Apple was an early adopter of Wi-Fi, introducing its AirPort product line, based on the 802.11b standard, in July 1999. Apple makes the Mac OS operating system, the computer hardware, and the accompanying drivers and configuration and management software, simplifying Wi-Fi integration. All Intel based Apple computers either come with or have the option to included AirPort Extreme cards. These cards are compatible with 802.11g. Many of Apple’s earlier PowerPC models came with Airport Extreme as well, and all Macs starting with the original iBook at least included AirPort slots.

           Mac OS X has excellent Wi-Fi support, including WPA2, and ships with drivers for Apple’s AirPort cards. The built-in configuration and management is integrated throughout the operating system. Many third-party manufacturers make compatible hardware along with the appropriate drivers which integrate with Mac OS X’s built-in configuration and management software and the end user experience is generally seamless. Others include their own software.

           Apple's older Mac OS 9 does not have built in support for Wi-Fi configuration and management nor does it ship with Wi-Fi drivers, but Apple provides free drivers and configuration and management software for their AirPort cards for OS 9, as do a few other manufacturers. Versions of Mac OS before OS 9 predate Wi-Fi and do not have any Wi-Fi support.