Power plugs for home networking

M

mmclo

Registered User
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Has anybody come across this. Baiscally plug your bb router or modem into a power source and plug another device into any other plug in the house. I've got a pack on the basis of worth a try, it's a bit slow though at 14mbs
 
Yep that's them...reviews seem OK, I'm a bit concerned I have the older type. I'll have to see how it goes. I think it is marginally more competitive on price if you don't have to get network cards for laptops etc.
 
I got a set that are rated at 56mbps. I use it to stream video in house. No issues at all. You need to ensure that they are plugged directly into a socket i.e. not an extension block. Not at home but pretty sure the manufacturer is Homeplug.
 
emul said:
You need to ensure that they are plugged directly into a socket i.e. not an extension block.
Click to expand...
Are you saying it wont work at all in this case or doesnt work as well?
What if its a cube adapter - will it work with that?
 
From the manual from manufacturers they state that you don't use power extension lead. I'm away till Friday but can try then if you want to know.

Eoin
 
emul said:
From the manual from manufacturers they state that you don't use power extension lead. I'm away till Friday but can try then if you want to know.

Eoin
Click to expand...
I would be curious - if you happen to have a spare few minutes. IF I was to use this system, not being able to plug into a block extension would be an issue...
Have video streaming over wireless - its ok some of the time but other times it stutters. Also, I really wanted to run cable through every room in the house but between one thing and another, It never happened. This might be a good compromise system if its functional.
 

These may have a problem with surge protectors which some extension leads include, otherwise they should work OK.
 
Very happy with them i must say (posting via one!!) the 14mps doesn't seem to be a problem, i've deliberately gone to video sites and streaming seems OK. I use a 4 point block extension also and again no problem, only thing I haven't done is downloading, generally I would highly recommend it
 
Okay tried this out last night and here's what I found. I have 56Mbps units, manf software shows 42mbps thru rate when plugged directly into socket.

Plug one unit into power block - drops to 39mbps - no issue streaming vid

Plug both into power block - drops to 33mbps - still no issue with vid stream

Plugged one into block with surge protector - didn't work

So it will work at acceptable speeds for vid stream using power block, extension lead - but not a block with surge protection.

Good luck

Eoin
​
 
Thanks for checking that out for us Eoin. Sounds like it degrades performance a bit but I can live with that.
 
May be a stupid question to all you technofiles, but do you need network interface cards in your PC's to share information if you use these power plugs?

Thanks
 
Possibly you will need an ethernet card/port on each PC. However some of these devices may also support USB instead of ethernet. Best to check the specs of any product that you are interested in.

Maplin are selling these networking devices for less than €100 a pair at the moment if I recall correctly.
 
I'd still prefer 802.11 in most cases. Today's Irish Times carries an ad for PC World selling what seems to be a Linksys combo ADSL modem/wireless router and one PCMCIA/CardBus wireless card for €45 which seems like a good deal. An additional wireless card for a laptop or desktop should only cost about another €20+.

Update: it's listed on their website as costing €50! Not clear if it's somehow locked to eircom but I doubt it.
 
I have decided to hold off on the 'homeplugs' and buy apples new 'airport extreme' which was unveiled this week. Its based on 802.11n 'standard' - and is twice as fast as the current 802.11g standard - and with a greater range.

This should mean that video streaming isnt going to be a problem.
 
54Mbps or 108Mbps will help with high bandwidth applications such as video streaming on the LAN but remember that this is irrelevant to streaming to/from the internet since your broadband connection will still always be the bottleneck (e.g. <= 10Mbps max these days).
 
ClubMan said:
54Mbps or 108Mbps will help with high bandwidth applications such as video streaming on the LAN but remember that this is irrelevant to streaming to/from the internet
Click to expand...
Agreed. Streaming video from the satellite receiver (it has a network port) downstairs is what I have in mind.
 
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