Alternatives to the Time Capsule

[Poly]

I have a TC from 2010 and need a new one but I've read there are better and cheaper and faster alternatives. Can you recommend any?

Here is what it has to have:
-Support Time Machine
-At least 1TB storage
-Bridge mode with fast wifi, one ethernet input and one ethernet output for my pc (which does not have wifi)

If there are no real alternatives though, how "old" are the current TCs? Is it worth buying now or is an update almost around the corner?

 

[satcomer]

Get and AirPort Extreme and a good USB 3 external hard drive. You can read about it at Apple here

 

[steve123]

I have a TC from 2010 and need a new one but I've read there are better and cheaper and faster alternatives. Can you recommend any?

Here is what it has to have:
-Support Time Machine
-At least 1TB storage
-Bridge mode with fast wifi, one ethernet input and one ethernet output for my pc (which does not have wifi)

If there are no real alternatives though, how "old" are the current TCs? Is it worth buying now or is an update almost around the corner?

I recommend you look into a Ubiquity Edgerouter to replace the TC router functionality. It is an extremely good router for the money. I have a couple Edgerouter Pro 8's and they are great. They update the firmware regularly. As for the Time Machine functions, get a TB or USB disk and hang it off a mac mini running server.

 

[Aiwi]

I believe the more expensive Asus routers support Time Machine. Asus AC68U, Asus AC87U

 

[warragul]

I believe the more expensive Asus routers support Time Machine. Asus AC68U, Asus AC87U

I'm using a DLink DNS-320L, which I think is superceded. It supports the Time Machine protocol and seems to be pretty solid in that respect.
It came without drives and I had a rush of blood and bought a Seagate Archive 8TB drive (there's provision for 2 HDs) to put in it. A spare 2TB went in to keep it company.
As a Time Capsule it seems OK. Thankfully, I haven't had the need to test its restore functionality.
But as a NAS it's slow and clunky. The web interface is poor and confusing with functions in strange places.
Each drive shows up on the LAN as a seperate entity (Connect to Server) but then the drives and some shares also show up within the listing for each drive. Not too recursive.
So, as a Time Capsule substitute it appears OK. As a NAS it's not so hot.
It has no WiFi functionality.

 

[190991]

Is it worth buying now or is an update almost around the corner?

I second this question, too. I guess concrete rumors would have been heard of, but maybe someone knows if there is enough new tech out there to encourage Apple to release an updated model?

 

[thunksalot]

Airport appears to be dead. From Macrumors' Airport round-up page...

Apple is rumored to have stopped development on its line of AirPort wireless routers, suggesting we will not see refreshed devices in the future. Apple engineers who worked on the AirPort lineup have transitioned to other product teams as Apple aims to focus more on products that generate the "bulk of its revenue."

The AirPort Express, AirPort Extreme, and AirPort Time Capsule remain available for purchase, but could potentially be discontinued in the future. Apple will instead direct consumers to third-party wireless router and backup options, but has not officially confirmed that development has stopped.

Despite the apparent lack of development on AirPort products, Apple is rumored to be working on a device that would serve as sort of a whole home hub like the Amazon Echo, and it's possible wireless connectivity could be built into that product.

 

[hobowankenobi]

Another option: Synology NAS. More money up front compared to a simple shared drive, but use what ever router you want, and a load of other features and storage beyond just TM backups. If you use just couple other features, it is a good value. Another option is that they have multi-drive boxes with RAID options, so you can have more space, expandability, or redundancy.

Other NAS boxes likely support TM too, but Synology has been doing it quite a while, and are a market leader.

 

[norsemen]

Another option: Synology NAS. More money up front compared to a simple shared drive, but use what ever router you want, and a load of other features and storage beyond just TM backups. If you use just couple other features, it is a good value. Another option is that they have multi-drive boxes with RAID options, so you can have more space, expandability, or redundancy.

Other NAS boxes likely support TM too, but Synology has been doing it quite a while, and are a market leader.

I´ll second that. Add a Synology router and you have a more robust backup solution than Apple can ever offer.

https://www.synology.com/en-global/products/RT2600ac