Apple Widens AirPort Express Runway With 802.11n

Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) says it is taking its wireless technology up another notch with its unveiling of the next-generation AirPort Express.

The updated AirPort Express -- which retails for US$99 -- has 802.11n wireless technology and is five times more powerful than the previous model, the company says.

"From the small and portable AirPort Express to AirPort Extreme for workgroups of up to 50 users and the new Time Capsule for automated backups, Apple customers now have more great ways to extend their wireless networks with 802.11n," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of global product marketing .

Music Applications

The new AirPort Express also has Apple's AirTunes application, which enables users to stream iTunes music via computer from room to room. It has audio jacks for connection to a sound system or speakers. iTunes finds any remote speakers and helps the user select them from a pop-up list. AirTunes then streams the music from the computer to the AirPort device.

"I guess the best way to put it is that, essentially, this is a consumer electronics product, and that's all about one-upmanship," Yankee Group analyst Mike Goodman told MacNewsWorld. "If you're going to sell any type of consumer electronics product, you have to continue to innovate. Everybody is advancing, and you have to continue to evolve."

AirPort's user friendliness enhances the device's value, said Anne Thomas Manes, analyst with the Burton Group.

"They had the 802.11b, then the 802.11g and now the 802.11n; every generation is faster and more powerful," Manes told MacNewsWorld. "Actually, one thing I like about AirPort is it's pretty easy to use, manage and maintain. You plug it in, and it works."

Portability an Asset

The single-piece AirPort Express is small -- weighing 6.7 ounces -- and offers PC and Mac users the ability to share a single DSL (digital subscriber line) or cable broadband connection with as many as 10 simultaneous users, the company said, adding that users also can share a printer wirelessly that is connected to the USB (Universal Serial Bus) port. "The printer support is a nice feature," Manes commented.

Roger Kay, principal analyst at Endpoint Technologies, told MacNewsWorld that he likes the technology but, at least for music users, there are other alternatives.

"Most people find it easier to plug the thing in and run speakers from an iPod," Kay said. "It's at least a good technology and, at best, it's a niche capability that some users are going to find critical to what they do."

Pushing technology like the AirPort forward is something Apple has emphasized for a long time, Goodman noted. "It's marketing is very cutting edge, new, hip, powerful."

Security Features

The device has a number of security features as well. The company says AirPort Express protects data on networked computers with support for WiFi protected access, 128-bit WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy) encryption and a built-in firewall.

The 802.11n is standard on Apple's entire line of AirPort base stations and Mac notebooks, the iMac, Apple TV and Time Capsule.

"It's most useful for streaming video," Kay said of the 802.11n. "Having a higher-speed wireless means you can move video because it's capable of moving full-motion video."