18 Jun TP-LINK AV500+ Gigabit Powerline Adapter TL-PA551KIT
When I got the opportunity to test the TP-LINK AV500+ Gigabit Powerline Adapter TL-PA551KIT I was very excited. Being a lover of all things ‘tech’ and having a home that is completely wireless, I was very interested in seeing how the Gigabit Powerline adaptor compared.
The AV500+ Gigabit Powerline Adapter is described as being able to turn your existing electrical circuitry into a high-speed network with no need for new wires or drilling. It did do exactly this.
The AV500+ Gigabit Powerline Adapter set consisted of two adaptors (one to connect to a modem and one to place into another area around the home), 2 network cables, a resource CD and an installation guide.
One of the first things I noticed about the AV500+ Gigabit Powerline Adapter was how easy it is to set up. The first adapter is connected to a plug socket with a network wire connected from the adapter to a router/switch. The second adapter is than placed into another plug socket near the laptop/computer you want to connect to the internet with a network cable connecting the adapter to the device. Once both adapters are plugged in and powered up, they need to be paired up. This is very easy to do. All I had to do was press the pairing buttons underneath the two adapters and they were paired up. It was as simple as that and just worked. There was nothing else to fiddle with or configure.
Once the adapters were paired and working I could test their speed. I connected my laptop to the internet using my wireless at home and then connected it using the AV500+ Gigabit Powerline Adapter. My initial thoughts were that it would be slightly faster than the wireless on the computer. After testing I was very impressed by the speed of the adapters, which was over three times faster than my wireless connection. The wireless on my laptop gives me a constant 2Mb connection as it is wireless G, whereas using the powerline adapters the speed went up to 6.5-7Mb, pretty much as fast as if the laptop was connected directly to the router (This was tested using Sky fibre broadband).
I also tested streaming a couple of HD movies via the powerlines, on the wireless 720p movies stream with few glitches, 1080p movies would not stream at all, at most they’d stream for a minute or two. Throught the powerplugs 720p and 1080p streamed with no issues at all which was very impressive.
The AV500+ Gigabit Powerline Adapter is also very convenient for your home as it comes with an Integrated Power Socket. This integrated power socket allows an additional device to be connected to the adapter as though it were a normal wall socket. Therefore, you do not lose a plug socket when the AV500+ Gigabit Powerline Adapter is in use.
In my opinion the AV500+ Gigabit Powerline Adapter is definitely worth having in the home. It gives the speed and stability of a cable connection but can be used anywhere around the home near a plug socket.
Highlights:
• Integrated power socket to allow additional devices access to power
• HomePlug AV standard compliant, high-speed data transfer rates of up to 500Mbps
• No new wires, Easy Plug and Play operation, No configuration required
• Patented Power-Saving Mode automatically reduces power consumption by up to 85%*
• Twin Pack design helps establish a basic powerline network
