NETGEAR Wall-Plugged Ethernet Bridge XE102 - bridge

...up two basic models, the Netgear XE102 for less than £35 for the pair.
There are faster models, but as they were purely for sharing the internet, the connection being 2Mbps - with a top speed of 14Mbps they should cover most broadband connections with room to spare.

Setup seemed simple enough. I was concerned about the electrics in the house as they are obviously suceptable to "imaginative" wiring and also old wiring. ...
...especially for online gaming or transferring of large files. At this these Netgear Powerline adapters really excel. it's a shame they are so expensive but they are clever little things. dead easy to setup, work with all types of networking equipment including routers and once setup need virtually no maintenance.  ... more

We got a wireless network going in our house a few years ago. However due to it being an unconventional house with flat roofs, wireless signals from one end of the house to the other were never very good and disconnects were a nightmare.

I had been considering a wireless repeater but there wasn't really anywhere to place it - the bedroom with the poor signal had nothing but outside next to it and a bathroom beneath it with the router in the next room on the lower level.

Left with no alternative I decided to give a mains based network a try having seen a review of it earlier this year. An initial look at the prices put me off immediately - needing two adapters (one to connect the router to the mains, another to connect the mains socket to the PC at the other end of the house, it was going to cost over £100 - a little excessive just to get a steady internet connection.

However, a quick turn to Ebay and I managed to pick up two basic models, the Netgear XE102 for less than £35 for the pair.
There are faster models, but as they were purely for sharing the internet, the connection being 2Mbps - with a top speed of 14Mbps they should cover most broadband connections with room to spare.

Setup seemed simple enough. I was concerned about the electrics in the house as they are obviously suceptable to "imaginative" wiring and also old wiring. My initial attempts were plagued by the router based adapter refusing to talk to the router. After an hour or two I finally ended up trying the network cable that came with the set and it seemed to work, although the cable was too short for a tidy setup with things trailing accross sofas.

However it is my firm belief now that the things need a little time to connect. When connecting the router based adapter, the activity and connection indicator lights blink and may even go out for up to 30 seconds which is quite disconcerting. In the end, if left they talk to each other of their own accord and on re-trying the network connection on the intended PC it worked first time and has had a solid connection all day.

Where might these be useful? In a situation where wireless signal problems rear their head or maybe you have a network round the house using wires but have no need for a router? Wireless solutions are not always the way to go. Wired is still the preferred method, especially for online gaming or transferring of large files. At this these Netgear Powerline adapters really excel. it's a shame they are so expensive but they are clever little things. dead easy to setup, work with all types of networking equipment including routers and once setup need virtually no maintenance. 

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