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Is the Airport Extreme worth the price??
- Thread starter galgould
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Actually, I was OK with the additional effort/presumed complexity of setting up a Linksys or Netgear router. Did that when G was the best you could get and again when draft N was emerging.
Some may doubt my research at the time, but when I decided I wanted a dual band router, I could not find another device where I was comfortable with the online customer feedback and reviews. That was in January 2010. People were having a lot of problems not just with set-up, but also with the consistency of the operation. I was comfortable that I could get through the set-up problems a lot of people were reporting, supposing I was more experienced and/or knowledgeable than most who were complaining. But hardware not working consistently was a major concern.
Linksys in particular, looked liked it had chosen to spend more on marketing and a lot less on quality and customer support. That impression was painfully reinforced by an experience I had helping a friend set-up a simple home wireless connection for an older PC laptop.
For myself, I bit the bullet and paid the premium for the AEBS. It is reliable. It's fast enough for how I use it. The one time I called support to inquire about what would work with the USB port, it was an acceptable customer service experience -- far ahead of the usual hardware or software customer service experience with other vendors. I didn't save anything on set-up time because I had to learn how to change some of the "advanced" settings all over again.
While I wish there was support for more operations and devices through the USB port and I wish the AEBS cost less, it was worth the price for me. Reliable is good.
Some may doubt my research at the time, but when I decided I wanted a dual band router, I could not find another device where I was comfortable with the online customer feedback and reviews. That was in January 2010. People were having a lot of problems not just with set-up, but also with the consistency of the operation. I was comfortable that I could get through the set-up problems a lot of people were reporting, supposing I was more experienced and/or knowledgeable than most who were complaining. But hardware not working consistently was a major concern.
Linksys in particular, looked liked it had chosen to spend more on marketing and a lot less on quality and customer support. That impression was painfully reinforced by an experience I had helping a friend set-up a simple home wireless connection for an older PC laptop.
For myself, I bit the bullet and paid the premium for the AEBS. It is reliable. It's fast enough for how I use it. The one time I called support to inquire about what would work with the USB port, it was an acceptable customer service experience -- far ahead of the usual hardware or software customer service experience with other vendors. I didn't save anything on set-up time because I had to learn how to change some of the "advanced" settings all over again.
While I wish there was support for more operations and devices through the USB port and I wish the AEBS cost less, it was worth the price for me. Reliable is good.
I have an Airport Extreme Base Station, a Linksys WRT54G (v2) and three Airport Expresses. It is actually a nice little setup for what I want to do. I know I will duplicate some of what was previously posted which was all very valuable.
The reasons I have two routers:
The AEBS handles my computer and two AppleTVs via ethernet. Wirelessly it handles my iPhone and any 802.11n traffic. I want to add a "server" for Time Machine backups and iTunes serving, so I might have to bump one of the AppleTVs to the Linksys. I haven't tested whether that will still allow it to do WOL, but it should. The AppleTVs are only 100 Mb ethernet, so there is no real speed degradation there. Note that you cannot use the USB hard drive feature on the AEBS to support a Time Machine drive. At least officially as this is disabled in the most recent firmware.
In terms of speed, I have been able to get very good n-speeds from the AppleTV when placed inches from the AEBS. However, for a small sacrifice in speed, but tremendous increase in convenience and sustained performance, the wired connection gives me VERY close to 100 Mb sustained transfers from my Mac when syncing. If I get the server (which will be Gigabit Ethernet), I will be able to see how well it does on the higher levels of speed.
Side note on Airport Expresses - I use them exclusively the play music in different rooms. I have USB-powered speakers hooked up to them. They work great. Airport Expresses only have one Ethernet connection. That is usually for the connection to the cable modem, although it could also serve a client if the AE is connected wirelessly to a base station. The USB port on the AE CANNOT be used for a USB hard drive, only a printer. Since it has power to it, you can use it to power speakers, but you still have to connect the speakers to the mini-RCA connection.
You can usually get a refurbished AEBS for about $130 from the Apple Store. In fact, it is available right now.
If you wanted the benefits/features of the $179 AEBS they would be:
Two comparable routers from Newegg are probably the E2000 or the Netgear WNR3500L-100NAS (both on sale now for $78, normally $149):
Hope this is helpful.
The reasons I have two routers:
1. I want Wake-On-LAN and you can't do it without the AEBS.
2. I have more than three clients to hardwire in - the AEBS only accepts three clients, plus one WLAN connection. The Linksys can do four clients and one WLAN. This gives me, effectively, six clients (one of the Linksys client ports is used up connecting to the AEBS).
3. AEBS has Gigabit-Ethernet and 802.11n.
4. I put DD-WRT on the Linksys so I can see how much bandwidth I use and have greater insight into what is going on. Also, for VOIP it would allow me to do QoS, although I don't have it implemented. The Linksys has been up for 287 days without reset now. I don't know why it was reset back then, I think I put it on a UPS then. The AEBS just works, but I don't have a lot of flexibility with what is going on there. In truth, do you really need it?
The Linksys (circa 2003, so how is that for reliability!) is driving a VOIP connection, an iMac and netbook wirelessly, and the three wirelessly connected Airport Expresses. It also handles all the Internet traffic for all devices (both routers) that are on a 20 Mb connection.2. I have more than three clients to hardwire in - the AEBS only accepts three clients, plus one WLAN connection. The Linksys can do four clients and one WLAN. This gives me, effectively, six clients (one of the Linksys client ports is used up connecting to the AEBS).
3. AEBS has Gigabit-Ethernet and 802.11n.
4. I put DD-WRT on the Linksys so I can see how much bandwidth I use and have greater insight into what is going on. Also, for VOIP it would allow me to do QoS, although I don't have it implemented. The Linksys has been up for 287 days without reset now. I don't know why it was reset back then, I think I put it on a UPS then. The AEBS just works, but I don't have a lot of flexibility with what is going on there. In truth, do you really need it?
The AEBS handles my computer and two AppleTVs via ethernet. Wirelessly it handles my iPhone and any 802.11n traffic. I want to add a "server" for Time Machine backups and iTunes serving, so I might have to bump one of the AppleTVs to the Linksys. I haven't tested whether that will still allow it to do WOL, but it should. The AppleTVs are only 100 Mb ethernet, so there is no real speed degradation there. Note that you cannot use the USB hard drive feature on the AEBS to support a Time Machine drive. At least officially as this is disabled in the most recent firmware.
In terms of speed, I have been able to get very good n-speeds from the AppleTV when placed inches from the AEBS. However, for a small sacrifice in speed, but tremendous increase in convenience and sustained performance, the wired connection gives me VERY close to 100 Mb sustained transfers from my Mac when syncing. If I get the server (which will be Gigabit Ethernet), I will be able to see how well it does on the higher levels of speed.
Side note on Airport Expresses - I use them exclusively the play music in different rooms. I have USB-powered speakers hooked up to them. They work great. Airport Expresses only have one Ethernet connection. That is usually for the connection to the cable modem, although it could also serve a client if the AE is connected wirelessly to a base station. The USB port on the AE CANNOT be used for a USB hard drive, only a printer. Since it has power to it, you can use it to power speakers, but you still have to connect the speakers to the mini-RCA connection.
You can usually get a refurbished AEBS for about $130 from the Apple Store. In fact, it is available right now.
If you wanted the benefits/features of the $179 AEBS they would be:
- Dual 802.11g/n
- Three Gigabit Ethernet Client and One WLAN port (most competitors have 4+1, so I don't think of this as a benefit myself)
- Pretty solid speed and transmitting capability based on reviews (not necessarily "best" but very close to the top)
- Seamless integration with Apple products (including WOL) as well as others, easy configuration
- USB printer and disk sharing
- Three Gigabit Ethernet Client and One WLAN port (most competitors have 4+1, so I don't think of this as a benefit myself)
- Pretty solid speed and transmitting capability based on reviews (not necessarily "best" but very close to the top)
- Seamless integration with Apple products (including WOL) as well as others, easy configuration
- USB printer and disk sharing
Two comparable routers from Newegg are probably the E2000 or the Netgear WNR3500L-100NAS (both on sale now for $78, normally $149):
- Dual 802.11g/n
- Four Gigabit Ethernet Client and One WLAN port
- DD-WRT firmware (Netgear only)
- USB printer and disk sharing (Netgear only - unsure how the disk sharing works on Macs)
I'd say the difference is the integration with Apple devices (including some custom features noted) and the ease of configuration. Some might say the quality of the Apple build would be considered very good - the AEBS does review quite well. The competitors seem to be coming down in price at the moment also. I have found that time is money and sometimes it is worth it to pay a little more to save you time later. I think with the AEBS you are basically guaranteed a plug-and-play experience with all your devices. No one will make such a guarantee with the others.- Four Gigabit Ethernet Client and One WLAN port
- DD-WRT firmware (Netgear only)
- USB printer and disk sharing (Netgear only - unsure how the disk sharing works on Macs)
Hope this is helpful.
I have both an older n AEBS and the Netgear 3500 mentioned above. The Netgear is not dual-band. It has the digital chipset for 5ghz but not the analog radio. The AEBS is more reliable in my experience.
I have on older AEBS that has dual band, but not simultaneous. I have it set for 2.4 Ghz because my iPhone won't take 5 GHz, and neither would my friends' PC.
Would I benefit from a simultaneous Dual Band AEBS? There are about 10 WIFI stations I can see in my list, but I have no complaints about the internet speeds at home.
Would I benefit from a simultaneous Dual Band AEBS? There are about 10 WIFI stations I can see in my list, but I have no complaints about the internet speeds at home.
Good point to add about the AEBS being simultaneous dual-band. Not all 802.11n routers are dual-band, and not all dual-band routers are simultaneous dual-band. If you're in a high density environment (condo or apartment) where everyone has a 2.4GHz router, and you have a mix of legacy 802.11g and newer 802.11n equipment, then the simultaneous dual-band AEBS would shine.
Also thanks to paduck for a great post.
I've been considering the 3500 or AEBS as well. I've used DD-WRT before and have liked it, so that's a plus for the 3500. I also really dislike the AEBS not providing a web interface for configuration. I've done the dedicated client before in 802.11b days and didn't like it for a variety of reasons.
If I can use a Staples $25 off $75 coupon, then the 3500 is $55 instead of $130 for a refurb AEBS. That's enough difference to tip the scales.