A faster way to network through your mains circuit
Both thick-walled old houses and modern insulated homes can stifle wireless networks, so most of us will find far-flung corners of our home where the signal is weak. Powerline network kits are the easiest solution. They come as a pair of three-pin power plugs. You put one in a mains socket beside your router, and the other in your Wi-Fi blackspot. They then use the 240-volt electrical ring main in your house to pass data. Any computer connected to the remote plug will receive a signal as if it were directly connected to your router.
It’s easy to set up and doesn’t consume much power (3.7 watts or less, in this instance) and is a breeze to set up. And because the signal can’t pass beyond your fuse box, privacy is guaranteed. Having said that, there have been a few stories flying around about people discovering their unorthodox wiring prevented them from accessing their own broadband, while their neighbours had no trouble. Blame cowboy electricians for that, not the technology.
How fast it works depends partly on your circuitry, but the kits come in varying speeds, and this is one of the fastest, even if the claimed 1Gbps is purely theoretical. We downloaded a one-hour TV programme from BBC iPlayer in just under a minute and a half, which was a bit slow. However, a 1GB folder of small files took only a few seconds longer than that, which is on a par with BT Infinity’s superfast broadband. Video also streamed smoothly from one device to another as we watched it.
It’s annoying that there’s no passthrough power socket, so when you plug the unit into the mains you lose a power point. That’s important because for the best performance you shouldn’t use a powerline adapter through an extension lead, so having enough sockets is crucial. It’s not much use if there’s nowhere left to plug in your PC alongside the adapter.
The AV2 1000HD is very reasonably priced, but also pretty basic. There’s just a single Ethernet port on each plug; to connect multiple computers you’d need to add an Ethernet switch (about £20 for gigabit speed). If you need to connect mobile devices via Wi-Fi, consider Devolo’s dLAN range instead.
VERDICT
If you don’t need Wi-Fi access, this is an easy way to set up a fast extension to your network.
SPECIFICATIONS
Theoretical maximum speed of 1000Mbps • Gigabit Ethernet ports • Encrypted • 88x62x30mm (HxWxD) • Two-year warranty