Apple AirPort Express review

Apple's AirPort Express is a Wi-Fi wireless network device with a difference. As well as getting your PCs talking to one another, you can use it to beam music directly from your computer to your stereo.

Unlike other wireless access points the AirPort can't be plugged directly into a PC. Instead you plug it into your router using an Ethernet cable (not supplied) and use it to share your Internet connection wirelessly between a number of PCs. You can also plug the AirPort into your hi-fi and use Apple's music software, iTunes, to beam music from any wirelessly enabled PC to your stereo.

Both the antenna and power supply are built into the unit, giving the Express its sleek looks. As you can't plug the Airport directly into a PC, you have to configure it wirelessly. This makes the device tricky to set up if you have trouble establishing a connection. We couldn't get the AirPort's software to detect the AirPort automatically, so we had to switch to manual configuration. Even then, we had trouble getting the AirPort to talk to our PC. The slim manual assumes that you have working knowledge of Wi-Fi, which will be frustrating for inexperienced users.

When used as an Internet access point, the AirPort works fine. We tested it using a broadband ADSL connection and managed download rates of 378Kbit/s: the same speed we obtained using a wired Ethernet connection to our broadband router. In our tests, the AirPort worked over a range of up to 25m - even through several walls.

For many people, though, the AirPort Express's most exciting feature will be its ability to plug into a hi-fi (again, no cables are supplied) and stream music wirelessly from a Wi-Fi PC using iTunes. This is a great idea if you have lots of MP3s on a PC in one room, and your hi-fi in another - but it isn't without problems. The AirPort Express has no display or controls of its own, so you have to return to your PC to skip a track. Worse still, iTunes can play music either on your PC or through the AirPort Express, but not both. On the bright side we noticed no loss of audio quality. Our tunes sounded the same whether we plugged our notebook into the hi-fi or beamed the music wirelessly to the AirPort.

The AirPort Express is a great idea that's been translated into a good product. Tricky setup and inherent limitations prevent it getting an award.