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Apple's New, Improved Airport
timbck2 writes: "Apple has just released a new and greatly improved version of their Airport 802.11b wireless network access point, with better WEP encryption (128-bit now instead of 40-bit), better non-Mac PC integration, and a new LAN connection port. Here are the tech specs." An anonymous reader pointed to Apple's rather bland press release as well. This is a good upgrade to the Airport, with thanks probably due in part to companies like Linksys who are making much less expensive 802.11 base stations (which work great with Airport cards, too), though lacking a modem.
While most people here probably don't use AOL, this is probably the most important change. Sure, they upped the encryption to 128-bit, increased the number of client computers it will support, and added a LAN ethernet port, but what really makes this a big deal is that it is the first time I've heard of a home router product supporting AOL. It's not too shocking to have one that will handle standard PPP connections, but to have it handle AOL's proprietary protocol is very noteworthy.
This was probably done with AOL's support; Apple wouldn't want to risk problems with AOL tweaking its protocol to block AirPorts. So what sort of terms were involved in the deal? Did AOL do it in their own interest (it seems to me that they benefit), or did Apple pay them (they also benefit)?
yes
It's funny they mention Linksys in the blurb here and 'how good they work'. Ever try and upgrade a Linksys device from your Mac? You CAN'T DO IT! Well, there are no instructions for it at linksys. There is no little tftp program on their site for Mac's to do it. They don't support Mac. (note the period). In an email I received this morning from Linksys they flat out told me that.
;)
While linksys is cheap, they won't support anything but windows users. That's all their is to it.
Cheap hardware with no support - take your chances and hope someone on your LAN has a Windows box when you need an upgrade to your linksys (like to make the linksys work with your airport card
j
-- There is no sig line, only Zuul.
They have done more than add 128 bits WEP. 128 bits WEP is still easy to crack.
But Apple has added Radius and a firewall too. See their FAQ at http://www.apple.com/airport/faq/.
The thing that makes Airport so WONDERFUL is the integration on both their desktops and laptops.
:-)
/C revision of the card was secretly 128-bit. :-)
The built-in antennae make for some excellent reception on the laptops!
On the other hand, the base station, while it looks cool, isn't that impressive. I bought a Linksys wireless station / firewall / router / 4-port 10/100 switch for $159. It was well worth the cash, and the range seems better than on the airport stations.
On the other hand, the fact that it all integrates so perfectly (between Apple's airport, the Linksys, and my neighbor's PC laptop) speaks very highly of the whole thing.
--nbvb
p.s. Also, just a heads up -- Apple's been shipping a 128-bit version of the Airport *CARD* for months. The
silly me, i thought the range for 802.11b was supposed to be 150 ft. you must live in a ridiculously tall house, or have a lot that's several acres in size to be complaining about range. the example i remember is that if you stick a base station in the middle of a (american) football field, you'd get a signal all the way to both goal lines.
now, if you have some kind of interference, then you're SOL. as for me, i've never had any problems with the range in my average-sized home, or in my average-sized back yard between my base station and my ibook, whereas my cordless phone breaks up walking out the back door.
- Entertaining Bits from the Ancient Kernel Tree
A group of AT&T researchers broke WEP security (even the 128 bit version). See paper here. They recommend treating 802.11 connections as open and using things like SSL and SSH to protect sensitive data.
[Insert pithy quote here]
And why did other companies start making less expensive wireless base stations? Because everyone was buying Apple base stations...
Apple has been putting out an affordable wireless product for much longer than Linksys.
The original product may have had its bugs but I have ben using one for over a year now and that was just not possible with a PC (without a lot of moolah).
I've used the AirPort Base station since it's release and it's great at wireless for a mixed PC and Mac environment. Any 802.11b PCMCIA card will work with it, I use Orinoco and LinkSys cards with no problems.
It's the best wireless base station around but it did have the WEP encryption vulnerability that was very publicized. If you crack one open you'll find a straight-off-the-shelf Orinoco Silver 64-bit card. I upgraded one of our base stations with the Gold version, which provides me with 128-bit WEP, but I'm glad that Apple finally decided to do the same.
You can also attach a Lucent Range Extender antenna, which dramatically improves performance. Just pop the cover off, pull the little round tab off the PCMCIA card, attach the antenna lead, drill a hole in the cover to run the wire out and presto!
I am surprised that they did not apply the 802.11a standard that some other base station makers have recently announced for increased bandwidth over the wireless portion of the LAN. Oh well, I'll just have to wait...
I imagine he has interference in the form of walls. it depends what your house is made of, of course, but walls and floors can seriously diminish the range of the signal.
For $300 the new airport base gets you:
-A 50 user wireless node.
-Built-in modem that even supports AOL access.
-Connects to Cable/DSL "modems" to act as a router.
-Built-in firewall for simple security setup.
-Works with loads of different operating systems.
-Looks really, really cool. Definately beats those ugly blue boxes with flashing LEDs and antennae.
Is it just me, or should Apple marketing be pushing these to non-Apple users? This thing is incredible, especially for the cost. Steve Jobs should tell them to send review samples to the editors of all the PC magazines and web sites.
Configuration is done via a built-in web server. NAT, firewall that you can punch holes in as needed, DMZ, MAC filtering, 128-bit WEP, 3 10/100 downlink, one 10/100 uplink, printer server, and a port to plug in a modem (I don't know what protocols it supports over the modem, though). It can route AppleTalk, and you can install firmware upgrades from any computer (you just upload a file via your web browser).
It cost $199, about $100 less than the Airport Base Station. The new base station has some excellent features (AOL, better network config stuff), but I'm not regreting my choice at all.
-jon
Remember Amalek.
From Apples website: AirPort 2.0 software
Compatible with all versions of AirPort Cards and Base Stations, AirPort 2.0 software brings enhanced features to AirPort wireless networks. AirPort 2.0 software can upgrade original AirPort Cards to support 128-bit encryption (encryption for original AirPort Base Stations will remain 40-bit). Software Update will auto install AirPort 2.0.
Basically, as I remember from a briefing, I think you get all the new features except the 128 bit encryption. Which makes sense, but should also be relatively easy to get around with an Orinocco gold card transplant.
http://www.apple.com/airport/
Visit Jonesblog and say hello.
It seems a lot of folks are misunderstanding the new AOL support. You see, the AirPort also has an internal modem for those without broadband. Previously, the modem could only be used to dial into a PPP account. With version 2.0 of the AirPort software, it can dial into an AOL account for Internet access (i.e., it now has a version of AOL's proprietary software in its firmware). This is not a feature that most geeks will notice, as we'll be using the AirPort's ethernet interface with our broadband connections and *maybe* the modem for PPP backup. But for those that get their Internet access via an AOL dialup, and would like to share it with their 802.11 equiped machines via NAT/DHCP, this is godsend.
"Delivers improvements for many USB and FireWire devices, including support for additional digital cameras, and overall improvements to CD and DVD burning. Enhancements have been made to AFP, SMB, and WebDAV networking, as well as improved support for printing. This update also delivers better application compatibility, including updates to the Finder and Mail application. In addition, hardware accelerated video mirroring has been enabled for the new PowerBook G4."
You can automatically get and install it through the "Software Update" control panel.
LEAP is apparently a good enough add-on to 128-bit WEP that Cisco uses it on their internal network. As I understand it, LEAP constantly changes the WEP key, which prevents it from staying constant long enough to be decoded through a sniffer attack.
Unfortunately, this is only Cisco LEAP client support, so only the AirPort cards inside Macs and Powerbooks will be able to benefit from this, and not the base stations.
#naabhaprzrag, #sverubfr-000, #agi-fcbafberq, negvpyr[pynff*=' negvpyr-ary-'] { qvfcynl: abar !vzcbegnag; }
I would say the #1 blunder in Apple's release of this product is lack of support for configuring it from an x86 PC (running Windows or Linux or your BSD of choice).
Apple's goal with devices like this and the iPod is not to have everyone (including wintel users) buy them, but to provide more value and a better experience to the Mac platform. From what I can tell, Apple doesn't make much money on the base stations themselves. But as part of the total Mac equation, it makes a lot of sense, espeically in the long term.
They may not explicitly prevent wintel machines from using these devices, but there's no point in making it easy seeing as their main goal is to sell computers.
- Scott
Scott Stevenson
Tree House Ideas
Is it just me, or should Apple marketing be pushing these to non-Apple users?
The question is, do you think they would stand to gain more or less money/marketshare by doing such a thing? I suspect the answer is less. It also means less differentiation between Mac and wintel.
I know the instinct is "I want this on my PC," but Apple has more to consider than that -- like do they really want to make a business out of selling cross-platform gadgets, possibly at the partial expense of their computer business?
- Scott
Scott Stevenson
Tree House Ideas
perhaps I'm responding to a troll, but --
:) I may have certain objections to Apple, but I also have a lot of praise for them. Apple has a remarkably good user interface (less bad than most alternatives in most aspects), good industrial design for their hardware (the G3/G4 case is genius, better by far than the pricey Antec cases on my PCs), and intelligent focus on the user experience in general.
:) They'll either add features (like they've just done), drop prices (like the not-bad pricing on current Apple laptops), or otherwise try to make people find it worthwhile to buy their version. Or maybe they won't, and that aspect of their business will falter. OK -- no problem, at least long term.
I'm not knocking Apple -- I've liked Apple's hardware for a long time. I own and use an Apple computer, and have had a string of 'em before the current iBook (IIfx, SE/30,* Classic II, Performa 636*, powerbook 140, powerbook 240 duo, and maybe a few others in there, too). For the past several years, I've been a lot more interested in software-with-source-code-available, a category that Mac OS (excepting the Darwin part of OS X) does not fall into. OK; that doesn't mean that Apple become a bad company making bad computers, it just means that people have different preferences and interests. OK, no problem. (Several of the Slashdot authors and coders use / enjoy Macs, btw.)
For reasons outlined in some other comments, I actually prefer the Linksys AP+4-port switch to the Apple Airport, but lighten up, alright?
Apple has done more to open up home wireless networking than most of the other companies involved in it combined. The airport is functionally brilliant (wish my Linksys had a modem, I do) and for a while was the best deal in home wireless by a long shot. Right now though, Linksys and SMC (and others) are making products which for many people can bring the benefits they'd get from an Airport for much less money. So? Apple isn't dumb
If you still think my post was hard on Apple, or negative, I don't know what else to tell you. I generally like Apple, though like a lot of other armchair critics, there are a lot of things I wish they did differently. No crime in that, eh?
Cheers,
timothy
*The only real dog of the bunch, but still a useful machine.
jrnl: http://tinyurl.com/c2l8yr / foes: http://tinyurl.com/ckjno5