Netgear Powerline Adapters Offer Reliable Plug-and-Play Networking Without Rewiring
With hopes of piggybacking on any network capable gifts that may be changing hands this holiday season, yesterday NETGEAR announced the general availability of the two newest additions to their Powerline Adapter Ethernet/Network series, the Powerline AV Ethernet Adapter Kit (XAVB101) and the Powerline HD Plus Ethernet Adapter Kit (HDXB111).
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What the heck are powerline adapters and why should you care? They've been around for a few years. Powerline adapters allow you to use your house's electrical wiring to extend your network into unwired or wirelessly problematic areas, not unlike the way DSL uses your phone line to deliver an Internet connection. The basic system of NETGEAR's new SKU's is based around the use of two adapters. One connects to your router via an Ethernet cable and then to a wall outlet. The other plugs into an outlet providing an Ethernet jack (only one in each of these products) near wherever you need one. For uses such as video streaming and VoIP, obviously the stability of a wired connection is preferable to most users if they can get it conveniently and cheap enough, so these adapters are a fabulous option if they perform as advertised. There is the rub. Both these new offerings are rated by NETGEAR as being able to deliver 200 Mbps, which should be plenty to stream HD content, but the 200 Mbps has been questioned in a few places, including a recent CNet review. Here it was actually rated at 100 Mbps. Perhaps 200 is a total rating shared throughout the system, regardless, 200 Mbps is almost certainly overkill for most home users anyway. The kits will run you $149.99 and $169.99 respectively. Both come with two adapters, and the HD Plus kit also features a pass-thru female power plug that serves as a noise-filtered power outlet, which is helpful since these devices do not work well, or not at all when run through powerstips.
So, is this a viable option to running cable where needed? As someone who just paid a small fortune to have his house's wiring redone, but foolishly passed on the CAT 5/6, I'd say $150-200 is a very small and in most cases a returnable investment, that could pay huge dividends. I'll certainly be trying these out myself. Read more about these two new products here.
--Tom Milnes
Jim English on November 19, 2008 at 05:12 AM
I have some experience with power line devices. The power line is not an ideal transmission line. The impediance characteristics are continously changing as devices are added or removed. This can be everything from the refrigerator motor going on to turning on a light. Certain devices, holagen desk lamps for instance, can be very low in impediance in the transmission band. These devices, when electrically near the network devices, can cause the transmission signal to be attenuated at the source. Long story short, power line networking had its issues. I suspect many still exist. Your mileage will likely very depending on how big your house is and where you choose to put your devices. Enjoy
Simon Buckley on November 19, 2008 at 06:07 AM
I actually have a pair of these, and live in a condo with atrocious wiring. I had to move them around a bit to get the most stable signal. You do not want anything else plugged into the outlet, even the other plug. Do NOT even try to go through a power strip. Also, the blue LED on the front is amazingly bright, so a little flap of aluminum foil taped over it works well.
Having said all that, this was a lifesaver. There are so many WiFi access points in my building that channel congestion was a real issue. For instance, my Skype latency ranged from 120 to 500 ms before. After getting rid of the WiFi and running these, it fell to a nice stable 85.
Are they for everyone? No. But they do work, and solved my problems completely.
Steve G. on November 19, 2008 at 07:22 AM
I have used the older, streamline shaped, netgear adapters in my townhouse. They work fine for my desktop. I have even added an additional hookup for my old laptop at times. No trouble at all for me.
The older ones went for $99 a pair. They will not work with extenion or powerstrip cords. Other than that they are a boon for me. My townhouse has too much concrete and cinder blog between my FIOS modem/router/wireless router and my desktop.
SteveGW on November 19, 2008 at 07:04 PM
I use a NetComm NP285 Turbo HomePlug. I had to because the 2 storey, 3 bedroom place I moved into only had one (1) phone point (in the kitchen.) It doesn't seem to make any difference that I put it on a powerboard. Also, it only cost about $100 Australian.
Brian on November 23, 2008 at 09:07 AM
Do those plugs rotate? My power outlets are oriented 90 degrees from the orientation shown. I hate to think of an object that size torquing my power outlet.
Also - it looks like it has a female ground pin, but no male. Is it really like that, or was the third pin a Photoshop casualty?
Wesley Anderson on December 20, 2008 at 07:41 PM
Help Info?
I currently have internet access through a Clearwire modem which sits on my north facing window. I get a strong signal (all 5 bars light up). My system is an 2007 HP media center pc. I am just a bit too far from the local switching center of Pacific Bell to get their DSL which is quite a bit cheaper. I live in a single-storey frame home here in central California.To the best of my knowledge PacBell does not send internet through their lines in our area. Even so, is there a way I might get it from my Clearwire modem through a local server (which I do not have yet), hence into my house electrical lines? I am not really a networking whiz, but if anyone has a suggestion if (and how) this might be done I would really appreciate it.
In closing, a MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!
Wesley Anderson
Aric A. on December 21, 2008 at 03:15 PM
@Wesley: If you're only running your Clearwire connection to one computer, all you have to do is plug an ethernet cable from the modem straight into the Belkin adapter. If you have more than one computer, or if you have a WiFi network, the Belkin adapter on the other end of the powerline will need to be connected to a router. Good luck!
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