JiWire Lab Test Results

It's a good thing this AirPort has an external antenna port, because the first thing you'll probably want to do is attach one to improve on its paltry range. It started off fine, with average performance when clients were positioned nearby, but throughput dropped off dramatically just one room away and things didn't get any better from there. If you want to cover your whole house, an antenna or second AirPort will definitely be necessary. Considering that an AirPort antenna alone costs more than most full routers from other vendors, that's not much of a consolation.

Throughput vs. Distance

Chart Key: Click on a product to see its results...
D-Link AirPlus XtremeG Wireless Router DI-624
NetGear 108Mbps Wireless Firewall Router WGT624
Microsoft Wireless-G Base Station MN-700
Linksys Wireless-G Broadband Router WRT-54G
Apple AirPort Extreme Base Station (with modem)
Buffalo AirStation G54 (WBR-G54)
NetGear Cable/DSL Wireless Router MR814v2

How We Tested

Our real-world performance tests measure actual throughput in a typical wood-frame house, through walls and floors, at five distances from the base station: 3 feet (same room), 15 feet (same floor), 25 feet (same floor), 35 feet (upstairs), and 50 feet (upstairs). All tests were conducted with 128-bit WEP encryption on, and in 802.11g-only mode, if available.