Time Capsule vs. Airport Extreme & external HDD

Hullo all. For time capsule backups, i am either going to purchase a 1tb time capsule unit or an external usb drive to use with an airport extreme base station's usb port. Wondering if someone more knowledgeable than i knows if either choice offers a transfer speed advantage over the other.
Also, if i go with the external usb drive option then i'd like to employ a usb hub so that when necessary i can also run my printer off of the same airport's usb port. Would anybody know if this would work okay, without compromising backup speed and quality?
Thanks!

artdlr007 wrote:
Of course - that is the essence of my question: what's faster, time capsule or an AEBS and fast usb external drive. And is the speed difference significant.
One big problem not being addressed by that choice is that Time Capsule itself is slow. Even if you connect a computer over Gigabit Ethernet directly to a Time Capsule with its internal interface hard drive, you will not get throughput anywhere close to Gigabit Ethernet speeds.
From the Macworld review of Time Capsule:
Depending on the size and number of files being backed up, throughput ranged from 45 to 60 Mbps over gigabit Ethernet. This would put an initial 100GB backup at 4 to 6 hours.
That's right. Real transfer times are lower than 100Mbps Ethernet, on a par with 802.11g wireless, and well below USB 2.0.
The speeds in the review and in my experience mean that with Time Capsule, neither USB nor the hard drive is the real bottleneck because both have higher throughput than Time Capsule's networking chipset. I don't know if the AEBS would be faster.

Similar Messages

Time Capsule or AirPort Extreme + External Hard Drive for iTunes Library

Hi, I currently have an Airport Extreme (Gigabit) and am planning on getting a MacBook Pro. What I want to do is keep my iTunes Library on an External Hard Drive and attach it to my AirPort so I can access it anywhere in the house (and world). Now I have been reading various reviews that perhaps a Time Capsule would be better for my needs. I don't plan on using it for Time Machine backups right now, just as a NAS Drive. If anyone has any experience with this I would appreciate the advice.
Thanks!
Message was edited by: Mr. Macintosh693

Hi,
I have something like that working at the moment. My setup is based on a Mac Mini Core Duo [ OS 10.5.6 ] connected to a Time Capsule. I have configured iTunes to store all archived music on the Time Capsule. I use the Apple Lossless format for my CDs and approx 420 titles have taken approx 130Gb from my 1Tb Capsule. In general this setup works well [ especially the optical out of the Mac ] but be aware of the following potential pitfalls:-
1. The Time Capsule is a little on the noisy side and depending on the quality of your playback equipment, your choice of music, ambient noise and your values of "satisfactory" you may want to put your Capsule or HDD in another room. This seems OK for generic playback, but in my experience wireless is not a good way to go for streaming content.
2. iTunes v8.0.2 has a preferences capability to allow you to redirect it's archive to the Time Capsule. However, even if you leave the Capsule switched on it goes into a "sleep" mode. Rip a new CD and iTunes won't tell you this; instead it will silently reconfigure itself to store on your local hard drive and then you're left with the challenge of moving your collection piecemeal if you want it in one location, followed by manually updating iTunes to "point" it to the new location of the music.
One nice thing about the Capsule is that it does allow other connection types. I have mine networked to a PC running Ubuntu Linux and a music player called Amarok and I am able to stream the Mac-Ripped lossless files and play them over Linux perfectly... Works very well. Apparently you can do this with a Windows client and iTunes for Windows, but I don't run Windows as a matter of principle and can't validate that.
My 1Tb Time Capsule runs hot, too. Not dangerously so, but hot to the touch. There are no cooling fans, but you might want to think about placement; it needs plenty of fresh air circulating around it.
For what it's worth [ and I appreciate this is going beyond your question ] I also wanted my setup to be able to store and retrieve recorded TV. I have Elgato EyeTV and a USB Freeview decoder. I quickly learned that despite claims to the contrary the performance of the wireless connection just isn't up to streaming video content. So I went out and purchased a pair of Ethernet-over-mains adapters from Zyxel that are absolutely perfect for the job.
Yes, the Capsule is a little pricey for what is little more than a Hard Drive in a box, but it does work very well.
Beware the timeout disconnections and the silently re-configuring iTunes thought...

Behaviour's difference between Time Capsule and Airport Extreme + Ext HDD ?

Hello !
I would like to know if there is any behaviour's difference between a Time Capsule and an Airport Extreme base station + External HDD ? For instance, once Time Machine configured, have I to mount manually the drive connected to the Airport Extreme to trigger the backup ? Or once my wifi is up, TIme Machine detects the Airport Extreme base station, the hard disk, and triggers the backup ?
Regards,
Mr Lejeune

Theoretically there is no difference between the two. In reality there are two differences. First, Apple does not officially support Time Machine backups on a drive connected to the AEBS. If you run into technical difficulties you'll get no help from AppleCare techs nor from an Apple genius. Second, my experience suggests that it is a fragile backup backup system. My wife is using a TC at work whilst I have a base station and hard drive connected to it at home. Both of us have MacBooks, have the same software, and have the same basic habits. In a three month period I experienced frequent stalled backups - the last one fatal. After numerous attempts to get the backup going again I was forced to format the drive and start over. When I started over, having verified that the backup was working again, I abandoned TM and began backing up wirelessly using ChronoSync. My wife had fewer stalled backups (not none, but fewer) and thus far, nearly a year later, she has never had to format and start over.
In theory, wireless backup with TM is a great idea but its execution presently leave something to be desired. Frankly, while I am using TM to backup to a tethered hard drive and I'm beginning to trust it despite being a version 1 product, I wouldn't rely on TC and TM as my sole backup scheme.

Should I get a Time Capsule, an Airport Extreme, or a Linksys Wireless N?

Hi I have several questions before I make my purchase. I've got 2 computers in my upstairs bedroom that are wireless. I currently have a Wireless router which is a Linksys WRT54G.
It's already getting on in age so I was thinking of replacing it with a better wireless router. I'm deciding weather I should go with a Linksys N or go the apple route.
Will I get faster internet if I go with a Linksys Wireless N? What is the difference between G and N?
I was thinking of getting a Time Capsule because I wanted an automatic backup of my data.
Is a time capsule going to perform the same as a Linksys? Which router is better?
what is the difference between Time Capsule and Airport extreme. Are they basically the same with the only difference being the hardrive?
If I get a Time Capsule then do I still need a Linksys router? Is it easy to setup a wireless network using a Time Capsule or Airport Extreme?
Last question. My mom's computer upstairs uses a Linksys Wireless G usb adapter. It is also getting on in age.
The connection is always labeled as low and sometimes she can't go on the internet. What would be a much better wireless adapter for my mom's computer?
Any help is greatly appreciated.

Stuart Lawrence wrote:
Hi I have several questions before I make my purchase. I've got 2 computers in my upstairs bedroom that are wireless. I currently have a Wireless router which is a Linksys WRT54G.
It's already getting on in age so I was thinking of replacing it with a better wireless router. I'm deciding weather I should go with a Linksys N or go the apple route.
Will I get faster internet if I go with a Linksys Wireless N? What is the difference between G and N?
Enough of a difference for it to be worthwhile.
I was thinking of getting a Time Capsule because I wanted an automatic backup of my data.
The backup app is Time Machine, not Time Capsule. TM can work with any external HDD connected to the Mac, but only TC is officially supported for wireless backups by Apple. Hacks are possible to connect a USB HDD to an Extreme.
Is a time capsule going to perform the same as a Linksys? Which router is better?
Better if we are talking N vs. G.
what is the difference between Time Capsule and Airport extreme. Are they basically the same with the only difference being the hardrive?
Yes, but that is a significant difference.
If I get a Time Capsule then do I still need a Linksys router?
No.
Is it easy to setup a wireless network using a Time Capsule or Airport Extreme?
If you can setup your Linksys, you should be able to setup the AirPort as well.
Last question. My mom's computer upstairs uses a Linksys Wireless G usb adapter. It is also getting on in age.
The connection is always labeled as low and sometimes she can't go on the internet. What would be a much better wireless adapter for my mom's computer?
Sorry, none off the top of my head. Maybe you can provide the details on the computer she has.

Is it possible to use time capsule or airport extreme as a wireless hard drive for iphone?

Is it possible to use time capsule or airport extreme as a wireless hard drive for iphone.
I would like to strem movies from the hard drive to iphone.
I have already seen the Goflex Stellite, which works this way.
Is there any other device that could do this?

I did a typo. My current computer is a 2010 1/2 iMac. The stand alone monitors are still out of my price range so I'm looking for other options. By buying an external hard drive and a broken iMac, I'm still ahead. Still, if I understand you right, the 27" 2010 and earlier iMacs would be possiblities.
Are there adapters that would allow me to run a 2011 and newer iMac as an external monitor from my 2010 1/2. There are so many adapters out there these days.

Extending a network with Time Capsule and AirPort Extreme (via Belkin powerline)

Hello -
I've seen many topics about extending wireless networks here, but none seems to resolve the issue I'm having. I currently have a setup where a DSL cable modem is connected to a Time Capsule and I need to extend this network to another room using an AirPort Extreme.
I live in a very old apartment in Brazil and the walls seem to block the signal from one room to another, hence the need to extend it. Since wireless signal is very weak between rooms, I bought a Belkin powerline AV500 so I could connect both Time Capsule and AirPort using the electrical power at home (just installing a regular Ethernet cable between rooms is not an option).
I started with the basics: configure the Time Capsule + DSL as a standalone network, and it works perfectly within it's range. Then I connected the Belking powerline, plugged a MacBook via Ethernet on the other end and still got very good results (actually better speed than expected). Used it for a while with streaming and other network intensive tasks to make sure it could sustain the connection.
Finally, pluggned the AirPort Extreme on the Belking powerline and this is where the problems started. AirPort Utility 6.3.1 only gives me the option of extending a network wirelessly - it doesn't seem to give me the option of extending it via Etherenet (roaming), which is not good in my case. Luckly I had a copy of AirPort Utility 5.6 which seems to do the job (or I thought so), but it's still not working well.
Although I managed to configure both with the same name, it doesn't seem reliable and some devices (the iPhone 5, for example) are unable to connect and end up with a self-asigned IP address. I'm almost sure I'm doing something wrong on the setup, as I've seen a similar setup working before, so if anyone out there has any clue of what can be done, it will be much appreciated.
Attached the screenshots of both Time Capsule and AirPort Extreme configurations.
Thanks a lot,
-TM
AirPort Exteme:
Time Capsule:

Hello JuliaApple. Welcome to the Apple Discussions!
You have several ways to configure both base stations for what you are trying to do.
The simplest would be to configure the Time Capsule (TC) to "join" (AirPort Utility > Manual Setup > Wireless tab > Wireless Mode = Join a wireless network) your existing 802.11n AirPort Extreme Base Station (AEBSn). In this type of configuration the TC would perform as any other wireless client and not perform as a router. It will; however, still allow for both backups and sharing USB devices attached to it.

Airtune Over Ethernet with Time Capsule or Airport Extreme

Can the previous generation Time Capsule or Airport Extreme bridge an ethernet client to an Airtunes network?
Current Setup: I have an aluminum iMac wired to my Time Capsule; currently, I use the aluminum as a music server by connecting to several Airport Express clients over the the iMac's built-in Airport for Airtunes support.
Problem: I have 3-802.11g clients dragging my wifi network. I would like to dedicate the iMac's internal network to the g-clients so I don't have to use compatibility mode for my n-network. However, I will lose Airtunes speaker support when I use internet sharing over the built-in Airport. Airtunes does not appear to support the Time Capsule ethernet client.
Nodes:
-AE 802.11g (Airtunes only)
-AE 802.11n (Airtunes and USB printer)
-1st gen Time Capsule (Internet gateway, "creating network" 802.11 g/n,
-iMac 8,1 (Music server via internal wifi, wired TC client)
-Macbook 4,1 (wifi client)
-iPhone
-Canon MP620 (USB to iMac, wifi to Macbook)

Further to Bob's comments..
A Gen1 TC will be using marvel wireless chip and your 2008 and 2010 Macbook will use atheros and/or broadcom cards.. Just open your system profiler and look for info on the airport. We find the mixture of wireless chipsets especially older draft N and later N products can give very varied results.
The very fact you are linking at 270 and not 300mbps shows some reduction from theoretical max speed.. and really to get over 100mbps with any wireless you need perfect setup.. matched wireless chips etc.
Do a test uploading and downloading a file to the TC to see if the LAN speed is better than internet speed.
In reality I think you are doing especially well.. we see loads of people complaining about slow internet here who are getting less than 10% of the speed they get direct when routed through the TC. And on most occasions the limit in speed is not really going to affect what you do, as the real links to the internet are not that fast.

Time capsule and airport extreme!!! or something else?

Hi
i have been looking into a new wireless device but do i really need a time capsule or a Airport extreme or is there something better out there?
thanks

Thanks for the additional info.
The AirPort Extreme would support a hard drive, but unfortunately Time Machine backups are not supported by Apple to a drive at the USB port of the AirPort Extreme, so to meet both of your requirements, you would need to look at either the 1TB or 2 TB versions of the Time Capsule.
In addition, either the Time Capsule (or AirPort Extreme) would provide you with simultaneous dual band wireless capability, so you'll have a 5 GHz band for faster, newer devices and and a traditional 2.4 GHz band for slower devices. With this type of setup, the slower devices will not slow down the faster devices on your network.
There's a Guest Network feature as well if you plan to use the Time Capsule or Airport Extreme or Time Capsule as the main router on your network.

What is the default ip address for the Time Capsule and Airport Extreme?

What is the default ip address for the Time Capsule and Airport Extreme?

Open Airport Utility to find out the real IP address of the network connection. DHCP addresses are assigned by the router in the range chosen in Airport Utility.

How to set up 6th Generation AirPort Extreme to cable modem as a wireless router and then connect my 3rd Generation Time Capsule to AirPort Extreme as a wireless extender?

What is the best way to set up my 6th Generation AirPort Extreme (A1521) to my cable modem as a wireless router and then connect my 3rd Generation Time Capsule (A1355) to my AirPort Extreme as a wireless extender? I live in a small 1 story house and I currently have the Airport Extreme connected to my cable modem in the living room and the Time Capsule plugged into the wall in my bedroom. I am able to wirelessly connect to the internet using the AirPort Extreme as my router and I can also do wireless back ups to my Time Capsule. My problem is that my connection seems to be really slow! My 1TB Time Capsule back up is only half way complete and it has been 3 days! My computer has been backing up all day and night for almost 72 hours and its still not even 75% complete. I have backed up to this Time Capsule in the past and it never took this long. I am thinking that when I set up my AirPort Extreme and Time Capsule using AirPort Utility I must have set it up incorrectly or something.
How do I set up my Airport Extreme and Time Capsule for the fastest possible internet speed and back up speed?
Thank you,

AirPort Utility 5.6 works with AirPort Extreme 802.11g base stations.
It works with N version airports.
It will also show details of the AC model but cannot be used for the setup.. mostly.
I purposely got the new 6th Gen Airport Extreme so my internet connection would be a lot faster!
Your network will be much faster when you have AC client directly connected to the AE. Older client will go no faster.. but what is worse.. extend wireless is mixing new and old wireless standards.. guess what one wins.. OLD.. So when you extend wireless.. you have no improvement whatsoever. This whole post is about extending wireless.. so you cannot extend to older equipment and do any better.. maybe slightly better signal although from your comments that isn't happening either.
I would rather not have to use an ethernet at all with the TC and I don't know EOP adapters are!
If you do not use ethernet then you are going to be forced to accept slow speed.
EOP (ethernet over power). Also called homeplug in the US.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HomePlug
Provides a method of networking over power cabling that already exists in your house.
So what your saying is for the fastest internet speed and back up speed possible I should keep my Airport Extreme plugged into my Modem and keep my TC set up as a wireless extender? Then when I want to do back ups I should plug an ethernet cable from my TC to my MacBook Pro?
To spell this out.
A wireless link to an extended device will go very slowly.. if it is not direct.
So lets say you have a laptop sitting in the lounge.. Your connection goes.. Laptop- - - - - AE- - - - -TC.
That means two wireless links.. wireless has this nasty half duplex and single channel nature.. it can send or receive (Tx or Rx) but not at the same time.
Ethernet by contrast does both at once. It is full duplex.
Wireless can talk to one client at a time.. so if there are multiple items using wireless lets say 4 devices.. then your computer gets a 25% time slice. Since wireless cannot handle multiple simultaneous connections.
Ethernet by contrast can connect multiple computers to multiple destinations at the same time.. all transmitting and receiving at full speed.
When you put all this together.. there are a couple of rules for fast connection.
1. Use ethernet at all times. Where you cannot use ethernet use anything but wireless.. eg EOP (homeplug) at least to try and get rid of wireless.
2. Where you must use wireless use it sparingly and make sure it is never more than one hop.. ie never have an extend wireless (repeater is more usual term). Repeater will cause instant slowdown of 50% and maybe up to 75% just because it is so inefficient.
3. Fastest wireless is 5ghz but it has very short range.. you need to be up close and personal to get it working.
Apple routers however unless you do manual setup I suggest are set to connect to best signal strength not best speed. It will therefore use 2.4ghz at 25% less speed than 5ghz because it is 1db better signal.. this madness means you need to setup manually for the best setup.

Airport Time Capsule and Airport Extreme connection

I have replaced an Airport Extreme in my study upstairs by a brand new Airport Time Capsule 2T. It is the Airport Time Capsule that is connected to the Internet. The Airport Extreme has been moved downstairs and connected to the Airport Time Capsule by an Ethernet cable (run in a ventilation channel).
First, I configured the new Airport Time Capsule alone (without the Extreme). Then, I connected the Extreme and, unfortunately, configured it as a new network. Now, I would like to undo the last step and have, as they should be. both the Time Capsule and the Extreme in the same network.
The Airport Utility does not like it. Obviously, I am not doing things correctly.
1. Should I reset both the Time Capsule and the Extreme, in what order and how ?
2. How to delete unwanted networks from the list ?
Regards - Kris

You do not have to change the TC.. leave it as the standard setup.. as long as it is right.
Reset the AE to factory and try again.. or just manually edit it.
Click on the AE in the airport utility then click on edit.
Go to the network tab and make sure it is set to bridge.
Go to the wireless tab.. and setup .. create a wireless network.. NOT EXTEND.
Use identical Wireless Name to the TC.
Use identical Security setting (WPA2 Personal is only valid one really).. and same password as the TC.
Then update your AE.. it is now part of the same network with the same wireless name..

Airport Time capsul or Linksys wrt1900 + external HDD?

I Need to get a new wifi and also back up device. I currently have the old flat airport time capsule. I live in a 3 story house made from steel frame. So my wifi is not strong at all. I also use a small express to extend the wifi. But still bad.
I Have been reading about the below wifi router and they say it is quite powerful and even good for multiple story homes.
Linksys WRT1900AC Dual Band Smart Wi-Fi Wireless AC Router (2.4 + 5GHz)
IF I got this and an external HDD the cost is about the same. Anyone have any experience with linksys? I would prefer the apple one but I just want to improve my wifi throughout the house.
CHeers
Bryce

I would spend a bit of time in the charts and actual reviews here.
http://www.smallnetbuilder.com/tools/charts/router/bar/111-2_4-ghz-dn-c?see=P_D
There is a lot of info which you can get the charts to show you.. various location.. different bands etc.
However the tests are done on PC clients and PC wireless cards.. and you are not going to get the same results in Apple products..
As with most of these things.. wireless promises much but delivery is always less than expectation.
I would doubt any single wireless router can cover adequately a 3 storey house.
I can also tell you support for Time Machine will be sorely lacking even if it is listed.. these routers cannot format the disk HFS+, so they will be different and no where near reliable for TM.
It is much better to plan on running an ethernet connection between the 3 floors in some central location if that is at all possible.. and to run 3x wireless AP around the house.. if that is not possible then proper wireless mesh gear will perform much better than domestic stuff.. so look at ubiquiti unifi etc.
Linksys new products since being sold by Cisco and taken over by Belkin have been a disappointment.
Asus has tended to be the preferred units.. and do seem to work well with apple devices.

Apple TV, Time Capsule (or Airport Extreme) and streaming movies without running iTunes?

I'm thinking of buying an Apple TV but as far as I know I'll need my computer on to run movies from my iTunes account, which is something I really don't want to do every time I want to watch a movie, just wondering if this can first of all be confirmed?
Also, If I buy Apple TV and an apple time capsule (or an Airport extreme connected to a HDD), can I stream movie files located on the time capsule (or HDD) to the AppleTV without having to turn on the computer and run iTunes?

Yes you need your computer on if you want to stream from its library, even if the library is on an external or network drive.
However any purchases you have made from iTunes can be stream from the iTunes Store at any time without your computer being on.

How to setup wireless time capsule with 3rd party external HDD and router?

Topic says it all really...
I've got a linksys router and an iomega external hard drive.
I want to have wireless time capsule setup but i don't really wanna shell out for an apple time capsule when I have a perfectly working router and hard drive...
Can it be done? would I be better off buying an airport express/extreme?
cheers

Welcome, jackbyo!
I've got a linksys router
Good product
iomega external hard drive.
1) The drive must be formatted in Mac OS Extended (Journaled) to work with Time Machine.
2) The drive will need to be connected directly to your Mac via USB or FireWire connection.
Can it be done?
As above
would I be better off buying an airport express/extreme
The AirPort Express will not support a hard drive.
Time Machine backups to a drive at the USB port of the AirPort Extreme are not supported by Apple due to corruption issues.

Time Capsule as storage and External HDD as backup

Hi folks. I looked around for quite a while trying to find an answer and not duplicate threads but didn't quite find what I was looking for. I've currently got an Airport Extreme and LaCie Rugged 500GB HDD for backups. My Macbook Pro HDD (250GB) is getting full so I'm thinking through best next steps. This is my current thinking:
Replace Airport Extreme with 2 TB Time Capsule to be used as storage
Continue to use Rugged 500GB HD as location for storing backups
Essentially use the TC as a NAS media server (which I understand is controversial) but to get around the whole not storing data on the same source as backups I would use a smaller drive for backups.
I have no idea about speeds though. Also we have very modest media demands. We have about 75GB in music, 40GB in photos and don't store any movies on our machine. We don't have apple TV or anything like that although I would be interested in streaming the music to the stereo somehow.
So would this work?
Thanks!

You can do a USB hub and multiple USB drives.. they don't always co-operate but that is all part of the fun..
TM cannot backup network drives.. doesn't matter if it is wireless or ethernet.. no direct contact no backup.. strangely it can backup to the network drive.
Of course there are other backup software.. maybe even better than TM.. like CCC which is not expensive and works well.. but you will learn a new meaning of the words slow.. pain and suffering while you are digested over a 1000years in the belly of Sarlacc will be nothing compared to this backup. Especially over wireless as all packets are dragged off the first USB disk.. over the wireless network to the computer.. then back over the wireless network to the AE and then the next USB drive.
See for comparison the sarlacc.
http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Sarlacc
Sorry you kind of have to be a fan.

Time Capsule vs. Airport Extreme & external HDD

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