Which homeplugs?

gee3000 · 12 Feb 2011 at 20:33

I need to extend my network towards the back of the house and looking at homeplugs. Wondering which of these would give best performance:

A wifi switch/router would be attached either end for devices that need it.

Thanks.

welshdragon · 13 Feb 2011 at 14:29

Well you would need at least a pair of them. I have used a pair of solwise 85mb ones for the last two years and they are spot on. Going to swap to ones rated at 200mb when I start media streaming. Though streaming fomr my pc to the xbox 360 over my solwise ones has been faultless using a 700 mb dvd rip. May need higher speed for hd...

The tp link ones look ok. Might be handy to get ones that have the plug pass through on the front so you're not losing the use of a socket. On a side note my first one plugged into the router is done so through a surge protected multiblock which hasn't affected performance. However, some do.

gee3000 · 13 Feb 2011 at 14:48

Thanks for the advise.

When expanding the network, do I need to add additional homeplugs of the same brand/model for it to all pair up or can you mix and match? ie. if I go for the TP-Link set for now, and need to add another one later, can I add another Belkin into the mix?

Cheers.

EDIT: 1,000th post! -.-''

Montala · 13 Feb 2011 at 14:56

Congrats gee3000 in reaching the magic 1000!

Unfortunately all Home Plugs brands are not compatible with each other, particularly the Comtrend ones which BT supply with their Vision boxes, for example.

These use a different chipset, which is not compatible with such brands as Solwise and Devolo, to name two of the more common ones. It is probably safer to stick with one particular brand, so as to minimise the chances of any problems.

Spudgun · 13 Feb 2011 at 15:44

I would strongly recommend devolo homeplugs - they are expensive but I have never had anything but excellent results with them

gee3000 · 13 Feb 2011 at 16:02

I've gone with 2 x Belkins as I found them for £50 the pair elsewhere, almost half the price of the Devolo's. I'll see how they are and if unsuitable will swap for the Devolo's.

Thanks again.

Craigius · 13 Feb 2011 at 16:03

Spudgun said:
I would strongly recommend devolo homeplugs - they are expensive but I have never had anything but excellent results with them

Yeah same here i have been using these for a while now and they are spot on.

Jokester · 13 Feb 2011 at 16:05

I've been using Devolo units for years now, never had a single issue with them.

setter · 13 Feb 2011 at 16:08

I purchased a pair of comtrend 9020's to replace my usb wireless adapter, cant get them to work at all, may be down to the wiring in my house, one part of the house has fairly old wiring, the section where i keep the second pc is a fairly new extension added about 7 years ago.