I had been using three NETGEAR XAVB101 200Mbps Powerline Adapters but I wanted a faster network so I tried upgrading to Solwise 1000Mbps Mediaxtream HomePlug AV Ethernet Adapter.

When using more then two units the Solwise is unstable. The accompanying "utility" software is woefully lacking in any functionality, limited to telling you the MAC address of the units and updating the firmware.

When comparing the Solwise to the Netgear utility, the Netgear offering has much more functionality and will show you the quality of the connection between the Powerline units on your network.

During the short periods of time the three unit network was working the 1000Mbps Mediaxtream gave no speed advantage over the NETGEAR XAVB101 200Mbps the only way to improve this was to redesign the network and go down to just using two, this seems to be more stable and now gives a fraction more speed then the Netgear units but not a huge increase. Certainly not worth the inconvenience of having to power cycle all the units several times a day, something that was not required with the XAVB101.

When contacted about the above this was the response from Solwise...

"If it was me I would only care about how fast I could send data over the homeplug link and not what the utility says.
If you can't tell from using your computer if it is or is not any faster then maybe your rate determining step isn't the homeplug link.

If the netgear units are faster then it seems sensible to use them instead.

Steve

--
Name: Steve Mace
solwise"

OK, so 2 questions for the INQ:

1) How does this compare to the Belkin Gigabit offering? (both use the same chip) Now about £70 for a pair vs £87 for the Solwise.

2) Is there anything in this EMC stuff and power consumption that these radio Hams seem to be harking on about?

Running ethernet cable all over my house would be far preferable, but would be very complex, messy and costly.

Much of the criticism might be true but I'd like to point out to the complaints about lies that you won't get 1Gb on normal wired 1Gb connections either.

The comment of these things running hot from the mains supply doesn't bear thinking about. Imagine if you left them plugged on overnight and also if you left the house for a while, you would come back to a smoking ruin. Er no I do not think I will invest in a pair....

They are junk, pure and simple. Why people are allowed to pollute the radio spectrum rather than running a cable is beyond me.

Then there is Plasma TV. Another source of interference. People think that they have their mobile phones and Internet access and that everything in the world is great! When the twin towers came down, Internet and mobile phones went off-line because the comms infrastructure was part of the towers.

It was radio amateurs who went in and set up comms with our "outdated" kit which happens to work 24/7 point to point with no reliance on a network provider.

We have worldwide communications, but it is blighted by this junk that does not comply with the EMC regs that they claim to. I've personally had Comtrend devices tested and seen the results from Belkin's Gbit (which is a joke) which also do not conform. The CAA have concerns and are looking at legal action.

PLT is very, very bad.

Not a balanced review. No check on the emc impact. No consideration of the legal implications.

Must do better.

If...

You don't want a secure network...

Can't be bothered to run ethernet cables...

Don't worry about the expense of the electricity used...

Don't mind the lower than advertised speed...

Don't care about interfering with the radio, yours and neigbours...

Well go and get one.

Huw

Tried, and failed. The things kept on losing connection in our avetage 3 down, 3 up semi, and yes, the FM radio wipeout is all true. We were told it's just a handful of radio enthusiasts getting interference from these things. Well, I can confirm it affects your radio one listening (or whatever else you listen to) as well. Total wipeout in fact, which wouldn't have been so bad had they woprked properly!

Save your money and buy some cat cable instead. One twentieth the price, and all the speed you can handle.

These, like other powerline adaptors use radio frequencies to communicate. belkins, Comtrends and Devolos have been proved to radiate without both being connected to the mains. one was connected to an independent 230Volt source from a generator. The link was so good it enabled a Skype call to Australia.
OFCOM have maintained these are not 'wireless telegraphy, these tests conducted last week prove they are and I have applied for a licence to use them.
in normal use they will pollute the radio spectrum for potentially thousands of miles

These devices and their ilk should and no doubt will eventually be banned. It is simply disgraceful that big business is allowed to destroy a precious natural resource for profit.

Bought two of the Belkin units, slow, dropped out and did trash FM radio (just realised reading the last comment).

Don’t know about EMC, but claiming Gigabit is 1000% fraud.

Oh, they got very hot, SWMABO had a go about the cost of running them.

So if you want unreliable, overstated speed and a load of grief they are the perfect product.

That's scary - I wouldn't want to get 'done' by having one around the house.

What a horrible mis-application of technology.

These are illegal in the UK - they will wipe out FM and DAB radio reception - along with taxis, marine band, airband and even military airband up to 500m from your house once plugged in.

This puts them in contravention of the EMC regulations, and makes them illegal to sell or use in the UK.

Another word for marketing is fraud(Dilbert)! In your tests you did not get anywhere near Gigabit speed, how then can it be a gigabit adapter? This gigabit statement sounds just like the same words ISP's use when they talk about broadband. "Up to 8Mbps", when it is highly unlikely people will get anywhere near the stated speed. Your tests have proved the same with this piece of kit.

I believe Solwise will ship these anywhere in Europe - simply select the delivery destination at the checkout.

Kelvyn

Do you know if this company plans to seel this system aboard (Rest of Europe) with the appropriate terminals!! Not everybody lives in UK!