Apple Time Capsule

Apple Time Capsule is a unique invention from the invention labs of Apple! If you are a regular follower of Steve Job’s keynotes you would already be familiar with it. For others to get things started, this is a hard drive as well as a wireless router clubbed together. This is a great product for users who love to save space and of course Apple followers would have already bought this one! I will be reviewing the 500GB version of the Time Capsule, although there is a 1TB version also.

Apple Time Capsule specifications :

• Dimensions : 7.8″ x 7.8″ x 1.4″
• Storage Capacity : 500GB
• Hard disk type : 3.5″ SATA-300
• Connectivity : Gigabit Ethernet / 802.11a/b/g/n
• Bandwidth: 2.4GHz and 5GHz
• NAT support,DHCP support,RADIUS support
• Interfaces : Ethernet-USB
• OS Compatibility : Mac OSX 10.4 or later, Windows XP SP2,Vista
• Approx. Price : $300

The Time Capsule comes in a very sober and clean design without any added attractions.The router has an inbuilt antenna, so the Time Capsule resembles exactly like a external hard drive. There is only one LED at the front to give you company while working. The back is filled with all the ports ranging from power input to Ethernet ports. Surprisingly, Apple has not included a power button, so that leaves you with your main power supply switch for doing the ON/OFF task!

The Time Capsule combines a Airport Extreme Base Station with a hard drive. A big downside of the hard drive is that backing up and some other features are limited to Mac users which leaves Windows users in the dark. This will bring down its sales with Windows users by a huge margin. The router can connect wirelessly to a Mac or Windows machine. This enables you to wirelessly read/write from the hard drive although speeds will take a hit.

Connecting the Time Capsule to a Windows PC brings up the drive in the network folder. Mac users have many added advantages such as getting to use it for basic storage as well. Leopard users can use the Time Capsule with the Time Machine feature to set up automated backups.Simply put, the Time Capsule is a boon for Mac users while Windows users are offered with limited functionality.

USB port is an ultra-cool feature that lets you plug in any networkable USB device or a series of devices through a hub and share them across the network using the Time Capsule. USB port also accepts printers which is an added advantage, although that can also be done wirelessly if your printer is Wi-Fi capable.

The performance is not a top priority with the Time Capsule but you do get decent performance. You manage to get around 4.5 Mbps/5.1Mbps write/read through Gigabit Ethernet interface. The wireless performance is not impressive at about just 65 Mbps measure at a distance of 15 feet from router.The signal strength drops considerably at larger distances. The hard disk performance is good enough for most of your tasks though.

Pros :

• Neat and clean look
• Upto 1TB hard disk available
• Networking via USB port
• Great for Mac users
• Portable

Cons :

• Average performance
• Limited Windows functionality
• Not advanced storage features

Final Thoughts

The Apple Time Capsule is a great invention in itself and it sets the stone for further such interesting combinations that might crop up in future. Its a good buy for Mac users as they get to exploit the Time Capsule to the maximum. It will not go down too well with Windows users. Performance is a bit of concern especially with networking. If you want to save space, then you won’t get a better product that this!

My Rating : 3.75/5