Devolo delivers modest improvements to its dLAN range
German engineered Devolo dLAN technology has some of the best Powerline gear I’ve used, bar none. But I accept that not everyone can afford its gigabit-capable tech or, indeed, need it. For many, its dLAN 500 spec gear is fine and affordable, especially if all they’re trying to do is deliver networking to a child’s bedroom or wi-fi inaccessible location.
That’s exactly the thinking behind this new dLAN 550 WiFi starter kit, although as the number hints, Devolo has given a small performance boost to what was an already excellent design.
The kit consists of two parts: a dLAN 550 Duo+ and dLAN 550 WiFi access point. Each of these can be bought separately, but without having both or their equivalents, they’re largely redundant.
The 550 Duo+ is a rather large item that ideally you’d place in the socket your router takes power from, and then plug that into this powerline device. I’m still not happy that the Ethernet ports on these designs are on the top and not the bottom, but at least they offer through-power, and two Ethernet ports. This means you can drop it into an existing situation without needing to find extra ports or sockets.
The dLAN 540 WiFi is much less obtrusive, and while it doesn’t offer the through-power socket, it does have both localised wi-fi and a single Ethernet port wherever in the house you choose to place it.
In this product, Devolo is offering 802.11n wi-fi using just the 2.4GHz range, as it's kept ‘ac’ for its dLAN 1200 range at this time. That’s still capable of up to 300Mbps, with the right client connectivity.
The only caveat to using powerline gear is that both items must be on the same ring main, so they can effectively communicate over the electrical power system.
In terms of the speeds, as I’ve mentioned before, these are largely theoretical and are very dependent on the quality of your wiring and the devices at either end.
It’s also worth noting that while this is designated ‘550’ gear, the quoted wired network speed remains unchanged at 500Mbps, making the new numbering something of an oversell. In my testing, I got around 150-165Mbps, a level I was realistically expecting, and that’s plenty for general surfing, streaming movies and music.
If this design has a problem, it’s one that Devolo made all for itself. It's still selling the dLAN 500 WiFi starter kit for about £60, offering very similar capabilities.
The big advantage of this kit is the pass-through power, though you can buy the dLAN 550 Duo+ for £40, and with the dLAN 500 WiFi kit you get an extra dLAN Ethernet adapter for the same total price.
For £149.99, you can get a bigger kit that has two 550 WiFi adapters in it, or you can get a single dLAN 550 WiFi adapter for £59.99.
If you want speed, go dLAN 1200+ and a low-price the dLAN 500. Either way, they make the argument for the dLAN 550 WiFi Starter Kit a little less compelling, unfortunately. Mark Pickavance
High-quality powerline kit for wired and wireless networks.