I have found that Apple's routers are easiest to set up and maintain, but as I stated earlier they are missing some common features.
Performance wise I find they are the best those with fast connections but not nearly as powerful as they should be in this day and age. I hope there is a redesign coming with the ability to process at least 50Mbps from an ISP, along with the dual-band WiFi and 1Gbps hub in use.
I know many people with 40Gbps to their home with DOCSIS 3. Their routers are just overworked at this point between the ISP and the local network pushing excessive amounts of data.
I'd also like to see the OS updated. I wonder if we're getting to a point that Darwin would not be a better foundation than what they are currently using.
The key point in the article is the user having problems with a PPPoE style internet connection. That is the most unreliable POS connection. I had DSL for a short time and it only worked by PPPoE in which you had to enter your username and password into the software or router to make it connect. Whenever there was a hiccup in power, you always had to re-enter the PPPoE information to reconnect. Perhaps the Apple base station is dropping the PPPoE information. The people that don't report any connection issues probably have cable modem which uses DHCP not PPPoE. Even with a power outage, any router set for DHCP will automatically obtain a new IP address and reconnect. Not the case with PPPoE.
Perhaps you don't know how to set one up. I don't have any drop outs with my Linksys router, wired or wireless. I don't have to spend hours fiddling with them to make sure they work. My Linksys router is years old and incredibly stable. Maybe you had firmware issues and never bothered to update. Or maybe it was your internet provider that caused problems, or your AIM software that couldn't maintain a connection to the network.
You're very lucky. Linksys isn't known for its reliability; something I found out the long, hard way for myself.
My Linksys router had to be rebooted once every month or two, which I didn't think anything of at the time. My Airport Extreme took almost no setup and hasn't been rebooted since plugging it in (somewhere around November, I think, unless a firmware update caused it to reboot, but that's something I didn't have to mess with so I'm not sure if that has occurred).
Speaking of firmware, the updates are cake. My Linksys router firmware updates were SCARY. Last time I did that to mine the web interface threw an exception that the firmware couldn't be updated and then the router died. I was furious and scared to death my router was dead, but I unplugged it and plugged it back in and it restarted WITH the firmware update in place. Whew. That's far from user friendly. I'm glad I spent an extra 20$ so I don't have to worry about that anymore.
It has definitely been the best money I've spent on a router. It's REALLY nice having my printer connected to it in the closet and being able to print from any computer in my house without any issues. Plus, my laptop, iMac, and AppleTV are all connect to the 5Ghz so I can stream my hi-def movies without my microwave shutting down the router (happened to my Linksys on the 2.4 Ghz spectrum every time). My family's iPhones connect to the 2.4Ghz band without slowing down everything else and everything is working great.
Obviously there are probably some people having issues, but not me. I'm yet another extremely happy customer. It was more than worth it.
Perhaps you don't know how to set one up. I don't have any drop outs with my Linksys router, wired or wireless. I don't have to spend hours fiddling with them to make sure they work. My Linksys router is years old and incredibly stable.
Good for you. I'm betting your on a G network, not N. I was purchasing about 2 years ago when N was coming into play. Most of the non-apple branded routers wouldn't work well in the 5ghz band (which is what I wanted).
Quote:
Originally Posted by hillstones
Maybe you had firmware issues and never bothered to update.
The first thing I did after taking every single router out of its box and plugging the damned thing in was to check for firmware updates.
Quote:
Originally Posted by hillstones
Or maybe it was your internet provider that caused problems
I feel like the problem would have continued post apple base station...
Quote:
Originally Posted by hillstones
or your AIM software that couldn't maintain a connection to the network.
Again, as the software stayed the same, the problem would have continued post apple base station. And what was the software? iChat.
Perhaps you don't know how to set one up. I don't have any drop outs with my Linksys router, wired or wireless. I don't have to spend hours fiddling with them to make sure they work. My Linksys router is years old and incredibly stable. Maybe you had firmware issues and never bothered to update. Or maybe it was your internet provider that caused problems, or your AIM software that couldn't maintain a connection to the network.
I definitely know how to set one up. Routers are kind of hit or miss. You can read reviews at Amazon and go on past experience. But many of them have varying problems depending on how they are deployed.
For example, I used Netgear for years but they had a problem with Macs and reserved IP addresses - a problem that was never addressed in firmware updates.
I considered the Linksys dual-band for my current router. It's the same price as the Airport Extreme - but I saw many reviews where people had trouble.
Many of the people on this forum know what they're doing, and there are scenarios where people may have good reason to select an Airport. Assuming other people will use a product the same way you do is a bad place to start.
One of the things I like about my Airport is its ability to wake up Macs on my lan when I need access to them.
I have not had any issues with my APE base station.
I do GBs of transfers over my 5Ghz APE all the time.
including 3 laptops backing up via timamachine to a MacMini (afp)
The only thing I have as non-default is the channels, I always fix my channels from Automatic.
And I use wideband
I have noticed in the past if I kept it as Automatic it would drop occasionally.
I see this channel problem ALL the time! Most people don't realize that wireless router and cordless phone & microwaves all operate at 2.4 Ghz. Just get yourself a wireless scanner piece of software and look at the all the wireless routers in the area all on the same channel! No wonder people are having "problems". : \
Now the 5Ghz problem is manufactures all went with different levels of spec before N standard was certified. So I am not surprised that users are seeing wacky problem on 5Ghz devices.
Been eying a Drobo for over a year now. I shy away because of the cost, and because my setup sits in a spare bedroom - I hear the Drobo is a noisy piece of kit.
Noisy for sure in a quiet room. I consider it slow to wake up too but that might just be the nature of the beast.
I like the flexibility for expansion but it's not the right product for everyone. For example, I can't just put stuff on it without having another copy elsewhere. So for certain types of use a pair of external drives might be money better spent. Totally depends on how you plan on using it. Only someone who knows what's going to be stored on it knows if it's a good call or not.
I've had the second-gen for a little over a year and no problems.
I can't believe people waste money on Apple's wireless base station hardware. The same can be done with third party solutions for far less money. Time Capsule is an overpriced joke. I would much rather backup over FireWire than wireless or Ethernet.
I've had nothing but trouble with other companies routers, including several that simply would not work with my iMac at all. My AEBS just worked right out of the box. That's why I bother with it.
...But thought that was the way it was and lived with them. You know?! As a Mac convert (of 3 yrs), I have had the "this is the way it's gonna be, get used to it and go along" built into my computing experience by MS. My average speed is at around 200kb on 2.4 and 125kb on 5 (or lower, then hung, restart airport ans switch to 2.4: I though it was due to using AT&T sucker of a DSL...Could someone tell me what their real life speed is with AT&T DSL midrange? Thanks
In the year before I bought my Airport Extreme, I went through three of those lower-priced third-party 'solutions'. Every one of them died within a few months. One was never able to remember the administrator password, forcing me to reset the device to factory specs every time I wanted to open a new port or add a new MAC address.
I finally got sick of the troubles and of having to buy new devices every few months, so I took a chance and forked over the money for a decent base station. It's been running solid for two years now. Since I paid less for it than I would have paid for the six new devices I'd likely have had to buy in those two years, I'd say the Apple device has saved me money (as well as headaches).
Sure, I hate that I have to install software to make changes, and I hate that every single change (including something as simple as opening a port) requires a full reboot of the router. Still, I don't regret my decision to 'waste money on Apple's wireless base station hardware' for a moment.
right, so when you were using those cheap routers you didn't have to reboot them when opening a port?
They should be getting you AT LEAST 1 Mbps. But I've seen midrange AT&T DSL operate lower, around 700kbps. You should call AT&T. I can't stand DSL.
Strange how ISPs are more inclined to quote max speeds instead of minimum speeds.
Is your Airport plugged directly via Ethernet into the dsl modem? Maybe you should try another Ethernet cable.
Hey there!
thanks for the info. I requested AT&T service to let them see how crappy my connection was and I was told that the only way to improve it was to run the exclusivelly thru one DSL one outlet (As I expected, no difference whatsover).
I do have the time capsule DIRECTLY connected to the DSL modem by Ethernet cable: I have tried different cables (also of different lengths) since I bought the TC with no difference. I suppose we'll have to wait on Apple to come thru with a firmware update to fix the 5GHz connection...Too bad they are taking longer and longer to follow thru with customer complaints. What's up with THAT?!
(while we wait for the remainder of the DSL contract to be up to try Uverse and WiMax or hope for TELETRANSPORT...)
Been eying a Drobo for over a year now. I shy away because of the cost, and because my setup sits in a spare bedroom - I hear the Drobo is a noisy piece of kit.
I've had my Drobo for a little over a year now and love it. The older units were noisy but the newer ones are pretty quiet. Every once in a while the fan kicks on and it makes some noise but that rarely happens for me.
I can't believe people waste money on Apple's wireless base station hardware. The same can be done with third party solutions for far less money. Time Capsule is an overpriced joke. I would much rather backup over FireWire than wireless or Ethernet.
While I agree they are expensive, I have found that setup is really easy and the Airport Utility is very user friendly. Each to their own I guess...
Well, 5Ghz never worked well to me with older TC & AE. It was much slower (10x or so) than 2.4GHz. I have no other networks around and no other equipment (live deep in the country side).
I had one of the faulty Airport Extreme base stations and returned it. I can assure you it wasn't working properly. When set up a mere 4 feet from my MacBook Pro with nothing in between it would never select the 5Ghz band when set to "Automatic." If I separated the 5Ghz band into its own SSID, I could connect to it but it would not function reliably. For example, copying a large file to a USB hard drive connected to the AEBS would usually stall for seconds at at time resulting in throughput slower than on the 2.4Ghz band, which worked fine.
I suspect those of you who report having no problems with this product are either not using the latest October 2009 AEBS (with the Marvell chipset) or aren't really testing the product to its limits.
Comments
I have found that Apple's routers are easiest to set up and maintain, but as I stated earlier they are missing some common features.
Performance wise I find they are the best those with fast connections but not nearly as powerful as they should be in this day and age. I hope there is a redesign coming with the ability to process at least 50Mbps from an ISP, along with the dual-band WiFi and 1Gbps hub in use.
I know many people with 40Gbps to their home with DOCSIS 3. Their routers are just overworked at this point between the ISP and the local network pushing excessive amounts of data.
I'd also like to see the OS updated. I wonder if we're getting to a point that Darwin would not be a better foundation than what they are currently using.
Really? 40Gb/s?
Perhaps you don't know how to set one up. I don't have any drop outs with my Linksys router, wired or wireless. I don't have to spend hours fiddling with them to make sure they work. My Linksys router is years old and incredibly stable. Maybe you had firmware issues and never bothered to update. Or maybe it was your internet provider that caused problems, or your AIM software that couldn't maintain a connection to the network.
You're very lucky. Linksys isn't known for its reliability; something I found out the long, hard way for myself.
Speaking of firmware, the updates are cake. My Linksys router firmware updates were SCARY. Last time I did that to mine the web interface threw an exception that the firmware couldn't be updated and then the router died. I was furious and scared to death my router was dead, but I unplugged it and plugged it back in and it restarted WITH the firmware update in place. Whew. That's far from user friendly. I'm glad I spent an extra 20$ so I don't have to worry about that anymore.
It has definitely been the best money I've spent on a router. It's REALLY nice having my printer connected to it in the closet and being able to print from any computer in my house without any issues. Plus, my laptop, iMac, and AppleTV are all connect to the 5Ghz so I can stream my hi-def movies without my microwave shutting down the router (happened to my Linksys on the 2.4 Ghz spectrum every time). My family's iPhones connect to the 2.4Ghz band without slowing down everything else and everything is working great.
Obviously there are probably some people having issues, but not me. I'm yet another extremely happy customer. It was more than worth it.
Your comparison would be more valid if you compared an expensive PC to a generic PC. Learn how to compare similar products next time.
Wait, aren't Macs and PCs similar products that are just running different operating systems?
According to that logic, the Linksys Wireless Router can't be compared to the Time Capsule since they run different OS's.
Perhaps you don't know how to set one up. I don't have any drop outs with my Linksys router, wired or wireless. I don't have to spend hours fiddling with them to make sure they work. My Linksys router is years old and incredibly stable.
Good for you. I'm betting your on a G network, not N. I was purchasing about 2 years ago when N was coming into play. Most of the non-apple branded routers wouldn't work well in the 5ghz band (which is what I wanted).
Maybe you had firmware issues and never bothered to update.
The first thing I did after taking every single router out of its box and plugging the damned thing in was to check for firmware updates.
Or maybe it was your internet provider that caused problems
I feel like the problem would have continued post apple base station...
or your AIM software that couldn't maintain a connection to the network.
Again, as the software stayed the same, the problem would have continued post apple base station. And what was the software? iChat.
Perhaps you don't know how to set one up. I don't have any drop outs with my Linksys router, wired or wireless. I don't have to spend hours fiddling with them to make sure they work. My Linksys router is years old and incredibly stable. Maybe you had firmware issues and never bothered to update. Or maybe it was your internet provider that caused problems, or your AIM software that couldn't maintain a connection to the network.
I definitely know how to set one up. Routers are kind of hit or miss. You can read reviews at Amazon and go on past experience. But many of them have varying problems depending on how they are deployed.
For example, I used Netgear for years but they had a problem with Macs and reserved IP addresses - a problem that was never addressed in firmware updates.
I considered the Linksys dual-band for my current router. It's the same price as the Airport Extreme - but I saw many reviews where people had trouble.
Many of the people on this forum know what they're doing, and there are scenarios where people may have good reason to select an Airport. Assuming other people will use a product the same way you do is a bad place to start.
One of the things I like about my Airport is its ability to wake up Macs on my lan when I need access to them.
I have not had any issues with my APE base station.
I do GBs of transfers over my 5Ghz APE all the time.
including 3 laptops backing up via timamachine to a MacMini (afp)
The only thing I have as non-default is the channels, I always fix my channels from Automatic.
And I use wideband
I have noticed in the past if I kept it as Automatic it would drop occasionally.
I see this channel problem ALL the time! Most people don't realize that wireless router and cordless phone & microwaves all operate at 2.4 Ghz. Just get yourself a wireless scanner piece of software and look at the all the wireless routers in the area all on the same channel! No wonder people are having "problems". :
Now the 5Ghz problem is manufactures all went with different levels of spec before N standard was certified. So I am not surprised that users are seeing wacky problem on 5Ghz devices.
Been eying a Drobo for over a year now. I shy away because of the cost, and because my setup sits in a spare bedroom - I hear the Drobo is a noisy piece of kit.
Noisy for sure in a quiet room. I consider it slow to wake up too but that might just be the nature of the beast.
I like the flexibility for expansion but it's not the right product for everyone. For example, I can't just put stuff on it without having another copy elsewhere. So for certain types of use a pair of external drives might be money better spent. Totally depends on how you plan on using it. Only someone who knows what's going to be stored on it knows if it's a good call or not.
I've had the second-gen for a little over a year and no problems.
I can't believe people waste money on Apple's wireless base station hardware. The same can be done with third party solutions for far less money. Time Capsule is an overpriced joke. I would much rather backup over FireWire than wireless or Ethernet.
I've had nothing but trouble with other companies routers, including several that simply would not work with my iMac at all. My AEBS just worked right out of the box. That's why I bother with it.
MB mid 2007
2.1 MHz upgraded to 2GB RAM, 120 GB HD
LATE 2009 1T TC
...Could someone tell me what their real life speed is with AT&T DSL midrange? Thanks
They should be getting you AT LEAST 1 Mbps. But I've seen midrange AT&T DSL operate lower, around 700kbps. You should call AT&T. I can't stand DSL.
Strange how ISPs are more inclined to quote max speeds instead of minimum speeds.
Is your Airport plugged directly via Ethernet into the dsl modem? Maybe you should try another Ethernet cable.
Really? 40Gb/s?
From the context of previous paragraph and the fact that it's 2010 I obviously meant 40Mbps.
In the year before I bought my Airport Extreme, I went through three of those lower-priced third-party 'solutions'. Every one of them died within a few months. One was never able to remember the administrator password, forcing me to reset the device to factory specs every time I wanted to open a new port or add a new MAC address.
I finally got sick of the troubles and of having to buy new devices every few months, so I took a chance and forked over the money for a decent base station. It's been running solid for two years now. Since I paid less for it than I would have paid for the six new devices I'd likely have had to buy in those two years, I'd say the Apple device has saved me money (as well as headaches).
Sure, I hate that I have to install software to make changes, and I hate that every single change (including something as simple as opening a port) requires a full reboot of the router. Still, I don't regret my decision to 'waste money on Apple's wireless base station hardware' for a moment.
right, so when you were using those cheap routers you didn't have to reboot them when opening a port?
They should be getting you AT LEAST 1 Mbps. But I've seen midrange AT&T DSL operate lower, around 700kbps. You should call AT&T. I can't stand DSL.
Strange how ISPs are more inclined to quote max speeds instead of minimum speeds.
Is your Airport plugged directly via Ethernet into the dsl modem? Maybe you should try another Ethernet cable.
Hey there!
thanks for the info. I requested AT&T service to let them see how crappy my connection was and I was told that the only way to improve it was to run the exclusivelly thru one DSL one outlet (As I expected, no difference whatsover).
I do have the time capsule DIRECTLY connected to the DSL modem by Ethernet cable: I have tried different cables (also of different lengths) since I bought the TC with no difference. I suppose we'll have to wait on Apple to come thru with a firmware update to fix the 5GHz connection...Too bad they are taking longer and longer to follow thru with customer complaints. What's up with THAT?!
(while we wait for the remainder of the DSL contract to be up to try Uverse and WiMax or hope for TELETRANSPORT...)
Been eying a Drobo for over a year now. I shy away because of the cost, and because my setup sits in a spare bedroom - I hear the Drobo is a noisy piece of kit.
I've had my Drobo for a little over a year now and love it. The older units were noisy but the newer ones are pretty quiet. Every once in a while the fan kicks on and it makes some noise but that rarely happens for me.
I can't believe people waste money on Apple's wireless base station hardware. The same can be done with third party solutions for far less money. Time Capsule is an overpriced joke. I would much rather backup over FireWire than wireless or Ethernet.
While I agree they are expensive, I have found that setup is really easy and the Airport Utility is very user friendly. Each to their own I guess...
Not surprising.
From the context of previous paragraph and the fact that it's 2010 I obviously meant 40Mbps.
I know, I just had to...
I suspect those of you who report having no problems with this product are either not using the latest October 2009 AEBS (with the Marvell chipset) or aren't really testing the product to its limits.