AirPort Express: A bit of 'geek heaven'

Computerworld - This is geek heaven.
Apple Computer Inc.'s new AirPort Express wireless access point is just the kind of toy we high-tech gadget freaks fall in love with.
The new hardware, which Apple announced earlier this year and began shipping in July, is a $129 wireless solution for several problems: You can use it as a portable stand-alone 802.11g-based wireless base station for road warriors, to extend the range of an existing AirPort Extreme 802.11g network, or just to beam music from your computer to your home stereo or powered speakers.
Oh, and you can wirelessly share a USB printer with it, too.
All these features come in a package so small that you might mistake it for the power brick of some other hardware rather than the unit itself. In fact, the AirPort Express looks very similar to the power bricks Apple uses with its current crop of laptops. It's a rounded rectangle with the power plug jutting out of one corner (there is no power cord). The other end offers just three ports: an Ethernet jack in which you plug in your cable or DSL modem, a USB port, and a minijack audio port. Note: It does not have an Ethernet jack allowing you to share your Internet connection by wire to another computer.
I opted to use the AirPort Express to replace my existing wireless network, and when the package arrived I ripped open the box -- and had my first disappointment: the lack of a power cord. In theory, it'd be really cool to plug the unit directly into a wall jack, but since wall jacks in my apartment are in short supply that novelty wore off quickly. And plugging it directly into a power strip behind my home stereo didn't seem practical, either. You'll want to see the signal indicator light from time to time, after all, to make sure your connection is up and running.
The Express Stereo Connection Kit with Monster Cables ($39) saved the day. Included with this kit are the audio cables you'll need, both minijack-to-Toslink and minijack-to-RCA cables, as well as a proper power cord for the AirPort Express. Problem solved.
Next, I ran an Ethernet cable from my cable modem to the AirPort Express, used the Toslink cable to connect it to the MDAT optical audio port on my home theater, and connected a USB printer to it. Then I plugged it in and waited for the signal light to turn green.
The AirPort Express Assistant software walked me step by