Zac Hall, 9to5Mac, via this post by Jason Snell:
Apple’s AirPort line may be discontinued, but AirPort Express got one heck of an update today. Firmware update 7.8 for the latest AirPort Express hardware (2012 2nd-gen model, no longer sold) adds support for AirPlay 2 and Apple’s Home app. The teaser for support has been present since iOS 11.4 beta, but support hasn’t been live before today’s version 7.8 firmware update.
A lot of people were excitedly tweeting about this yesterday, discovering new life for that long-serving AirPort Express they’ve had, seemingly, forever. Props to Apple for this update. An extended life for an excellent, under appreciated product.
And props to Jason Snell for the best headline of the bunch.
And what about adding Airplay 2 to the Apple TV 3 (or even 2)? Yes, that Apple TV with TOSlink audio output.
I wish Apple would reboot AirPort as a product line, if only because it’s nice to have a first-rate user-friendly solution that has native integration with OSX/iOS.
(Ubiquiti seems to come close, in their consumer line, and I’ll be upgrading to those when my AirPort system gets too outdated, at this rate.
But Apple has room to make money, make customers happy, and be a good market influence in this space, even now.)