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Apple has long been a pioneer of wireless home networking solutions. First to introduce and perfect home networking using the 802.11.b standard they pioneered as early as 1999 and the UFO shaped Airport wireless router, Apple has continued to perfect its wireless technology ever since. It was also the first to take the newer 802.11.g wireless standard to the public with its updated Airport Express and Airport Extreme wireless router line.

Apple is continuing to produce innovative wireless applications, improving on the wireless 802.11.g standard by introducing the next generation Airport using 802.11.n – the very latest in wireless technology, currently under development. Their next home network Airport wireless router is being made to look more like their Apple TV and Mac Mini line of products than the original space ship shaped Airports of the past. This new Airport design has a compact footprint and new features to compliment its new technology.

With the ability to use multiple 802.11 technologies, not just the newest, various connections and USB storage slated to be included, this new generation router from Apple will take home networking to the next level and make network storage and backup functionality to the next level. It includes three ethernet ports, which opens your network possibilities to include your printers and non-wireless computers as well as the standard ability to support up to 10 wireless connections at a time. Because it incorporates the older technology as well, you won’t be forced to update any older computers. Don’t you love how Apple always makes sure expensive upgrades aren’t required to use their newest technology? I know I do.

In true Apple fashion, they have been shipping the majority of their hardware with 802.11.n ready cards since late in 2006. Only a few products, such as the bare bones iMac, have shipped without the card. Once this new router is released in 2008, you can install a small software patch that will activate the added functionality in the card that was shipped with products such as the MacBook and most iMacs. This little upgrade is reported to cost $1.99 – small change to avoid having to upgrade your wireless card, as you would with most PC technology upgrades.

Apple is even offering you the chance to choose your network band with this router. It will work on a 2.4Ghz band like current technology does, or you can choose a 5.8 Ghz band and enjoy less wireless traffic and interference. The new technology also has two-channel combination ability, meaning it will automatically combine two open channels to make one faster channel. This means you can use your laptop even farther away from the next generation base station, and enjoy faster internet and network usability.

The new Airport base stations support several kinds of security, which means you can design a secure network around whatever hardware combination you have. They’ve even included the new WPA2 security for the latest in protection against data and identity theft. In the early models, the USB storage will have to be in a separate USB device. Later models have plans to include storage right in the unit to accommodate your data in one piece of hardware.

Apple has taken the superior capabilities of the new Airport into consideration for its next OS release: OS 10.5 Leopard. Leopard will include a new software program called Time Machine designed to automatically back up your data to the USB storage device you hook up to your Airport. Once again apple steps up to match its innovative hard ware with innovative software included – no extra purchase necessary. The wireless capability of storing to a USB device is the first step on the road to a total home computing and home storage network. Once again Apple leads the charge in innovative technology easy enough for anyone to use.

Author: Leslie Poston, © 2007, All Rights Reserved

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