this so well and my other routers were all flaky? That’s a big deal in a retail environment! Our point of sale needs to be online and even a momentary loss of internet causes a headache if we have customers. I am very sorry to hear that people didn’t realize what good routers these are.

I on the other hand had issues with an AirPort Extreme and then a Time Capsule. I was then using a Netgear that also had issues.

Been using an ASUS AC5300 for over a year. No issues at all. I guess mileage will vary but I agree reliability is key to any successful product.

 

[LV426]

Shame. My AirPort Extreme was simple to setup just using an iPad. More importantly, software updates are a doddle, and they come from - guess where - Apple. You just hear so many many stories of compromised routers, or routers that stupidly have backdoor admin passwords left in, even big name manufacturers. It's a shame you'll now have to put your trust into a manufacturer that quite possible has a poor track record.

 

[cmichaelb]

For anyone out there that has AT&T, I moved to google Wi-Fi and AT&T “Wi-Fi calling” does not work with it. I ended up returning the Google Wi-Fi which was unfortunate.

Google wifi routers are made by TP Link and they dropped Bonjour support a while ago.

That's what prompted me to buy an Airport router and I've never looked back.

 

[Stella]

A shame, I loved the Apple routers I have, Airport Express / Time Capsule.

However, other routers available are better value for money, more features, and still easy to get set up and going.

 

[belvdr]

Shame. My AirPort Extreme was simple to setup just using an iPad. More importantly, software updates are a doddle, and they come from - guess where - Apple. You just hear so many many stories of compromised routers, or routers that stupidly have backdoor admin passwords left in, even big name manufacturers. It's a shame you'll now have to put your trust into a manufacturer that quite possible has a poor track record.

How can you blame a manufacturer if an admin or user doesn't change the default password?

Where are these stories regarding consumer routers?

 

[JustMartin]

It's about customer service, customer experience, and design.

Buy a Mac, buy an elegantly designed TC, and they just work.

Buy a Mac now and one of those freaking bits of plastic with spider-leg antennae and you're left with the headache of disappointing choices, poor functionality, ghastly aesthetics, and a hamstrung customer experience.

I switched to Mac in 2007 as I was sick of the fragmented world of Windows PCs and networking nightmares.

For a company the size of Apple to decide not to support its customers is bewildering. Even if Apple loses money on its TC business as a standalone enterprise, it makes money by brining people like me (my family and friends) into the Apple ecosystem: a marketing expense that it should keep investing in.

I completely understand that Apple no longer wants people like me, my friends, and family, although that is very odd, because I reckon we represent a fair cross section of Apple's user base.

Will we all junk our Apple products now that Apple has indicated it no longer wants our business? I expect that in time a large percentage of us will. The iPhone, Watch, and HomePod simply don't offer enough in terms of uniqueness or quality, especially if we have to pair them with one of those freaking bits of plastic with spider-leg antennae.

Yeah, totally agree. Our family moved to Apple in 2007 or so because I was fed up of being chief operating officer for the house. Not because I couldn't, but because I had better things to do with my time. So, time capsule has been the obvious choice, it connected into the network and provided backup capability to my iMac and two laptops that could be in any room. The same servers provided always available printing that was much more reliable than trying to get mac compatible wi-fi printing working for an HP printer. More expensive and not as fast as third party solutions, perhaps, but they got the job done painlessly. The other day my daughter came over and wanted to play something on the home audio from her laptop - airplay -> airport express -> audio, easy. All of this s what added to the 'it just works' reputation of Apple.

Now, I understand that Apple will/does probably make more money selling cloud services for backups and that perhaps wi-fi printers have got past the frustrating stage and that the idea of the connected house full of computers and stereos is old fashioned. It's just a shame that when it comes to replacing this kit, I'm going to have to go back to spending time looking at options, getting up to speed on protocols and living once again in a world where nothing works first time.

 

[Glideslope]

Disappointing but not surprising. While not the "best" anymore they are still the easiest to use if you have an Apple-heavy ecosystem.

I replaced our Airport Extreme last December with a NETGEAR Nighthawk 2300. Remote Speaker aside, the NETGEAR was as easy to set up. It plays perfectly with all 10 Apple Devices on it in our home. Firmware updates are as easy as 1, 2, 3. The performance is vastly better with over 4- 5 devices running off it.

While we enjoyed all the years of Airport the writing was on the wall 2 years ago. It's like my 68 Mustang GT. I look at her in the garage and feel warm and happy. However, she will never be my daily driver.

 

[sofila]

The big hole seems to be the one left by Airport Express as a remote audio player for people who want to stream sound to their perfectly good HiFi.

Good post with a bitter end (at least for me)

 

[paulvee]

I have owned every Apple Airport unit made. Some were better than others. The time capsules often gave me problems, honestly. At the same time, I have other, better, multiple and redundant backup schemes, so I don't rely on Time Capsules. Anyway, last year, after pinning down my increasingly crappy wifi signal to the Airport Extreme I have been using, I bought a Linksys Velop, based on Apple's endorsement of it, and I am quite happy with it. This maudlin nostalgia for outdate products is a waste of time. NOW, if Apple were to discontinue MacOS and fast desktop computers, I would get upset, but things like iPod, Airport, and even optical drives are just outdated stuff that has all been replaced by something better.

 

[nihil0]

I have Airport Express and Airport Extreme... is it worth buying another Airport Extreme for discounted to have just in case if one of them would flop?

 

[belvdr]

I have Airport Express and Airport Extreme... is it worth buying another Airport Extreme for discounted to have just in case if one of them would flop?

To some, it may be worth it, especially if you have no plans to upgrade the clients (phones, laptops, etc) or Internet service to something the AEBS cannot keep up with.

If it were me, I would not waste my time on an aging and end-of-life device. There's a reason why my Linksys WRT54GL device hasn't been used for over a decade, even though it was rock solid. Time to move on.

 

[MacWanker]

Certainly here in the UK, pretty much any broadband package comes with a free, or very heavily discounted, pre-configured WiFi router. If its a ADSL phone line or VDSL/Fibre-to-the-cabinet connection then that will be an all-in-one WiFi/Router/Modem (In the early days of fibre you might have got a separate VDSL modem, but not now) so if you want to use AirPort you'd have to get a separate modem (so the AirPort "just works" advantage is right out the window) For any non-technical person I'd strongly recommend sticking with what the ISP provides, for ease of support - and the more techy types are more likely to want more sophisticated control than you get with AirPort.

When i lived in the UK full time it was due to Virgin Medias ‘super’hub that i originally bought an airport extreme in the first place. It was truly awful for multiple reasons.
Stuck the virgin in modem only mode, configured the express, and every single issue I had or was still experiencing vanished.

 

[scottrngr]

Well, I don’t trust any of the other so I guess this is my last chance to get one of these 3TB time capsules. That should last me 3-7 years

Or until the fan goes bad, and no one will fix it.

 

[elvisimprsntr]

Great! So what can I use now to backup all my Macs? I use time capsule to backup all my Mac devices.

Any suggestions?

Buy a NAS from any respected manufacturer (QNAP, Synology, Netgear, etc.). They all support TimeMachine.

Personally, I have two QNAPs and a USB3 disk.

• TS-453A - NAS RAID, hourly backups, TimeMachine, DVR, virtual machines, containers, etc.
• TS-253A - NAS RAID, daily backups.
• USB3 disk - weekly backups in a 45 min fire rated safe.