The AirPort Extreme is a residential gateway product from Apple Inc. combining the functionality
of a router, network switch, wireless access point and NAS as well as varied other functions.
The latest model, the 6th generation, supports 802.11ac networking in addition to older standards.
Versions of the same system with a built-in network-accessible hard drive are known as
the AirPort Time Capsule.
The name "AirPort Extreme" originally referred to any one of Apple's AirPort products that
implemented the newly introduced 802.11g Wi-Fi standard, differentiating it from earlier
devices that ran the slower 802.11a and b standards.
At that time the gateway part of this lineup was known as the AirPort Extreme Base Station.
With the addition of the even faster Draft-N standards in early 2009 this naming was dropped,
and from then on only the gateway has been known as the AirPort Extreme.
Several minor upgrades followed, mostly to change antenna and power in the Wi-Fi.
In 2013, a major upgrade added 802.11ac support and more internal antennas.
The AirPort Extreme has gone through three distinct physical forms.
The earliest models were packaged similar to the original AirPort Base Station, in a
round housing known as the "flying saucer".
From 2007 to 2013 the Extreme was packaged in a rounded-rectangle white plastic housing,
similar in layout and size to the Mac mini or earlier Apple TVs.
The 2013 802.11ac model was re-packaged into a more vertical case, taller than it is square.
Features Overview
Fully featured 802.11n Wi-Fi base station Sleep Proxy Service
4 Ethernet ports — all ports are gigabit Ethernet on newer versions
USB interface for disk and printer sharing Built-in file server
Runs VxWorks Operating System by WindRiver AirPort Disk
The AirPort Disk feature allows users to plug a USB hard drive into the AirPort Extreme
for use as a network-attached storage device for Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows clients.
Users may also connect a USB hub and printer.
The performance of USB hard drives attached to an AirPort Extreme is slower than if the
drive were connected directly to a computer.
This is due to the processor speed on the AirPort Extreme.
Depending on the setup and types of reads and writes, performance ranges from 0.5 to
17.5 MB/s for writing and 1.9 to 25.6 MB/s for reading.
Performance for the same disk connected directly to a computer would be 6.6 to 31.6 MB/s for
writing and 7.1 to 37.2 MB/s for reading.
NTFS formatted drives are not supported.
AirPort Extreme models by generation Original generation
The original Airport Extreme Base Station was so-named because of its support for the
802.11g standard of the day, as well as for its ability to serve up to 50 Macs or PCs
simultaneously.
One feature found in most models of this generation was an internal 56K dial-up modem, allowing
homes that lacked a broadband connection to enjoy wireless connectivity, albeit at dial-up
speeds.
It was the last generation to retain the "flying saucer" form factor.
Later generations would adopt the short, rounded-square form factor that would be seen until 2013.
First generation On January 9, 2007 the AirPort Extreme began
shipping.
Second generation On March 19, 2008, Apple released a firmware
update for both models of the AirPort Extreme that according to third party reports allows
AirPort Disks to be used in conjunction with Time Machine, similar to the functionality
provided by AirPort Time Capsule.
This behaviour is not officially supported.
Third generation On March 3, 2009, Apple unveiled a new AirPort
Extreme with simultaneous dual-band 802.11 Draft-N radios.
This allows full 802.11 Draft-N 2x2 communication in both 802.11 Draft-N bands at the same time.
Fourth generation On October 20, 2009, Apple unveiled an updated
AirPort Extreme with antenna improvements.
Fifth generation On June 21, 2011, Apple unveiled an updated
AirPort Extreme, referred to as AirPort Extreme 802.11n.
The detailed table of output power comparison between the 4th generation model MC340LL/A
and the 5th generation model MD031LL/A can be seen below:
Sixth generation On June 10, 2013, Apple unveiled an updated
AirPort Extreme, referred to as AirPort Extreme 802.11ac.
The 6th generation AirPort Extreme feature a three-stream 802.11ac Wi-Fi technology with
a maximum data rate of 1.3Gbit/s, nearly three times faster than 802.11n.
Comparison chart
*802.11n draft-specification support in 1st to 3rd generation models.
**802.11ac draft-specification support in 6th generation model.
***All models support IPv6 tunnel mode.
See also AirPort Express
AirPort Time Capsule Notes