I have an Apple Airport router that I bought years ago. I don’t remember when but it still works well. Does anyone know if it will work with a good Wi-Fi range extender, like maybe Linksys?
MacBook Air 13″, macOS 12.4
Apple engineers did their best to design the AirPort "extend" feature as a proprietary option that would only work with other Apple routers. They pretty much met their goals.
Through the years, we have not found another 3rd party "extender" or "repeater" that was fully compatible with the main AirPort router,. That doesn't mean that another 3rd party extender won't work.....it's just that using Linksys, Netgear, TP-Link, etc products, we have not found one that works correctly.
Your best bet would likely be to check Ebay for used or refurbished Apple AirPorts similar to your main router. That way, you know that the product will do exactly what you want.
Ideally, you would use the same model of router to extend the network, but an AirPort Express would do in a pinch if you don't need the highest attainable speeds or strongest signal in the extended area.
Apple engineers did their best to design the AirPort "extend" feature as a proprietary option that would only work with other Apple routers. They pretty much met their goals.
Through the years, we have not found another 3rd party "extender" or "repeater" that was fully compatible with the main AirPort router,. That doesn't mean that another 3rd party extender won't work.....it's just that using Linksys, Netgear, TP-Link, etc products, we have not found one that works correctly.
Your best bet would likely be to check Ebay for used or refurbished Apple AirPorts similar to your main router. That way, you know that the product will do exactly what you want.
Ideally, you would use the same model of router to extend the network, but an AirPort Express would do in a pinch if you don't need the highest attainable speeds or strongest signal in the extended area.
FWIW, ;years ago (ages in computer times) some 802.11g AirPort base stations could be extended by 802.11g Linksys routers ... but those were rare and not very stable. None of the more recent 802.11n or 802.11ac models, as Bob has mentioned, work with non-AirPort routers for extending (wirelessly) a network.
Thanks for the information!! I appreciate it!!
wifi range extenders for Apple Airport router
