HP TouchSmart. Touch the future now.Apple Time Capsule (1TB)
Manufacturer: Apple Part number: MB277LL/A
- More product information:
- Editors' review
- User reviews
- Specifications
- Product series
- Manufacturer info
- Bottom Line:
- Apple's hybrid 802.11n wireless router/networked hard drive offers some powerful data backup features for Mac owners, as well as Apple's typical pleasing design. Windows users and anyone who demands speed from their 802.11n network will be disappointed.
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Where to buy
| store | customer rating | inventory | tax & shipping | price |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon.com Marketplace |  | See Site | Enter zip code to get total price: Price +Tax +Shipping =Total price | as of 11/27/2009 |
| Tech For Less, Inc. | | In stock | as of 11/27/2009 Refurbished |
CNET editors' review
Apple Time Capsule (1TB) price range: $257.99 - $365.18
- Reviewed by: Rich Brown
- Reviewed on: 03/03/2008
The good: Clean design; good deal for Draft-N router and 500GB or 1TB of storage; low maintenance data backup for Mac users; extensibility via USB port.
The bad: Only average networking performance; few advanced storage features beyond backup capabilities, and those only for Mac users.
The bottom line: Apple's hybrid 802.11n wireless router/networked hard drive offers some powerful data backup features for Mac owners, as well as Apple's typical pleasing design. Windows users and anyone who demands speed from their 802.11n network will be disappointed.
Apple's new Time Capsule is one of only two devices we know of that incorporates both a wireless router and a hard drive into the same product. The other, a year-and-a-half-old router from Asus, offers neither the same high-speed wireless bandwidth nor as much storage capacity as the Time Capsule, which comes in 500GB (for $299) and 1TB (for $499) varieties. In its niche, then, the Time Capsule is the most advanced product on the market. Its price is also fair compared with a separate router and network-attached hard drive. Mac owners and the space or design conscious should consider the Time Capsule if they're in need of a router upgrade. Windows PC owners should look elsewhere for more advanced storage capabilities, as should anyone that demands fast wireless performance.
Device type: Wireless router with attached hard drive
- • Network standard: 802.11n (draft), 802.11a/b/g
- • Bandwidth: 2.4GHz and 5GHz
- • Operating systems supported: Linux; Mac OS X 10.4 or later (for setup); Windows XP (SP2) or Vista
- • Security options: WEP; WPA/WPA2; NAT firewalls, MAC address filtering
- • Features: 3 Gigabit LAN ports; 1 Gigabit WAN port; 1 USB 2.0 port; DHCP support; DDNS
- • Notable design features: Antenna-less design
- • Support: One-year warranty; 24-7 toll-free phone support; e-mail support form; FAQs; knowledge base; driver and software downloads
Setup and ease of use
Time Capsule is essentially an Airport Extreme Base Station with a built-in hard drive and an easy-to-use, Mac-only automated backup program. Most of what we said in our review of the original, standalone Airport Extreme Base Station applies to the Time Capsule as far as its networking capabilities. Both products provide you with a 2.4GHz or 5.0GHz 802.11n wireless network. We are happy to report that we were able to connect an Intel-powered Mac Pro, an iMac G5, a Windows Vista-based HP Pavilion tx2000z laptop, and the Windows XP-based Lenovo X300 laptop to the Time Capsule wirelessly with little trouble. Each system was also able to read and write to the Time Capsule's hard drive.
The design of the Time Capsule is clean and visually appealing, and almost identical to the Airport Extreme Base Station. You still get one indicator light up front and a row of ports on the back. That's it. Many routers offer an array of blinking status LEDs, but the Time Capsule gives you only a static green light to let you know that it's working. The backside provides you with a single Gigabit Ethernet port for a connection to your cable or DSL or LAN connection, three Gigabit ports for hard-wired network devices, and a single USB 2.0 input. There's no power button, but you do get a reset button to restore the factory default settings. The power cable (and it's just a cable, not a brick) plugs directly into the back. We should note that while the Time Capsule is basically silent, the top gets hot, especially when the hard drive is moving a lot of data. Be sure to store it in a well-ventilated area.
Apple made the claim that setting up the Time Capsule to manage your network is easy, and if you're comfortable with basic networking concepts, it is. If you don't know whether you have a static IP address or you're unfamiliar with abbreviations like PPP and DHCP, you can still probably navigate Time Capsule's handful of setup screens, thanks to mostly clear English descriptions that accompany each option. You initiate the installation by inserting the Time Capsule CD, and from there (on a Mac) it will update your AirPort Utility, and then prompt you to select various options. Windows drivers are also included on the disc.
With your network established, Windows users should be able to see the hard drive in their network folder, and read and write files to it as with any networked storage device. You can set up a password to connect to the drive, although you get no user management interface like that of the HP MediaSmart Server. You can also access the Time Capsule's drive remotely through a .Mac account, which you have to pay for. The HP Server provides you remote access for free, although it's not a router.
Mac users can use the Time Capsule's hard drive for basic storage as well, but they also get more benefit from Time Capsule than the Windows crowd, due to its interface with Leopard's Time Machine feature. Time Machine lets you set automated backups from the Macs on your network directly to the Time Capsule. It took about two hours to back up a relatively sparse 21GB of data on a Macbook laptop over a wired Gigabit connection to the Time Capsule. Apple has also preset Time Capsule to perform several backups a day for the first week you set it up, several backups a week after the first day, and then throughout each month, until you run out of drive space. Each backup only saves the information that's changed, so you don't have to do the complete multi-gigabyte data transfer every time. You can also tell Time Machine to back up manually whenever you want.
Features
This brings us to the Time Capsule's USB port. The Airport Extreme Base Station had one as well, so much of the functionality is the same. The idea is that you can plug pretty much any networkable USB device into the Time Capsule and share it across your network. It can also accept a USB hub if you want to attach multiple devices. We successfully added a USB flash drive and a USB hard drive, each of which created another distinct drive volume on our network. Apple offers no RAID capability with the Time Capsule (unlike the old Asus router-storage combo product), so it cannot mirror added drives or map them into a contiguous volume. Mirroring a drive already set to backup might be excessive, but it would be useful to create a single volume out of multiple drives.
In addition to adding storage, Apple also touts the USB ports for adding printers to your network. We were able to add a Canon Pixma ip2600 inkjet printer with no trouble, even over a powered USB hub that also had a hard drive connected to it. All of the various Mac- and Windows-based systems on the Time Capsule's network were able to print to it. We also installed a Wi-Fi-enabled Lexmark X7550 to the Time Capsule's network wirelessly. The Time Capsule is not a print server, so if you send a job to the printer while it's printing from another system, you'll simply get an error message, instead of the Time Capsule adding the new job to a queue. That's to be expected, although it's still a bit frustrating, as Apple makes a point to advertise the Time Capsule's suitability for network printing.
You should also not consider the Time Capsule as a one-stop shop for your iTunes library across various systems, nor should you expect it to work with an Apple TV. In other words, a completely centralized Apple home media network is still out of reach. We were able to get an Apple TV onto the Time Capsule's wireless signal, but it would not find any of the iTunes libraries. Further, between the various account management pitfalls and the fact that you're already presumably backing your iTunes library up to the Time Capsule, its media file-management capabilities are also problematic. To be fair, Apple does not advertise Time Capsule as a media server, although we hold out hope that it might improve the possibilities of Time Capsule with a firmware or software update.
One thing we feared about the Time Capsule when we first heard of it is that because it's essentially a closed box, if the hard drive or the router fails, you end up losing both. It's been shown that you can peel off the Time Capsule's rubbery bottom and remove the hard drive yourself, but Apple confirmed for us that even if you were to do that, you couldn't treat the Time Capsule as a standalone router, as the hard drive hosts vital data on it for the networking functionality as well. That's another shortcoming, although Apple assured us that the Time Capsule's "server grade" Hitachi Deskstar hard drive would last a lot longer than the typical desktop or laptop drive.
Performance
(Longer bars indicate better performance)
(Longer bars indicate better performance)
As for its performance, we're happy enough with the Time Capsule's capability as a storage device. Results will vary depending on what kind of connection you use (see the wireless performance below, for example) but when you connect a system to the Time Capsule via a Gigabit Ethernet cable, you should feel comfortable knowing that its data transfer speeds lie within the range of what we expect from other network attached hard drives.
(Longer bars indicate better performance)
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Throughput max |
(Longer bars indicate better performance)
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Mixed throughput |
(Longer bars indicate better performance)
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Throughput 200 feet |
Although we're satisfied with its storage performance, as a wide-bandwidth 802.11n wireless router, the Time Capsule is decidedly mediocre. On the 2.4GHz performance indicated in our charts, the Time Capsule fell behind by a full 20 Mbps on our max throughput test compared with a NetGear RangeMax router. It's also on the lower end of the spectrum when compared on our long range and mixed throughput tests. We don't show 5.0GHz frequency scores for brevity, but our results on those tests scaled in a similar fashion. Anecdotally, backing up and moving data back and forth between the drive and various systems felt reasonably fast, but if you need your network to be especially speedy, our charts show that you have several faster options out there.
Service and support
Apple's service and support support are also unimpressive, but this isn't exactly news. The one-year parts and labor warranty is standard across the industry, but Apple's 90 days of phone support is the shortest coverage plan around. You can get in-person help at an Apple store if you live near one, and online you'll find the standard array of assistance. If you can't find the support you need from Apple's FAQs or troubleshooting document, the Apple user forum is a reliable alternative.
Find out more about how we test wireless routers.
User reviews
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Everything I ever wanted
by banks_37 on February 7, 2008
Pros: All in one, USB expandable
Cons: Cost a lot for the 1TB
Summary: I have an apple tv and a macbook. The problem is all the movies and tv shows ect take up a lot of room. The ATV has a hard drive ...
Summary: I have an apple tv and a macbook. The problem is all the movies and tv shows ect take up a lot of room. The ATV has a hard drive on it, but not near big enough, so I bought and external hard drive. However, to be able to stream my movies from it the the ATV I have to plug it in every time. It gets old. I HATE wires, and I'm glad that Steve Jobs too. With the TC I can have all the movies ect on the TC and stream them to the ATV. Plus now it doesn't look bad with an external hard drive hooked to the airport extreme base station. In the future though I always know that I can get a usb hub and hook as many hard drives and printers I want to the TC. The 1 TB version I think is way overpriced, but the 500 GB is right on. It's about the same price for that as a cheap external HD and the airport extreme. I think the TC is perfect for the person who hates wires and especially perfect for those with an ATV. As far as breaking down, not worried. The "server grade" HD is supposed to last at least 1 million hours. At that rate is should work for at least 41,666 days, which is over 114 years. I sure that I'll want something else in 10 years, probably less.
6 out of 6 users found this user opinion helpful.
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My worst tech purchase ever
by mikieman21 on March 23, 2008
Pros: size, esthetics
Cons: 4/4 did not work!
Summary: I first purchased the 500GB model I followed the instructions to the letter but could not get it to work as a router. It never made a web connection. No ...
Summary: I first purchased the 500GB model I followed the instructions to the letter but could not get it to work as a router. It never made a web connection. No worries, as I already had a w/l g router so decided just to use it to back up my new MacBook Pro and all my PC's. It choked on at least five backup attempts usually after 10+ hrs.
Returned to Apple store and upgraded to the 1 TB (glutton for punishment). I asked the person in the store to test my return which she verified as bad and then test the one I was to buy. The first two she brought out to test were DOA and the third finally appeared to work.
I went home to start all over again. Again, it could not complete a backup on my new MacBook Pro. After beginning a backup, I calculated that it would take five days for it to back up the 60GB I'm using on the Mac but it never got beyond 12GB before halting with a nebulous error.
I've had it. It was bad enough the thing was dog slow but it does nothing as advertised.
I'm sure I was merely unlucky here but I am not willing to throw away any more of my time on this product. It's a shame.
Mike
PS: I hope this gets posted.3 out of 3 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Does what it is supposed to do.
by dicebier on March 4, 2008
Pros: Stylish, reliable, compliments entire mac line.
Cons: Data transfer with regards to the hard drive is not as speedy as expected.
Summary: Bottom line...it works as advertised. Recommended setup - use the Time Capsule as a wireless-n router and for time machine backups. If you want to also have a quick ...
Summary: Bottom line...it works as advertised. Recommended setup - use the Time Capsule as a wireless-n router and for time machine backups. If you want to also have a quick external HD, connect a firewire 800 drive to your machine for large libraries that you access often. In other words, take only as prescribed.
3 out of 3 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Good in theory, poor in execution.. and I use a MAC!
by Wingfootedone on October 31, 2008
Pros: Backup and setup were very easy; consistent performance until problems start
Cons: Inherrent bugs, keeps having backup failures after 6 months. Had to reset my TC 3 times after the first problems started. Hasn't fully worked since. I am switching to a 'Standard' 1 TB Ext HD for my backups.
Summary: Terrible tech supports, Nobody seems to know what is wrong. Unreliable. If your prayers work, then get it cos you will probably need to do them often...
Summary: Terrible tech supports, Nobody seems to know what is wrong. Unreliable. If your prayers work, then get it cos you will probably need to do them often...
1 out of 1 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Can't wait to use Time Capsule!
by wintermutesystems on January 20, 2008
Pros: Same as CNET Review
Cons: See below...
Summary: The part about not being able to add storage to the Time Capsule is not entirely correct. The USB port can be used to add either a printer or a ...
Summary: The part about not being able to add storage to the Time Capsule is not entirely correct. The USB port can be used to add either a printer or a Hard Drive to Apple's Time Capsule..
http://store.apple.com/Catalog/US/Images/product-details/productdiagram.gif1 out of 2 users found this user opinion helpful.
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Time Capsules turning into pumpkins at 18 months
by pfoss on November 4, 2009
Pros: The Time Capsule was everything we hoped it was until it suddenly died. I looked online and found many others with the same fate. The internal power supply runs extremely hot and dies right around 18 months. See timecapsuledead.org for more.
Cons: The biggest bummer about this product is when it goes down and if you have AppleCare they replace it - you lose all of your backup because they won't open it to salvage the hard drive. If you don't have the service plan - you're SOL
Summary: Great idea, but poor execution in the longevity category. I hope Apple does something to remedy the faulty power supplies. Recent improvements to the product have not addressed this issue ...
Summary: Great idea, but poor execution in the longevity category. I hope Apple does something to remedy the faulty power supplies. Recent improvements to the product have not addressed this issue and I'm afraid more will be subjected to this fate. You're better off with a modular approach that allows for one element to fail without taking the network and backup offline.
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Not really a good backup solution
by mamommuth on September 16, 2009
Pros: It is a great product, as long as it works as advertised. Set-up without problems, backups stored in a transparent way, great software for restoring data (time machine). Elegant design, elegant idea. Would deserve more stars if there were no cons.
Cons: No redundancy, and worst of all: The device cannot be repaired, only replaced. If something trivial (like the power supply) goes south, you have to replace the whole device and you loose all your backup'd data and the backup history
Summary: I bought the time capsule in April 2008 (maybe newer versions don't have these problems). For a few weeks it worked ok, although it was very slow. For about ...
Summary: I bought the time capsule in April 2008 (maybe newer versions don't have these problems). For a few weeks it worked ok, although it was very slow. For about half a year it did not work at all, could not complete a single backup, and none of the workaround published on the internet was successful. Then, there was a firmware upgrade in 2009 and since then everything worked like a charm (although I had to delete my whole backup history and had to start from the beginning). I was quite happy with the device for some time, but then ...
In August 2009 (device is 1 1/2 years old) it suddenly stopped working. No green light. Customer support not helpful. Went to an Apple partner for repair, and they told me that obviously the power supply did not work. But there is no way to replace the power supply (or any other defective part inside). Even if this happens during the time of your warranty, you would only get a replacement device. This means that, because of a trivial problem, I would have to buy a new time capsule (obviously, I won't). Anyway, you would loose your backup'd data unless you crack the case (loosing your warranty) in order to get at the built-in hard disk which most probably still works fine.
Googling for time capsule problems reveals that I am not the only one affected by this problem. It seems to be quite common that the time capsule's power supply unit stops working after about 18 months due to bad electrical condensers.
Ok, something like this happens from time to time. The real problem is Apple's policy of dealing with such problems. There is no workaround and this is simply idiotic. How can any reasonable person have such an idea? Imagine that your time capsule works fine, but the fan or the power supply stops working. You have to send in your time capsule and they don't repair ist, but keep it and send you a replacement (after warranty, you obviously have to buy a replacement). All you precious and secret data (and their history during the past months) stay with Apple? You loose the whole backup history because of a trivial technical problem. I have to repeat it: This is crazy. I cannot trust people who design backup solutions of this kind. -
This thing rocks
by CPWicks10934 on August 23, 2009
Pros: I purchased the 1TB version and had it up and running with only one small catch on my MacBook Pro and Desktop PC. The install was amazing how easy and straight forward.
Cons: I had to install Bonjeur for windows on my PC in order to printer with my Canon MP830 attached to the Time Capsule with the USB connection. Apple Care identified that problem in 5 minutes and I was up and running.
Summary: This is a great product.
Summary: This is a great product.
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Awesome product with the easiest set up I have seen!
by mattliptak on August 19, 2009
Pros: Easy set up and flawless performance with lightning fast speeds!
Cons: Gets very hot to the touch on the top of the unit
Summary: Not sure what all the negative talk is about this product. I have an iMac and this was the easiest set up I have ever seen for any type of ...
Summary: Not sure what all the negative talk is about this product. I have an iMac and this was the easiest set up I have ever seen for any type of electronic device. Trust me, I have a lot of gadgets and this one both router set up and time caspule were set up within minutes. It was so easy I thought I did something wrong. I gave up my complicated Linksys N router for this product because I love anythign Apple and the products are awesome and perform well. The Time Capsule makes storing files easy and the back up the first time took 30 minutes. The key is to hard wire it to the computer the first time. As for speeds, it zips right through backups and all my components are connected to lightning speed WIFI. This item does get really hot at times to the tough on the top of the box much like Apple TV does, but it is no big issue. You won't be sorry with this awesome addition!
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pretty, but ...
by BOTNET on April 13, 2009
Pros: pretty, but as usual ... pricy with no real features
Cons: no RAID support
no web configuration possible (requires special software)
it is not FTP server
has no advanced features like torrent clientSummary: I really don't get why people call this NAS, it is not NAS but intelligent backup appliance
Summary: I really don't get why people call this NAS, it is not NAS but intelligent backup appliance
Specifications
- Manufacturer: Apple
- Part number: MB277LL/A
- Description: Back up a lifetime's worth of memories with the all-new Time Capsule, a wireless hard drive that works seamlessly with Time Machine in Mac OS X Leopard. It's also a full-featured 802.11n Wi-Fi base station. Time Capsule works automatically with Time Machine in Mac OS X Leopard to create the perfect no-hassle backup solution. There are no cables, so you can back up all the computers in your home to a central location. The massive server-grade hard drive gives you all the capacity and safety you need for backing up all your Macs. Connect your DSL or cable modem to Time Capsule and quickly create a new wireless network - or extend an existing AirPort-based network - using the easy-to-use AirPort Utility for Mac and PC. Time Capsule uses next-generation 802.11n wireless technology to deliver up to five times the performance and up to twice the range of 802.11g wireless networks. Time Capsule also works great as a wireless hard drive whether you have a Mac or PC. It sets up in a snap, giving you a networked hard drive you can use for storing and sharing any kinds of files. Print documents, photos, and more from any room in the home or office to a central printer connected to Time Capsule via USB. Protect yourself with the built-in firewall and industry-standard encryption technologies including WPA/WPA2 and 128-bit WEP. Time Capsule works flawlessly with Apple TV, iPhone, iPod touch, and all your other Wi-Fi devices that use the 802.11a/b/g and 802.11n draft 2.0 wireless standards.
General
- Device Type NAS server
- Host Connectivity Gigabit Ethernet / 802.11a/b/g/n (draft)
- Total Storage Capacity 1 TB
- Width 7.8 in
- Depth 7.8 in
- Height 1.4 in
- Weight 3.5 lbs
Storage Controller
- Type Serial ATA - Integrated
Hard Drive
- Type Standard - 3.5" x 1/3H
- Capacity 1 x 1 TB
- Interface type Serial ATA-300
Optical Storage
- Type None
Optical Storage (2nd)
- Type None
Storage Removable
- Type None
Hard Drive (2nd)
- Type None
Networking
- Type Wireless access point - Integrated
- Data link protocol Ethernet, IEEE 802.11a, IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g, Fast Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet, IEEE 802.11n (draft)
- Transport protocol L2TP, PPTP, IPSec
- Remote management protocol SNMP
- Network Services Compatibility Apple Bonjour Protocol
- Features Routing, DNS proxy, NAT support, DHCP support, IPv6 support, Print server, RADIUS support, VPN passthrough, Firewall protection, MAC address filtering
- Networking standards IEEE 802.1x, IEEE 802.11a, IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g, IEEE 802.11n (draft)
Expansion / Connectivity
- Expansion Bays Total (Free) 1 ( 1 ) x Internal - 3.5" x 1/3H
- Expansion Slots Total (Free) None
- Interfaces Ethernet - USB, 4 x Ethernet 10Base-T/100Base-TX/1000Base-T USB - RJ-45 - RJ-45, 1 x Hi-Speed USB - 4 pin USB Type A
Miscellaneous
- Features Security lock slot (cable lock sold separately)
- Compliant Standards RSS-210, UL 60950, EN 300.328, EN 301.893, FCC Part 15, ARIB STD-T66, CSA 22.2 No. 60950, FCC Class B certified
Power
- Power Device Power supply - Internal
- Voltage Required AC 120/230 V
- Operational power consumption 30 Watt
Software / System Requirements
- Software type Drivers & Utilities
- Min Operating system Microsoft Windows Vista, Microsoft Windows XP SP2, Apple MacOS X 10.4 or later
- Peripheral / Interface devices USB port, Ethernet port
Video
- Video Output None
Environmental Parameters
- Min operating temperature 50 °F
- Max operating temperature 95 °F
- Operating humidity range 20 - 80%
Product series
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Manufacturer: Apple
Specs: Apple Time Capsule NAS server, 1 TB, PC, Mac, RJ-45, 4 pin USB Type A, Standard, Ethernet, IEEE 802.11a, IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g, Fast Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet, IEEE 802.11n (draft)
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Manufacturer: Apple
Specs: Apple Time Capsule NAS server, 500 GB, PC, Mac, RJ-45, 4 pin USB Type A, Standard, Ethernet, IEEE 802.11a, IEEE 802.11b, IEEE 802.11g, Fast Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet, IEEE 802.11n (draft)
Manufacturer info
- Apple
- Manufacturer profile
- Browse Apple products on Shopper.com
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- Website: http://www.apple.com
- Address:
One Infinite Loop, Cupertino, CA 95014 - Phone: 1-408-996-1010
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