AirPort Extreme - wikipedia AirPort Extreme The AirPort Extreme is a residential gateway product from Apple Inc. combining the functions of a router, network switch, wireless access point and NAS as well as varied other functions, and one of Apple 's AirPort products. The latest model, the 6th generation, supports 802.11 ac 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 ( then ) newly introduced 802.11 g Wi - Fi standard, differentiating it from earlier devices that ran the slower 802.11 a 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 802.11 ac 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 802.11 ac model was re-packaged into a more vertical case, taller than it is square. According to a Bloomberg report on November 21, 2016, `` Apple Inc. has disbanded its division that develops wireless routers, another move to try to sharpen the company 's focus on consumer products that generate the bulk of its revenue, according to people familiar with the matter. '' Contents 1 Features 1.1 Overview 1.2 AirPort Disk 2 AirPort Extreme models by generation 2.1 Original generation 2.2 1st generation 2.3 2nd generation 2.4 3rd generation 2.5 4th generation 2.6 5th generation 2.7 6th generation 3 Comparison chart 4 See also 5 Notes Features Overview Fully featured 802.11 ac Wi - Fi base station Sleep Proxy Service 4 Ethernet ports ( 3 LAN ports, 1 WAN port ) -- all ports are gigabit Ethernet on newer versions USB interface for disk and printer sharing Built - in file server ( AFP and SMB ) Runs VxWorks Operating System by WindRiver or a customized version of NetBSD. 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 ( NAS ) 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 802.11 g 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. 1st generation On January 9, 2007 the AirPort Extreme began shipping, with support for 802.11 n draft specification, and built - in wireless print and storage server. 2nd generation On March 19, 2008, Apple released a firmware update for both models of the AirPort Extreme that, according to third - party reports, allowed AirPort Disks to be used in conjunction with Time Machine, similar to the functionality provided by AirPort Time Capsule. This behavior was not officially supported. 3rd generation On March 3, 2009, Apple unveiled a new AirPort Extreme with simultaneous dual - band 802.11 Draft - N radios. This allowed full 802.11 Draft - N 2x2 communication in both 802.11 Draft - N bands at the same time. 4th generation On October 20, 2009, Apple unveiled an updated AirPort Extreme with antenna improvements. 5th generation On June 21, 2011, Apple unveiled an updated AirPort Extreme, referred to as AirPort Extreme 802.11 n ( 5th Generation ). 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 : Frequency range ( MHz ) Mode AirPort Extreme model Output power ( dBm ) Output power ( mW ) Comparison ( percents ) Difference ( percents ) 2412 -- 2462 802.11 b 4th generation 24.57 286.42 100 - 10.3 5th generation 24.10 257.04 89.7 802.11 g 4th generation 21.56 143.22 100 + 114.8 5th generation 24.88 307.61 214.8 802.11 n HT20 4th generation 21.17 130.92 100 + 96.8 5th generation 24.11 257.63 196.8 5745 -- 5825 802.11 a 4th generation 23.07 202.77 100 + 61.1 5th generation 25.14 326.59 161.1 5745 -- 5805 802.11 n HT20 4th generation 22.17 164.82 100 + 104.6 5th generation 25.28 337.29 204.6 5755 -- 5795 802.11 n HT40 4th generation 21.44 139.32 100 + 181.8 5th generation 25.94 392.64 281.8 Note : 3dB more equals a doubling of power output 6th generation On June 10, 2013, Apple unveiled an updated AirPort Extreme, referred to as AirPort Extreme 802.11 ac ( 6th Generation ). The 6th generation AirPort Extreme ( and 5th generation AirPort Time Capsule ) features three - stream 802.11 ac Wi - Fi technology with a maximum data rate of 1.3 Gbit / s, which is nearly three times faster than 802.11 n. Time Machine is now supported using an external USB hard drive connected to AirPort Extreme ( 802.11 ac model only ). Comparison chart Approx. release date Consumer nickname AirPort Extreme Model Wireless standard Gigabit Ethernet Guest network Radio type MIMO IPv6 router mode * * * Time - Machine Backup January 7, 2003 Original / round M8799LL / A A1034 802.11 b / g No No Single band 2.4 GHz No No No January 9, 2007 1st generation MA073LL / A A1143 802.11 a / b / g / n No No Dual band 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz 3 × 3 : 2 No Yes August 7, 2007 2nd generation MB053LL / A A1143 802.11 a / b / g / n Yes No Dual band 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz 3 × 3 : 2 No Yes March 3, 2009 3rd generation MB763LL / A A1301 802.11 a / b / g / n Yes Yes Dual band ( simultaneous ) 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz 2 × 2 : 2 ( in each band ) No Yes October 20, 2009 4th generation MC340LL / A A1354 802.11 a / b / g / n Yes Yes Dual band ( simultaneous ) 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz 3 × 3 : 3 ( in each band ) Yes, but not over PPPoE Yes June 21, 2011 5th generation MD031LL / A A1408 802.11 a / b / g / n Yes Yes Dual band ( simultaneous ) 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz 3 × 3 : 3 ( in each band ) Yes, but not over PPPoE Yes June 10, 2013 6th generation ME918LL / A A1521 802.11 a / b / g / n / ac Yes Yes Dual band ( simultaneous ) 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz 3 × 3 : 3 ( in each band ) Yes, but not over PPPoE Yes * 802.11 n draft - specification support in 1st - to 3rd - generation models. * * 802.11 ac draft - specification support in 6th - generation model. * * * All models support IPv6 tunnel mode. See also Wikimedia Commons has media related to AirPort Extreme. AirPort Express AirPort Time Capsule Notes Jump up ^ Gurman, Mark - Apple Abandons Development of Wireless Routers November 21, 2016 BLOOMBERG Jump up ^ `` Mac OS X v10. 6 : About Wake on Demand ( Apple Article HT3774 ) ''. Apple. August 27, 2009. Retrieved September 15, 2009. Setting up Wake on Demand ``, `` Setting up a Bonjour Sleep Proxy Jump up ^ `` AirPort Extreme : Apple Breaks 90 Mbps ''. wifinetnews.com. Archived from the original on February 6, 2010. Retrieved January 6, 2016. Jump up ^ Apple.com -- AirPort Extreme -- Sharing, Retrieved on January 17, 2007. Jump up ^ `` Airport Extreme ( 5th Gen ) and Time Capsule ( 4th Gen ) Review -- Faster WiFi ''. Airport Extreme ( 5th Gen ) and Time Capsule ( 4th Gen ) Review. AnandTech. Retrieved October 24, 2011. Jump up ^ `` AirPort Extreme ''. Apple.com. Archived from the original on June 8, 2004. Retrieved November 1, 2014. Jump up ^ `` AirPort Extreme -- Technical Specifications ''. Apple.com. Archived from the original on June 8, 2004. Retrieved November 1, 2014. Jump up ^ `` Time Machine now works with AirPort Extreme 's AirDisk feature ''. Engadget.com. March 19, 2008. Archived from the original on March 20, 2008. Retrieved March 19, 2008. Jump up ^ `` Update allows Time Machine backups on AirPort Extreme ''. Macworld.com. March 19, 2008. Retrieved Nov 2, 2016. Jump up ^ `` OS X Mountain Lion : Disks you can use with Time Machine ''. Apple. July 31, 2012. Retrieved October 9, 2012. Jump up ^ `` Time Machine does n't back up to AirPort Extreme AirPort Disks ''. Apple. April 25, 2012. Retrieved October 9, 2012. Jump up ^ Test Report -- Previous version Federal Communications Commission ( FCC ) Jump up ^ Test Report -- Current version Federal Communications Commission ( FCC ) Jump up ^ AirPort base stations : Time Machine hard drive compatibility Jump up ^ About the guest network feature of AirPort Extreme and AirPort Time Capsule Wi - Fi base stations by Apple Current AirPort Express AirPort Extreme AirPort Time Capsule Discontinued AirPort Base Station Software iTunes / AirPlay AirPort Utility Time Machine Apple hardware Apple II Family Discontinued Apple I Apple II series Apple III Apple Lisa Mac Desktop Current iMac Mac Pro Mac Mini Discontinued Compact Macintosh Macintosh II LC Quadra Performa Centris Power Macintosh eMac Laptop Current MacBook ( Retina ) MacBook Air MacBook Pro Discontinued Macintosh Portable PowerBook iBook MacBook ( pre-2015 ) Server Discontinued Workgroup Server Network Server Xserve Mac Mini Server Mac Pro Server Devices Current Apple TV Apple Watch Series 1 Series 3 HomePod iPad ( 5th ) iPad Mini 4 iPad Pro iPhone 6S / 6S Plus SE 7 / 7 Plus 8 / 8 Plus X iPod Touch ( 6th ) Discontinued Interactive Television Box Apple Watch 1st Series 2 iPad 1st 3rd 4th Air Air 2 iPad Mini 1st iPhone 1st 3G 3GS 4S 5 5C 5S 6 / 6 Plus iPod Classic iPod Hi - Fi iPod Mini iPod Nano iPod Shuffle iPod Touch 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th Newton Apple Pippin PowerCD Apple QuickTake Accessories Current AirPort AirPort Express Router AirPort Extreme Router AirPort Time Capsule Magic Mouse 2 Magic Trackpad 2 Apple Pencil AirPods Smart Keyboard Remote Siri Remote External SuperDrive Magic Keyboard AirPower Discontinued Displays Thunderbolt Cinema Studio Drives iSight Modems Printers Scanners Mighty Mouse Magic Mouse Magic Trackpad Apple Wireless Keyboard Apple Mobile Processors 64 - bit Apple A7 Apple A8 Apple A8X Apple A9 Apple A9X Apple A10 Apple A10X Apple A11 32 - bit Apple A4 Apple A5 Apple A5X Apple A6 Apple A6X Apple S1 Apple S2 Apple S3 Comparison of Macintosh models Timeline of Apple Inc. products Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=AirPort_Extreme&oldid=802424731 '' Categories : Apple Inc. peripherals Hidden categories : Use mdy dates from April 2012 Talk Contents About Wikipedia Español Esperanto Français Nederlands Norsk Русский Edit links This page was last edited on 26 September 2017, at 02 : 33. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: what is the apple airport extreme used for
Answer: the functions of a router, network switch, wireless access point and NAS as well as varied other functions