Apple's Mystery 'Network Adapter' Found in FCC Filing Likely for Internal Use Only

[R3k]

Nice!

Still use the last 2TB Timecapsule as my wifi, though Ive stopped using it for Time Machine backups (using iCloud). Would def get a next gen router from them.

 

[Robert.Walter]

I think Apple missed a huge opportunity to get into Mesh Networking with routers that combine both HomePod and a Mesh Node. You could have a speaker in each room, extend your network throughout your home, and improve connectivity for HomeKit.

This is exactly what I was saying in my comment up in the thread.

True that a router made in 2014 would be "outclassed" 8 years later. My more specific point would be that, at the very least anecdotally, that these were popular and have many people that are fans to this day. I trust that apple stopped making routers because it made business sense to them in the past, but if they were to get back into researching and developing them in house, they could put together a strong product.

You are right. Networking is important and complex. Even more reason to have an option that, for many consumers and even "prosumers", just works.

I think to know why they got out it helps to know why they got in.

Just a supposition, but I would think they got in because other routers were lousy and apple wanted to offer something with good performance that made Wi-Fi setup easy. In addition it could be bundled with a Mac purchase to build the sale.

Eventually, the competition caught up, even offering configuration apps like airport had been doing.

At this point, I wouldn’t be surprised if sales fell because apple wanted to command a premium price but cross-shoppers couldn’t see a USP value anymore.

At the same time mesh networking was on the rise and wifi6 was on the horizon.

Without making a substantial investment to incorporate these features into an updated 6Gen device, apple would fall further behind.

As I said higher up in the thread, think Apple missed the boat by not building this functionality into other devices (probably was looked at and the cost penalty, of integrating this functionality for a small set of users that would actually benefit from it, wasn’t worth the burden it would place on margin or sales for the larger part of the market that is ok with a simple router and doesn’t need a kind of “integrated hyper mesh networking”.)

 

[HorstBockman]

I don't see how this could be a resurrected AirPort base station. At best a mobile hotspot. Apple long ago gave up on network hardware for the masses and would be highly unlikely to be able to be competitive again.

 

[_Spinn_]

I know many people would be very happy if Apple started making routers again.

 

[dwaltwhit]

This is exactly what I was saying in my comment up in the thread.

I think to know why they got out it helps to know why they got in.

Just a supposition, but I would think they got in because other routers were lousy and apple wanted to offer something with good performance that made Wi-Fi setup easy. In addition it could be bundled with a Mac purchase to build the sale.

Eventually, the competition caught up, even offering configuration apps like airport had been doing.

At this point, I wouldn’t be surprised if sales fell because apple wanted to command a premium price but cross-shoppers couldn’t see a USP value anymore.

At the same time mesh networking was on the rise and wifi6 was on the horizon.

Without making a substantial investment to incorporate these features into an updated 6Gen device, apple would fall further behind.

As I said higher up in the thread, think Apple missed the boat by not building this functionality into other devices (probably was looked at and the cost penalty, of integrating this functionality for a small set of users that would actually benefit from it, wasn’t worth the burden it would place on margin or sales for the larger part of the market that is ok with a simple router and doesn’t need a kind of “integrated hyper mesh networking”.)

I suppose I agree with your superb suppositions!

 

[PinkyMacGodess]

From an early description I thought POS terminal, but the 2 gigabit ports aren't exactly necessary. Maybe a diagnostic hub, or software update distro hub? A print server, which makes way less than 0 sense for Apple. A web server? An Apple personal firewall? Even a new Apple TV doesn't make any sense from the description.

Hmm. And we may never know.

 

[thadoggfather]

I'm still rocking two AirPort Extremes from 2013, and I won't be replacing them with another brand for a long time. The wireless signal is strong enough for my needs, and when one of them dies, I will replace them with a second-hand. I've had experiences with almost every wireless router brand, and this model is the most stable router I've ever used. I never had to reboot it.

Yeah Im with ya. I want a Wifi6 router but I dunno what route to go, and may ask my ISP for a wifi6 equipped modem if they aren't junk down the road.

But my AirPort Extreme has been incredibly reliable too and snappy for AC.

Im ready for an Apple replacement, hope this rumor is true.

 

[PinkyMacGodess]

I know many people would be very happy if Apple started making routers again.

Technically it wasn't a router, but anyway...

I found it a very odd decision. I remember a talk by the CEO of Cisco at the time. He said that as for 'new markets', they were going to be looking aggressively at new markets and products because if a tech company doesn't have a product in a certain category and new or existing customers have to look at other manufacturers, they just might get the idea that they (Cisco) can't help them with other ideas/projects, and they could lose the customer. Cisco at the time had a really wide selection of products, some that were rather surprising. (One was a wireless 'action camera', which they ended up eventually dropping)

 

[PinkyMacGodess]

Yeah Im with ya. I want a Wifi6 router but I dunno what route to go, and may ask my ISP for a wifi6 equipped modem if they aren't junk down the road.

But my AirPort Extreme has been incredibly reliable too and snappy for AC.

Im ready for an Apple replacement, hope this rumor is true.

Sadly two of my Extreme's died, and two Express units had blown caps (and that was exciting). (I actually stopped using the last couple Express units because of the caps blowing) Their stuff was easy to setup and just worked.

 

[jav6454]

Sadly two of my Extreme's died, and two Express units had blown caps (and that was exciting). (I actually stopped using the last couple Express units because of the caps blowing) Their stuff was easy to setup and just worked.

Almost same thing with me. For me they just stopped working. I miss the little buggers as they provided simplicity. Mind you some of them were purchased back in 2009 and lasted to late 2018.

 

[thadoggfather]

Almost same thing with me. For me they just stopped working. I miss the little buggers as they provided simplicity.

I have limited experience with Express but some for setting up family member's LAN like 10 years ago.

In hindsight, they were the Fire Stick of routers haha, router directly into the wall.. would be kinda cool to see a return to this but pumped up in specs.

 

[jav6454]

I have limited experience with Express but some for setting up family member's LAN like 10 years ago.

In hindsight, they were the Fire Stick of routers haha, router directly into the wall.. would be kinda cool to see a return to this but pumped up in specs.

The last Airports were like that. Beefed up with beam forming and faster standards. Shame Apple dropped the ball there.

 

[theluggage]

Agreed. It's crazy how Apple let go of that market when they in fact pioneered the wireless revolution back in the airport days.

Yes, but that was before home broadband was such a mass-market thing.

I don't know about other countries, but here in the UK most home broadband deals either include a bundled router or offer a "recommended" model at a hefty discount... and, frankly, the majority of non-technical users are best off sticking with that because - even if its not then best router in the world - when it goes wrong, the denizens of the ISP's call centre should have the appropriate script & the correct settings (if they're not pre-programmed in) to get it connected to broadband. Sometimes - certainly in the past - they've also been bundled with TV-over-IP packages that need specific traffic routing settings.

Then you've got complications like multiple router models with built-in ADSL or VDSL modems vs. ethernet + an external modem (so, in the UK, a few years ago, the biggest FTTC provider switched from separate VDSL modems + PPOe to the router to all-in-one modem/routers) and those infernal, unreliable ADSL filter boxes... I can really understand why Apple doesn't want consumers expecting them to sort out their ISP problems.

People who opt-out or replace standard routers with more advanced routers generally have... more advanced needs. Such as 'serious' gaming (mustn't get fragged because of an extra 1ms lag...) which isn't really an Apple thing, or heavier commercial applications (for which Apple couldn't easily produce the range and diversity of equipment already on offer).

The other thing that's changed is that most things - including Macs - has moved to SMB/CIFS for file sharing (no more AppleTalk/AFP) and the standard, open source SMB server - Samba - has implemented Mac and Time Machine support (and, before that, Netatalk had got pretty good), so many widely available NASs have pretty good Mac support so there's less call for a Time Capsule-type product. The one thing that would be handy is an iTunes server - but it's perfectly clear that Apple want you to move to streaming, so that's not going to be a priority for them.

Just as with printers, and the xServe, Apple doesn't stick around in a market where it can't find a Unique Selling Point to justify a premium product. It's also much more important that Macs work seamlessly with non-Apple printers, servers, routers, NASs - and that has improved overall (even if it's not perfect) since the good old days... but it does remove one of the selling points for Apple peripherals.

 

[jav6454]

Yes, but that was before home broadband was such a mass-market thing.

[...]

Just as with printers, and the xServe, Apple doesn't stick around in a market where it can't find a Unique Selling Point to justify a premium product. It's also much more important that Macs work seamlessly with non-Apple printers, servers, routers, NASs - and that has improved overall (even if it's not perfect) since the good old days... but it does remove one of the selling points for Apple peripherals.

Even still, there is a market for routers instead of the ISP options. That's the reason why Linksys, Netgear and others are in that market.

 

[macnerd77]

What if this is for a new HomePod or an Apple TV. I know that a HomePod or Apple TV would not utilize dual Ethernet connections. But I’m thinking this could just be the communications portion of such a device. It seems unique to me that the pictures submitted are blocked by an NDA till November of 2022. If it was an internal device you think they would permanently block access to the photos.

FCC: “
Short-Term Confidentiality

Does short-term confidentiality apply to this application?: Yes

If so, specify the short-term confidentiality release date (MM/DD/YYYY format): 11/15/2022”

 

[kylelerner]

Uhmmm that sounds like a possible POS terminal/credit card terminal.

 

[DogHouseDub]

I think if Apple made a router, it would be an Eero. No reason for Apple to make routers any more for the domestic market.

I replaced my Airport Extremes with an eero network and it has been MUCH worse. Restarting at least 3x a week. Deciding whether to step up to Ubiquiti or just go back to AirportX.

 

[elvisimprsntr]

Hate to burst everyone’s bubble, but it’s likely a new version of their NFC access reader for their campus.

2022 model: https://fccid.io/BCGA2657
2017 model: https://fccid.io/BCGA1846

 

[pshufd]

My Airport Extreme is from 2010. I could use an upgrade.

 

[Daniel L]

This doesn't look like they're working on new home networking products but an Apple Mesh Router would be an instabuy for me. The Airport Extreme was 100% reliable in my previous residence but now doesn't cover my home.

Now I'm dealing with this stupid Netgear Orbi problem where they somehow mangled the firmware to make it impossible to configure the router. https://www.techradar.com/uk/news/this-netgear-orbi-firmware-update-actually-locked-out-users

Any recommendations for a rock solid/fast mesh system?

 

[turbineseaplane]

I'm still rocking two AirPort Extremes from 2013, and I won't be replacing them with another brand for a long time. The wireless signal is strong enough for my needs, and when one of them dies, I will replace them with a second-hand. I've had experiences with almost every wireless router brand, and this model is the most stable router I've ever used. I never had to reboot it.

Right there with you -- nothing has touched the simplicity and "it just works and doesn't bother me about anything" of my Airport Extremes/Time Capsules

I really really wish Apple wouldn't have left this space.

 

[PinkyMacGodess]

Almost same thing with me. For me they just stopped working. I miss the little buggers as they provided simplicity. Mind you some of them were purchased back in 2009 and lasted to late 2018.

They all seemed so great. I was nearly despondent over the death, dramatic as they were, of the two Express's. I still have one, fairly new I believe, that I am saving for a 'special moment'.

After hearing Cisco say they want to 'keep' customers', and have Apple basically give the figurative finger to customers and drop some damn good tech because (WHO KNOWS) was just stunning. STUNNING! I was shocked. With all of the money Apple makes year over year off of us, we have to suffer with the wretched Velop system? (I have a few threads about dealing with them) and now suffering with, ironically, a Cisco 'kit' with three of the same model of AP's, and they are, individually, meant to be 'masters', and not 'subordinates'. YIKES!

So, 'Thanks Apple'. *sigh* And thanks Amazon for selling a 'kit' that won't work, and now I need to spend more money to get to work. (And the 'child' nodes are less capable than the 'parent' nodes I currently have)

I WANT MY APPLE EXTREME UPDATED AP'S!!! PLEASE!!!

 

[pshufd]

Perhaps I should look for used Airport Extremes.

 

[jav6454]

They all seemed so great. I was nearly despondent over the death, dramatic as they were, of the two Express's. I still have one, fairly new I believe, that I am saving for a 'special moment'.

After hearing Cisco say they want to 'keep' customers', and have Apple basically give the figurative finger to customers and drop some damn good tech because (WHO KNOWS) was just stunning. STUNNING! I was shocked. With all of the money Apple makes year over year off of us, we have to suffer with the wretched Velop system? (I have a few threads about dealing with them) and now suffering with, ironically, a Cisco 'kit' with three of the same model of AP's, and they are, individually, meant to be 'masters', and not 'subordinates'. YIKES!

So, 'Thanks Apple'. *sigh* And thanks Amazon for selling a 'kit' that won't work, and now I need to spend more money to get to work. (And the 'child' nodes are less capable than the 'parent' nodes I currently have)

I WANT MY APPLE EXTREME UPDATED AP'S!!! PLEASE!!!

I almost got into the Velop bed, but a close friend told me to stay the F away from it as so many things were wrong. The more I read, the more it seems Velop is garbage.

 

[ersatzplanet]

I always wanted them to make a true Home Media Hub by combining the Airport Extreme with an Apple TV and a decent sized internal storage (with external available). If it had some decent media software to stream content, run media from your library, and feed WiFi and Ethernet to the rest of your house, it would be great. Have it link to multiple HomePod minis to make surround sound. Make its hardware powerful enough to not need to be upgradable often, or modular enough to be upgradable if needed. I have no belief that this will ever happen though.