Xbox 360 compatibility issues with Apple Airport Extreme

by David Dreger { Feb 7th 2007 at 10:45PM }

While it may have been lost in the hubbub of the unveiling of the iPhone, Apple also brought forth a new Airport Extreme. Our friends over at The Unofficial Apple Weblog had a reader who wrote in to tell them that try as he might, he couldn't get his Xbox 360 to connect to a secure network. The related thread at the Apple Tech Support forums shows a bunch of users coming across the same problem. There are varying reports from individuals, some claiming that the previous Airport Express works fine with security, which we can attest to. Others reported that Microsoft tech support said that the issue is with 802.11 n routers and may be addressed in the coming spring update. A couple users even emailed Major Nelson about the problem, and he claimed the issue was with the Airport and it needs to be sent in by Apple before it can get certified. So, have any of you fellow Mac addicts out there had any problems connecting your Airport Extreme to your 360? Let us know.

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

MIkesOnline @ Feb 7th 2007 11:44PM

I have a Netgear draft-n wireless router WNR834B and the xbox 360 wireless connector. I have to switch my wireless settings to be a g network with WPA-PSK or WEP to make it work with my xbox 360. It works great. I am able to stream 1080P video's from my pc. I'm sure they will update the xbox 360 wireless connector to support 80211 n eventually, but I'm not even sure if they have finalized the specs for 80211 n yet. Mac users should be able to switch there network setting to make it work with the xbox 360 wireless connector.

CRASHLOCK @ Feb 8th 2007 1:28AM

I have the previous Airport Extreme and I'm holding off on upgrading as I don't really need the power of N quite yet. Like you said the previous model works a treat, so hearing the new model might have issues makes me want to stay with my Airport Extreme G even more :)

druidvideo @ Feb 8th 2007 1:49AM

Microsoft not compatible with Apple. Who'd have thunk it.

WhackMushroom @ Feb 8th 2007 8:58AM

works wired ... how about if you turn off N?

ultrapod @ Feb 8th 2007 11:14AM

problem confirmed here. i can't use any kind of security when connecting, so i'm using a closed (hidden) network + MAC address filtering for the time being. if any kind of security is used, the 360 can't see the network at all. i read somewhere that the 360's support for WPA is spotty, as is it's compatibility with some other models of N-capable routers. i don't think you can switch off "N-mode", as i think the only choices are A-mode only, B/G compatible N-mode, and N-mode only.

personally, i suspect the problem lies with both apple and microsoft - i would bet that apple's N stack is immature and microsoft's WPA support is buggy. but that's just a guess. in any case, i won't be switching back to my crappy old dlink router anytime soon becuse the connection, although not ideal, is absolutely rock solid with the airport. plus, airport disk works great.

J Trudel @ Feb 16th 2007 1:07PM

I had a regular Xbox with their wireless adapter, and it specifically says that the wireless network you are connecting to must broadcast the network name. You can't have it hidden.

When I got my 360, I just moved the adapter to the 360, and ran into the same issue.

Claus Egholm Nielsen @ Feb 28th 2007 2:38AM

This is not just an Apple issue, since I've had the same problem with both netgear draft-n, netgear-g and draytek-g routers. I've only been able to get WPA security to work on the netgear draft-n router running in a-g network mode - the other two had to run WEP in a-g mode. On the draft-n the 360 can only connect when selecting a-g network using WPA-PSK and with SSID visible (this is actually the case for all the routers). And since Microsoft still haven't added support for WPA2 (even though it says so on the box for the 360 wireless network adapter (which raises both an ethical and legal question)) - there is no way to get it to work when going for draft-n - unless you want to manually throttle down to a-g mode every time you power on the 360... Microsoft, your wireless programmers sock!!! Get it together - how hard can it be! It’s not like you're the first to create a client for a wireless network! And it’s not like you have to create support for multiple network adapters, since you only manufacture one!! It’s a disgrace...

Tim @ Mar 21st 2007 12:41PM

Had the same problem, went to apple web site to a discussion page and found a solution. It requires you switch the router over to g and run at 54bps but it works and my speed was good on both my macbook and xbox360. I dont have the link for the page but it shouldnt be that hard to find. Hopefully mircosoft has an update soon!

Tyler @ Apr 17th 2007 5:48PM

Hello, I have a Mac G5 computer with high-speed internet, but i only have a modem. But I do not want to spend 100 dollars on a wireless adapter, so if i unplug my computer from my modem's ethernet port, will i be able to plug my xbox 360 into it and it be perfectly connected?

My email is tymiller66@yahoo.com

Toke @ Apr 18th 2007 6:40PM

Have the same problem, using the newer Aiport Express (firmware 7.1) with the 360. Older Apple Basestation at home works fine. Is frustrating - spent 2 gours+ typing in passwords over and over again.