apple airport express vs airport extreme

Apple airport express vs airport extreme series#
Apple airport express vs airport extreme mac#

This enables straightforward full-system backups of any Apple Mac on the network, with automatic incremental backups every hour. The app interface was a welcome innovation in a sea of maddeningly obtuse products and it's a shame Apple won't be bringing it forward.There are two versions of the AirPort station, the standard Extreme version tested here and the Time Capsule version that includes a 3.5in hard disk inside. No matter what you pick, it's a little sad saying goodbye to Airport. If you are coming to the end of life with your current AirPort hardware, though, and want more general advice on what kind of router should replace it, Apple has you covered there too. Apple supports discontinued hardware far longer than most companies, offering parts and repairs for up to five years after they've stopped manufacturing a product. If you're dedicated to your AirPort, however, and have no intention of switching, there is some good news. You can find out more information on the Google Wifi page. Starting at $129 for a single unit or $299 for a 3-pack, it's a great deal. In short, you can maintain the ease of operation you enjoyed with your Apple AirPort, but you get new features and cutting edge hardware. It's a nice way to stay on top of any issues that crop up without having to constantly check the app. You'll even get an occasional email from Google letting you know how things are going with your network. I also appreciate the Network Check tool that lets me see how fast my internet really is (or if my ISP is lying to me) and if all my mesh points are operating correctly. It's a clever way of allowing your guests a bit of control without giving them permanent access. Going to that site in a home with a Google Wifi browser will allow you to control those smart devices that have been added to Home Control, as well as things like Chromecast devices. One cool feature I've found is that Google Wifi creates a custom webpage just for your home's smart devices called On.Here. You can also manually pause the internet using Google Home or via the app.

The Family Wifi feature allows you to create labels to assign to certain devices, restricting content delivered to them (via SafeSearch) and enforcing internet pauses (for bedtimes or homework breaks). The Google Wifi app makes sharing your devices and keeping an eye on things easy.

I've had mine going for over a month and, with the exception of a power outage, it has never failed. The app is easy to understand, easy to use, and the signal it produces is the most consistent I've tested. There have been routers where I would sit and wait out a random WiFi outage rather than even look at the router, because I knew that touching anything, physically or in the settings, would result in days of downtime as I struggled to get things back online. I'll confess, even as a tech-savvy person, my palms get clammy when I have to mess with my router settings.

Apple airport express vs airport extreme series#

It walks you through a simple series of steps, gives you suggestions on where to place your additional mesh units, and sets up everything behind the scenes.

Similar to my other favorite mesh system, eero, the setup wizard is blissfully hands-off. When you plug it and open the app, things get really interesting. Setting things up and testing your network should be this easy for every router Anthony Karcz