Decent (but cheap) Powerline Adaptors

PurchaseAnxiety on 22/01/2015 - 20:23

Hi all.

Firstly my question: can anyone suggest some good powerline adaptors on the cheap? Read on for some back story.

So I've been having some issues with my home network, with my wifi at one end of the house (can't be moved, unfortunately), and my PC at the other end. The wifi really struggles to reach my PC, and I experimented with a wireless repeater, it really doesn't hold up all that well. The house is a rental too, so I can't get ethernet sockets put in (not that I have the money too).

So I've been looking at powerline adaptors, and found that while results can be mixed, they would probably help me out. However I don't want to dive in head first if it won't offer a better solution than what I currently have. So I just want a set that will be great if they work, but I won't feel like I've pissed away my cash if they don't. I don't do anything too network intensive, I just want a stable and reasonbly fast connection between my modem and PC (up to 300mbps would likely be more than enough).

Thanks!

Computing Ethernet over Power

Comments

  • gryphn on 22/01/2015 - 20:39
    +1

    I have a mix of tplink 500 and 200 mbs units.

    Good enough to stream 1080 from my plex box to the TV.
    http://www.msy.com.au/peripherals/7956-tp-link-tl-pa411-kit-…

    Have not had to reset them or fiddle in 14 months. Set and forget.

    • scotty on 22/01/2015 - 22:55
      +1

      I've got the 200Mbps one (TL-PA211KIT) from MSY a while ago and that's pretty solid. Not sure whether there's any benefit for a 500Mbps unit, as the ethernet port itself can only do 100Mbps.

      • PurchaseAnxiety on 22/01/2015 - 23:25

        These were the ones I was looking at (200mbps). Reviews seem to say they were good, but good to have some first hand feedback. Cheers.

      • ESEMCE on 23/01/2015 - 08:58
        +1

        I thought the advantage of the 500mbps units is that they have a better chance of saturating the 100mbps ethernet port..
        200mbps units might be theoretically capable of 200mbps (possibly even capable in unrealistic real world situations), but rarely get much better than 70mbps in the real world.

        • scotty on 23/01/2015 - 09:16

          Yeah you are right — in the tech world "theoretical speed" is only possible on research papers. However 500 being 2.5x of 200, it looks like the 100Mbps ethernet port would still be the bottleneck.

        • Ramrunner on 23/01/2015 - 11:40

          Agreed - it's exactly like wireless. My kids computers are Wireless N capable at 300Mbps. But they are 20 metres away through 2 walls. Average either of them will do is 6-11MBs (48-88Mbps). I have some HD movies with stream rates of 12MBps + which I know is a bit anal but my home theatre looks and sounds a lot better at those rates and I'm not encoding multiple copies. Obviously THOSE movies won't stream to their screens without stuttering.

          Similary powerline networking is susceptible to interference and the way the house is wired.

          SO

          In MY opinion get as FAST an option as you can. As scubacoles says it's an UP TO speed. Go ahead and saturate the 100Mbps ethernet port if it will (it may not). That way if you upgrade in the future you'll get some more life out of them too.

          Generally ethernet top speed is PRETTY DAMN close to what it says on the box. I've measured 880Mbps over my Gig links. (About 110MBps). That's enough to stream 9 of those high bit rate HD movies simultaneously.

    • Domingo on 23/01/2015 - 09:26

      Are these impacted by separate circuits through the house?

      I have been considering some of these to connect my upstairs access point to my network, but they run through separate circuit breakers in the meter box.

      • Ramrunner on 23/01/2015 - 11:42

        Not had any experience with recent ones but the Netcomm and Netgear ones I tried a few years ago certainly were GREATLY affected by separate circuits.

  • trex on 22/01/2015 - 23:00
    +1

    Some ideas to consider:-

    1. With some routers, the signal strength of the Wifi can be boosted. Look for "TX Power Adjustment" which is measured with %. Increase it higher and test out whether it improves the signal reception.

    2. Sometimes poor reception can be attributed to interference with other wireless signals. Change the Wifi channel in the router and see if it helps. Recommended 1, 6 or 11. Read this http://www.howtogeek.com/197268/how-to-find-the-best-wi-fi-c…

    3. Does your router have an external Wifi antenna? If so, have you considered changing the antenna to a longer one?

    • PurchaseAnxiety on 22/01/2015 - 23:24
      +1

      Thanks trex. Thanks for the suggestions, but I've already tried points 2 and 3. I'm skeptical about 1, but I will look into it :)

      • trex on 23/01/2015 - 00:17
        +1

        No prob. Did you test another device's Wifi reception where your PC is located? I wonder whether the problem is with the router's weak broadcast signal or it's the PC's weak reception? If the other device can pick up the Wifi signal with no issues, then you should look to improve the PC's reception eg removing obstructions near the PC etc.

  • Ramrunner on 23/01/2015 - 09:05
    +1

    Unless newer models have some magic voodoo, be aware power line adapters in my experience have some trouble working across circuit groups, and can suffer quite a bit of interference depending on your house wiring.

    I normally tell people to steer clear and just wire up ethernet as it's by a country mile the most reliable, but in your case it looks like you don't have that choice.

    I would at least buy from reputable store with a returns policy in place in case your experience ends up like mine :).

    I've also heard plenty of people with no issues, so I'm not saying they're crap, just very reliant on the way your house is wired.

    • ESEMCE on 23/01/2015 - 09:26
      +1

      I think the newer 500mbps units do perform better across circuits, but definitely sage advice all the same.

  • mgrogan on 23/01/2015 - 10:28

    As we have an old home (and 2 circuits), I bought
    http://www.msy.com.au/nswonline/peripherals/14261-edimax-hp-…
    when on special for ~ $33 to try them out.
    I had T-Box in the next room to router, ~ 3m away, that rarely received any wi-fi signal.
    Took me a while to find the correct wall plug (near router) and I had to use a power-board near the T-box to get them to "sync".
    Note: this edimax plug is wide, so if have plugged into a wall socket with only 2 connections, it takes up all the space.

    Very pleased, so I bought another pack from http://www.msy.com.au for our upstairs.
    1 edimax on double adapter to router, other 2 edimax on power-boards.

    :)

    Margaret
    Edit: have an old Telstra Thomson TG782T router.
    Running Ethernet cables across floors or having them professionally "wired" was not really an option.
    I think we might have been lucky.

    • Ramrunner on 23/01/2015 - 11:45

      Good to hear they work. I think it's funny they call them nano though :)

      Anything that size taking up both spaces on a double GPO should certainly not be called Nano!

  • 1bug on 26/01/2015 - 00:17

    Refer to OP below for a quick overview of EoP & some tips (eg. avoid plugging into surge protected power boards)…

    http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum-replies.cfm?t=1958979

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