| Apple AirPort Express with Air Tunes (M9470LL/A) |
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Model: M9470LL/A
Brand: Apple
Manufacturer: Apple Computer
Average Rating: 
(submit your review here)
Total Reviews: 299
Platforms: Windows
Operating system: Windows & Macintosh
Form factor: External
Hardware platform: PC
Data link protocol: IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g
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| Features: |
Enjoy your iTunes music library in virtually any room of your house
Share a single broadband Internet connection and USB printer without inconvenient and obtrusive cables
Create an instant wireless network on the go
Access an AirPort Express wireless network
Compatible with Windows XP or 2000; Mac OS X v10.2.7 or later |
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| Description: |
| Apple M9470LL/A AirPort Express Base Station - The AirPort Express is a very unique wireless base station. It fits in the palm of your hand, plugs directly into a wall outlet, and allows you to wirelessly connect to the Internet, print, and stream iTunes music to any room in your home. It does this via 3 bult-in ports. A WAN Ethernet port for your cable or DSL modem, a USB port for your printer, and an Audio port for your home stereo. Security - Built-in Firewall, Password Protection, Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) Support, & 128-bit WEP Encryption Supports up to 10 users NOTE - Wireless printing over USB requires Mac OS X v10.2.7 or later or Windows XP or Windows 2000 and a compatible printer NOTE - AirPort Extreme and AirPort Express can extend the range only of an AirPort Extreme or AirPort Express wireless network |
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| User Reviews (299 total): |
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Great, once you get it set up..., December 28, 2004
By Dickey (Boston, MA)
I use XP Pro, and had to get it to connect to an existing wireless router (D-Link). Apple's instructions are certainly made with a focus on style over substance, because while pretty, there is essentially no instruction on what to do if the setup assistant doesn't work. Needless to say, mine didn't.
That said, the Apple website has a forum with messageboards for their products and there are people there who will answer you questions when things don't go correctly (i believe it is discussions.info.apple.com). Once I found that, I had no problem getting it up and running.
Once you get your Airport Express set up, you will immediately realize how worth it the trouble is. Amazing is the only word to describe it. Connect it to your stereo, hit play on iTunes, and you've got your entire library of music at your fingertips anywhere around your house, assuming you have a notebook. Since finishing the setup and seeing the light go green, I haven't had a hitch. HIGHLY recommended.
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Incredible, December 27, 2004
By tdogg4ya (Kansas USA)
An incredible product! I use both windows and mac, and was a sinch to hook up. I have a network and only 802.11b (Regular Airport, I have no Airport Express components) My PC is only connected to my network, so it doesn't have wireless capability. But I enabled wireless to ethernet bridging on my wireless basestation. Now I also have a wireless enabled desktop G4 connected to my network, and a wireless iBook. I am able to use my ibook to choose what music I want (wirelessly) to play on my Living Room speakers wirelessly! Great Product, does everything I want it to do. Now only need to add wireless pci card to my pc, and then all 3 computers will be able to play all my music and all 3 would have the option to play in living room!!!
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Good Luck, December 23, 2004
By M. Scott
Good luck if you are planning on using it with a Windows PC wireless network. I spent 4 hours trying to get it to recognize my linksys router. When it's hard wired the unit works fine, wireless no go. Just sits and blinks orange. Apple stuff doesn't seem to like windows so I'm going to save $120 and buy a simple audio cable. Apple was absolutely no help!
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Apple AirPort Express Works Great with Windows XP, December 22, 2004
By irishcritter (dallas, tx United States)
I found this product to work well with MS Windows XP and the set up was quite easy. I have WEP 128 bit encryption on a Linksys 54G Wireless router. First off I downloaded the newest Firmware for the unit and then got the latest Admin utility from the website. I have found that for any computer electronics that you are trying to set up with your computer it pays to get the latest versions from the web. It is never worth wasting time on the software that comes with products. If there is a newer version on line that fixes any bugs, that is vital to solving the problems most users have when trying to use the packaged software.
I plugged in the unit, went to the configuration utility and in the "AirPort" tab made all the necessary changes. Set up the Wireless security key, changed the format to HEX, changed the units password from the default, saved it all as a profile then "updated" the profile so it works. Takes about 3 minutes to do. Once you hit "Update" it took about 60-90 seconds for the green light to come on and it was working. I have this plugged in to an outlet in my living room and it keeps the 2.4GHz cordless phone from disconnecting us when we are online. It is great. Can not wait to try it travelling.
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Be aware that you need Mac OS X v10.3 to configure it, December 20, 2004
By Guido Gherardi (Mountain View, CA)
This is yet another trick Apple has found to force Mac users to upgrade to their latest OS. If you don't have "Mac OS X v10.3 or later" (i.e. your Mac is more than 6 month old), you won't be able to install the AirPort Express Assistant utility and configure the AirPort Express. My PowerBook is only a year and a half old. It runs Mac OS X v10.2.8, and I'm very happy with it. It has a wireless card from Cisco and works fine in most of wireless networks, including those based on Apple technology. In other words I can use my PowerBook with the AirPort Express, but I first need to configure the AirPort Express. For that, I must have my PowerBook run Mac OS v10.3 (Panther), and that's a $129 upgrade. Bottom line: the cost of the AirPort Express is $258 if your Mac is more than 6 month old.
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Great, faults, not an itune user. short range!!!, December 17, 2004
By Alexandra (paso robles, california USA)
I did NOT purchase the airport express for it's audio streaming capabilities. I purchased it for only for a wireless connectivity. It was my first internet wireless transmitter ever. So here I go:
I have had the AE about 6 months ago, for my Imac 800 Mhz and my PC notebook.
Pros:
Very easy to setup, on both platforms, I even was able to set it up on my XP (PC) without the admin. tool. But remember I did not have to use the itune streaming thing.
Negatives:
-Very small radius of connectivity. If I go to my outside table (24' away from the AE) I get a very low signal, and anything further I would not even get a signal (one glass window/door in the way).
-I cannot go to another room and get a decent signal
I have to make a comment about the two above negatives. This could be because of certain equipment that I have, such as my portable phone (which runs at 2.4 GHz, and does not have a channel selector), I have had trouble for couple of days of loosing the signal completely when I make/receive a call with my portable, and since I have no channel selector on my phone, I could not check if this is fixable, even though this problem stopped two days later !!!
- I do not get the full speed of my broadband (satellite) connection. I am not sure if this is only the matter when you have 2-way satellite, or if it is with all broadband.
- A printer problem: I can print using the wireless connection (printer connected to AE) from my Mac, but not with my PC. My pc does not recognize the printer, and I am not able to add it to my printers, the best I got was when choosing a different printer model (but the prints where not perfect).
This problem might be because of my printer model (HP office Jet 6110 AIO printer).
- A firewall problem:
I was using NetBarrier and the problem was mainly with the printing. If you have the application control in NetBarrier, then every time you try to print you will receive a message asking you if you want the application to access the network. Now the problem is the application name changes every time (can't remember the exact name, but it is like db001, db002, db003), so it can never remember that the application has permission.
-many printer capabilities are not available (like scanning with my particular model.
Summery:
With all the negatives I mentioned above I still love this product, I still use it today. I think the Airport Extreme would have been better for my need, since I could still have a wired connection to my imac and a wireless connection to my pc, and since my imac is right there where the AE is, that would have been the way.
I hope this could help someone.
Layth
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Tedious setup, good product, December 16, 2004
By bm97 (Pleasanton, CA)
I am posting this update to my previous review:
Setting up the airport express was very hard. It took me two frustrating days to get it working.
If you have XP2 on your computer, make sure you download the firmware and airport express assistant updates from Apple. These are required if you want wireless security(WEP). After I applied these updates my setup went through smoothly. The airport express works perfectly now.
Radioshack has the optical Y-cable for $7.
I initially had problems with music skipping. Turning on an option called "Enable Interference Robustness" solved the problem nicely and I have not had skips in the music ever since.
I had given this product one star in a very frustrated moment
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Works perfectly with PCs and MACs and Canon ip5000, December 2, 2004
By b (illinios)
I love this unit, it is technology at its best. Wireless internet, music, and printing all from one simple device. We have a mixed environment, a PC with 802.11b and a MAC with 802.11g. They both work perfectly. The printer is outstanding, if you connect it directly to your computer before plugging it into the Airport Express, you can configure the power-management features. You only have to do this once, and it allows you to configure the printer to auto power-off and auto power-on. In other words, it stays off until you print something and shuts itself off after 5 minutes. Canon got it right with the PM features and I am so glad it works over the Airport Express--no more dried out cartridges.
The only problems I have experienced with the AE unit, is that it froze once in 4 months--just unplug to restart--we always leave it on. Frequently if we close the lid on the MAC, iTunes won't be able to play to the speakers and you have to select the computer speakers and then select the AE speakers. Not a big deal, but annoying sometimes. Also the range is pretty bad. I think they forgot to install an antenna in the unit. It will go 2 rooms max, across a house is not possible unless you put it right in the middle of a smaller sized house. Even with these few problems, it is an amazing piece of hardware, I can give it no less than 5 stars.
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Not easy to set up, but worth it, December 1, 2004
By AMC (New York, New York USA)
I held off on 5 stars only because it was very frustrating setting this up (on an XP media PC) and the instructions that come with the unit are pretty much worthless.
You might be able to avoid my troubles and simply enjoy this great unit, however. So let me pass along how I finally solved my set-up problems. Hopefully this works for you too if you are frustrated.
Just as background, I was trying to use the unit to connect to my stereo system and have my XP machine transmit music to it over a Lynksis wireless network.
When I set up the unit, it simply kept flashing an annoying orange light. The unit could not "see" my network.
The solution was simple, if arrived at through a painful and frustrating process: (1) connect the unit DIRECTLY to your router with a cable; (2) configure the unit manually with the software they provide, by typing in the name of your network etc.
Once I did this, the light stayed green, the unit "saw" my network, and I could disconnect it from the router and plug it in to my stereo in the other room. At that point it worked FLAWLESSLY.
Once set up this is a super product; the sound is great etc. For me, the biggest advantage this has over other products is that you can control your playlists etc FROM THE COMPUTER SOURCE and don't have to rely on a remote or some other interface on a TV. This is huge for me and I couldn't find another product that had the same feature.
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Simply a great product, November 10, 2004
By Tom Halpin (UK)
I travel a lot and like to use my computer as I do at home and not be restricted by some of the ridiculously short,(sometimes less than a foot long)cables I see in some hotels. I bought an Airport Express, plugged it in and hey presto, instant Wi-Fi on a Windows XP Pro machine. I haven't tried it with my iPod yet but do intend to use it to make a printer wireless when I get home. I was amazed that a Mac product worked so well and so easily with Windows after some of the experiences I have had in setting up so-called Windows products.
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Windows users, be aware!!!, November 6, 2004
By R. Urdaneta
Some thoughts on Airport Express.
First of all, it is a great idea to play your tunes on your home theater, however this is a product that still needs some work to qualify as a home theater component.
Needless to say, the instructions are just horrible. For Windows users set up is a nightmare. The good new is that the connection problems could be solved easily.
My setup, Linksys wireless router 802.11b, Dell 1450 wireless notebook card.
I, as many of us using a wireless networks, have a secure set up, basically a 128 encription WEP key. The Airport Express instructions fail to tell us that in order for the airport express to work on your secure environment, you have to put a dollar sign "$" right in front of your network key in the apple configuration software. Otherwise IT WILL NOT work properly. It is a simple way to fix it, yet nobody in apple support was able to help me.
Connections problems solved, finnaly. Now for the test drive.
While I was able to listen to my music, my MP3's and AAC's skipped at least three times per minute. Certainly anoying and a big deal breaker for me. Be advise that I am highly technical proficient and there was no way of making AE not skip, I even tried to set up the priority for the Airport software to high in the task manager, and while the skipping was less notorious, it was still present.
This was a month ago, I decided to return the product, I do not know if Apple released a firmware update that solved this problem. Either way, I will not purchase this product again.
I hope this review was helpfull for all of you Windows users.
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It slices, it dices..., October 25, 2004
By esanta (San Jose, CA USA)
The diminutive Airport Express is an amazing overachiever. It does:
1) connect to your stereo to play music from iTunes
2) connect to a (supported) USB printer to serve as a wireless print server
3) serve as a convenient, take-everywhere wireless router
4) extend the wireless range of some WDS-compatible wireless routers (such as Apple's recent Airport "flying saucer" routers)
That's quite a lot, and the most surprising thing is that it does them all quite well.
I mainly use mine to play music from my computer onto my main stereo system. It couldn't be easier to use: from any computer in the house, launch iTunes, select the Airport Express (instead of "Computer") for output, and from then on the music you play on iTunes plays on your stereo instead, with zero loss of quality. This applies not only to MP3 or AAC music (including tunes purchased from the iTunes Music Store) but also to internet radio and even music CDs played straight from the drive.
Most networked music players either have some sort of display (such as the Squeezebox and the Roku Soundbridge which are also great products, and the Netgear and Linksys boxes, which aren't) -- or they rely on a video interface (Roku media box, Happauge MVP, etc...). The unique design of the Airport Express is that it places the user interface on the computer and pushes the music to the receiver, instead of giving the receiver a user interface allowing the user to pull music from the server. All in all, the Roku Soundbridge and the Squeezebox are probably better products if all you want is a network music player. They're also much more expensive. But if you don't mind going to your computer to select music, the Airport Express is very compelling with its reach feature set, very high quality and reliability, and inexpensive price.
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It Does Work With 10.2.8 With Limitations, October 16, 2004
By Paul N. Walton (SF Bay Area, California, USA)
Someone wrote a review on October 14 in which he said he was unable to use this Apple Airport Express because the software CD required Apple OS 10.3 and he is using 10.2.8. I too am using 10.2.8 on a 2003 iBook G3 and found that this device worked with my system without having to install the software on the CD. It's true that you need 10.3 to install the CD, but you don't need the CD if you just have the basic Airport software that comes with 10.2.8.
I just bought an Apple Airport Card and an Apple Airport Express base station and was literally on the Internet wirelessly in about 10 seconds after plugging them in. I spent several weeks trying to get my iBook to work with a D-Link router and USB adapter without success before I finally decided to get the Apple equipment. It was worth the extra money. My wireless set up now seems to be working flawlessly so far. I even have my TiVo connected to my new Apple wireless network via the D-Link USB adapter that wouldn't work with my iBook.
You should note that if you are running 10.2.8, you can't use all of the features of Airport Express. You need 10.3 to stream iTunes, for example. You also need 10.3 to administer the Airport Express base station and perform such tasks as naming your network or configuring it with password protection, which may be essential for most and may be a good enough reason to finally upgrade to 10.3. But you can get online and you can connect a USB printer wirelessly with 10.2.8 in the meantime. And if password protection is a concern, as it probably is for most people, you can get around the problem by using a friend's computer with 10.3 to set up a password on the base station and then access it from your own computer running 10.2. Or, I even went to my local Apple Computer store and the guy at the Genius Bar there helped me to put a password on my network in a matter of minutes.
I hope the guy who wrote the one star review on Oct 14 sees this and tries again.
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Good, but could be better, October 15, 2004
By Rob Brandis
I purchased this to stream audio in another room connecting to a Linksys wireless router. It's easy to install and works well with iTunes. The sound quality is good except streaming audio has it's moments where the audio skips. Different WiFi channels seem to be better than others. Client WiFi mode is only supported for third party routers. I hope they'll fix that in v.2.
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it really just works!, October 14, 2004
By one_kaleberg (Port Angeles, WA United States)
I had been trying to get a network print server for our Macintosh 802.11b network, but it was hard to get a straight answer on which would work and which would not. I had tried a D-Link wireless print server, but it turns out that it only works with Postscript printers with Macs. This is hidden in the fine print of the manual. Then I contacted Axis, because the fine print in their manual IMPLIED that non-Postscript printers were supported, but their customer support denied this in an email.
So, I went with Apple for an extra $30 or so. I plugged in the printer USB cable and shoved the Airport Express into the wall. About a minute later a strange network showed up on my Airport pulldown menu. I installed the software on the CD that came with it and my Panther based system had me up and printing in minutes.
Then, I went over to one of the other Macs running Jaguar. Apple implies you really need Panther, or at least 10.2.8, to use the Airport Express, but I pulled out the Rendezvous printers menu and IT JUST WORKED. Totally amazing.
Now, I've noticed that I've got a little pull down tab in iTunes, so I suppose I can listen to music while my printer thrashes. There's also an option for extending my Airport network range, but we're pretty extended here as it is. So, I bought the Swiss Army knife of the 802.11b world. Right now I'm just using the corkscrew, but it's nice to know it has lots of extra blades, AND IT JUST WORKS.
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My life is much easier these days...because of my Airport..., October 12, 2004
By glynn@thestreetlamp.com (San Diego, CA United States)
I have read some of the other reviews in this space, and they do appear mixed. I can only offer my experience with this product, which has been absolutely spectacular. I have a G4 Powerbook, a printer, the airport express, and two toddlers. What the wireless capabilities have done is make my house much more enjoyable to all of my family. I keep my Powerbook on my coffee table, my printer on the top of my stereo unit. My oldest daughter, 4 years old right now, can walk up to my laptop, turn it on, click on her Barbie.com shortcut on the desktop, and print out new coloring sheets for her and her younger sister. Then, while they color, with a couple of clicks, she can play any of her music from iTunes. With everything so accessible, my daughters are becoming more computer literate, and have very little interest in watching TV anymore, and there are no wires traipsing across the house. And as far as ease of use? I had it up and running in less than 5 minutes, without ever looking at the manual. After being a PC person until just two years ago, these are the exact reasons that I converted to the Mac world. This is just another great product by the people at Apple.
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For Windows people in despair..., October 9, 2004
By C.P. Cavafy
Yes, the directions stink, but there is hope for you Windows users. If you have the typical Windows wireless network setup (computer, router, laptop, access points, etc.), then follow these easy steps to get your AirPort up and running.
1. Before you go wireless, physically connect your AirPort to your router with an Ethernet cable. Plug in the AirPort, and wait until the LED turns solid green.
2. Start the AirPort Admin Utility for Windows. You now want to configure the AirPort to join your existing network "wirelessly". You should see the AirPort Base Station appear with its IP address in the Base Station Chooser.
3. In the lower right-hand corner, click on Configure... Click on the AirPort tab. In the "AirPort Network" section, Use base station to: "Join an Existing Wireless Network". Underneath that, type in your existing wireless "Network Name". You will be asked to change the password as well.
4. Click "Update" in the lower right-hand corner of the Configure window. Your AirPort will be restarted, and the LED should turn solid green again.
5. Finally, disconnect the AirPort from your router, and remove the connecting cable. You should NOW be able to plug in your AirPort anywhere to join your existing network.
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A bargain of a wireless USB print server - and small!!!, October 8, 2004
By Robert C. Brown (Keuka Park, NY USA)
I'm a Macintosh IT guy, and had been pricing wireless USB printer servers. They are in the $120 range, but bulky. This unit is nice and compact.
It works great as a print server - lay on the couch with my PowerBook and print in the other room. Also works great as a wireless hub/router/access point. I don't live the iLife, so I haven't even bothered using it with iTunes.
By the way, did I mention it's nice & compact? It slides easily into my bag when I make service calls.
Even without iTunes support it's a great unit and belongs in an IT professionals bag of tricks.
---Update ---
I have since used it to extend the range of my home Linksys WCG-200 combined cable modem/firewall/router/wireless access point. All done with minimal aggravation. The only aggravation is that the in the meantime I had upgraded to OS X 10.4, and the software supplied with the AirPort Express (APExp) is now part of Tiger and the CD supplied with the APExp no longer worked. A couple minutes banging around (We don't need no steenkin' directions!) and all was still A-OK!
A neat feature I had not previously discovered: If you attempt to route iTunes to the APExp and you do NOT have a speaker set/stereo/etc plugged in to the audio-out on the APExp, a red LED behind the audio-out jack lights up. Not sure that it's all that useful, but definitely long on the Cool factor. I guess it shows you where you're supposed to stick that plug!
If anything, my opinion of this is even better.
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A lil disapointed, October 8, 2004
By reader (bristol, ri United States)
I bought this unit cause i loved the idea of airtoons, wireless printing and wireless hotsync for my sony clie. i use it with my g4 powerbook. it all works easily but with one major glich. when itunes hits a silent point i can faintly hear a radio broadcast through my speakers. if i quit itunes the problem goes away. the unit is hooked up to my tivoli radio two.
the most disapointing thing is that i cannot find this problem listed on apple anywhere and therefor have to run a wire to my stereo.
without this problem it would be a five star product.
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I'm buying a second one, October 7, 2004
By Scott Burton (Los Angeles, CA USA)
This is a typical Apple product, big on design and just barely functional. Its many talents are sometimes undone by irritating problems. Poor signal strength contributes greatly here, which can completely unravel AirTunes, the device's most compelling feature.
Although setup is simple the first time around for a pure AirTunes station, the pack-and-go convenience might make you forget to change configurations before you leave for the hotel - if it can't find its original wireless access point, you can't find it with Airport Admin Utility. Yikes! This usually requires a reset but moreover shows poor planning by Apple engineers. It wouldn't be the first time, but genius is sloppy, no?
Anyway I'm buying a second one, despite the cost. It's still a great access point, with killer Apple design and iTunes integration that other wireless music device makers can't match.
-update-
Wish I could give it another star; it easily form a WDS with other Airport Express basestations (and Buffalo, among others from what I've heard), and it handles the speed penalty well. In fact, it seems to me that AE devices generally perform better with each other than with third-party devices. So if you already have a wired router, consider a few of these instead of the confusing mess of competing products.
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