NEW YORK – Wireless networking equipment is cheap, convenient and widespread. If you want to connect computers in your home, is it really worth doing it with wires?
The answer, surprisingly, is yes. And you don’t need to pull the wires through the house either: they’re already there. I’m talking about turning the electrical wiring into a computer network.
The technology has been around for several years but has never really taken off, because the wireless technology known as Wi-Fi allows for more mobility and greater speeds.
Netgear Inc.’s new HDX101 Powerline HD Ethernet Adapter (suggested price $250) closes that speed gap and provides some advantages that make it a worthy complement to Wi-Fi, if perhaps not a replacement.
The basic kit consists of two adapters, each half the size of a trade paperback. Setup is much easier than configuring a wireless network.
You plug one adapter into a wall outlet and connect it with a supplied Ethernet cable to your Internet router.
You plug the other adapter into a wall outlet somewhere else in the house. Connect your computer to that adapter with another Ethernet cable. The PC is now online.
That’s it: there’s no software to install (at least for this basic setup), and it works with any computer that has an Ethernet port. It will also work with Xbox video game consoles, for online gaming, or devices that transfer computer audio, video and other media to your stereo or TV.
You can buy single adapters for $130 to expand the network.
Speed is limited, but that doesn’t mean the HDX101 is slow.
In my test, the connection between two adapters separated by 40 feet of apartment averaged about 35 mbps. A 700 megabyte movie transferred in 3 minutes.
That matched the connection speed between Netgear’s RangeMax 240 Wireless Router, a recent model, and a RangeMax PC card at the same distance. But the powerline connection gave more even and predictable speeds.
Earlier powerline networking gear had a reputation for being susceptible to interference from household appliances, but when I turned on a microwave oven between the connection points, it was the Wi-Fi connection that dived – to a third of its previous speed – while the HDX101 held steady.
Now for the downsides:
* It’s expensive. At $250 for two adapters, this is much more expensive than Wi-Fi.
* The adapters can’t be plugged into surge protectors or extension cables, which kill the signal.
* The supplied Ethernet cables are just 6 feet long.
* The connection is not as fast or predictable as you’ll get by wiring the house with Ethernet cables.
* You lose some of the mobility of Wi-Fi (but it’s easy to move the adapters around in the house).
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