Reviews for AirPort Extreme Base Station

I've never found routers fun to set up but this one is different. It was a breeze to set up and has been rock solid for almost one year. Great product and superb support, if needed.

I've been experiencing terrible download speeds from my ISP Suddenlink for about 6 months now. On Speedtest.net, on average/most often times, my download speed would be 2.5Mbps. I am paying for the 10Mbps (highest speed possible) plan with the ISP.

After replacing the old Netgear router with the AE, and having Apple help me set it up via phone (I'm not networking intelligent whatsoever, I'm a Hardware, OS, and software kinda guy), I achieved similar/small improvement in performance. Typically getting 2.5-3Mbps downloads, with an occasional (and short-lived) hike in speed ranging 5-8Mbps. DON'T STOP READING HERE!

After doing some tinkering, I managed to get the full 10Mbps out of my ISP with this router. I get 10.63Mbps down on my mid-2010 Mac Mini which is on the 5GHz private network, 10.08Mbps down on my iPhone 4 which is on the 2.4GHz network, and 10Mbps down with my iPad which is on the 5GHz private network. I'm extremely satisfied with my purchase, and would definitely buy another in the future. Hopefully more ISP's will become available in my area with higher speeds, so I can take full advantage of this baby :)

WARNING: The AirPort Extreme seems to run a bit warm, though not 'hot'. I'm keeping a small fan running next to it to keep temps down (there is no ceiling fan in my office).

Currently, I have my AirPort Extreme set up this way:
-Wireless Mode: Create a wireless network.
-The radio mode is set to Automatic.
-Broadcasting 2 networks, a 2.4GHz and a 5GHz (the 5GHz network is hidden).
-The 5GHz network is on radio channel 161.
-The 2.4GHz network is on radio channel 6.
-Security is WPA2 Personal

Under Wireless Network Options:
-Country: United States
-Multicast Rate: Low
-Transmit Power: 100%
-Use wide channels is checked
-Created closed network is checked (because I'm hiding the 5GHz network)

Airport Extreme is a great product for two years MAXIMUM. After that the Airport Extreme will begin to fail for various issues. After having three fail completely in two years, one for firmware reasons and two for hardware reasons, this product deserves two stars. Even though it is incredibly easy to set up and maintain, the life span is horrible.

I just bought an AirPort Extreme today. It has completely blown my expectations out of the water. I previously had a Linksys router...it doesnt even remotely hold a candle to the performance of the AirPort. While before it took 6-8 seconds to open a page, now with only upgrading to the AirPort Extreme (keeping the same internet provider and everything) I'm having pages fully open in a second or less, many times instantaneously. I could not be more satisfied with this product. PS. Setup is a breeze.

I have 2 MacBook Pros, an iMac, a Macbook, an iPhone and an iPad, and have spent the last year struggling with my old router. Constant disconnects plagued me, so not having to constantly restart my modem/router is delightful. The time I have saved so far has easily paid off the purchase. Plus, my connection is noticeably faster than with my previous router

It's expensive - probably the most expensive router I have seen on the market - but I am very happy with my new AirPort Extreme, and I would recommend it to anyone else with too many Apple products to count.

I had Gen 1 Timecapsule that lasted 3 years. I bought this Airport Extreme on 4/30/2011 and it failing now only last year and half. Now it drops internet every day and have to reset it every day. Its not a isp issue... another router works fine.

The devices DHCP service failing to work. No fixs no firmware updates to fix. This is just a waste of money for $179 Router that has no storage and to fail year and half is poor Apple product.

My first negative feedback for apple ever.

I am extremely disappointed.

I've had a number of wireless routers over the years. A high number. Various brands. Various models. They all had two things in common: (1) They're glitchy, with frequent drop-outs and mysterious malfunctions that require rebooting or a reset/reprogramming, and (2) they stop working shortly after the warrant period has expired.

And then there's the Apple AirPort Extreme.

The AirPort Extreme is a shining star. It just works. It's stable. It's reliable, year after year of 24x7 use -- I have two, with 4+ years on one, and 5+ years on the other. It's also a little faster than the competition.

The setup utility (PC and Mac) is easy to use, and gives you lots of features, such as limiting internet access for certain users (e.g., children) to certain times of the day, sharing printers, sharing hard disks, etc.

AirPort Extreme easily gives shared access to a variety of devices: Macs, PCs, iPhones, Wi-Fi TVs, and others. Imagine your Macs, PCs, iPhones, and tablets all able to access your home printer or home network storage (hard disk), without a host computer acting as a "go between" server.

The AirPort Extreme can also be configured as an "extender," so you can have two or more units in your home to ensure full, secure, strong-signal coverage throughout your home, and even into your back yard, if you wish. Devices can access the extender both wirelessly and by Ethernet cable. My extender "speaks" to an Audio-Visual receiver, an Xbox-360, an HD-TV, and a Blu-ray player, and it serves wireless devices in that area, such as laptops and phones.

Perhaps the highest compliment I can pay to the AirPort Extreme is to tell you that I'm a PC guy who wouldn't want to be without it. I highly recommend it.

I bought the Airport Extreme Base Station because my 10 year old Linksys router finally died. I have Windows based desktops but recently purchased multiple iPads and iPhones and figured it was a good time to start recognizing the Apple products for what they are - incredible, easy to use, install and maintain!!!! The installation of the unit was simple and easy like most Apple products. You download the airport utility software from Apple and follow the instructions in the Windows 7 environment. The only problem that I had during installation was that Apple did not notify the user that you have to reset your cable modem by unplugging the unit before completing the AirPort install. I had to call Cablevision and they told me that was a call they were used to receiving from customers. Once I reset the cable modem it cleared the unit of the Linksys data the modem and Airport utility software immediately recognized the Airport unit. After that, it was extremely easy for each device to pick up the signal - which is very strong. One of the features that I really liked was the fact that you could set up a guest account so that anyone coming over the house did not have to have access your private network to use their devices. You could give them limited access to the guest account. In addition, you can hook up an external back up drive via USB for users to utilize for any data, digital photographs, etc. I am sold on Apple products and have only been using them for about a year. If I could get away from Microsoft based products in their totality, I would, and go the Apple route.

I am a custom A/V Integrator.I have had the displeasure of using about everything out there.I just set up an Extreme in a 10,000 sqft house added a couple Airport Express,2 AppleTVs Took about an hour for all of it.Full signal thru entire house and most of the yard.costs a little more but way cool. I have 3 AppleTVs,Extreme,2 Express in my house.AirPlay to my 6 Zone Nuvo Audio System.Music thru house from my iphone in my pocket or ipad on the kitchen counter.AWESOME!!!