Innoband HomePlug AV+802.11n AP Starter Kit review
By Darren Murph 
posted March 29th 2010 3:59PM
posted March 29th 2010 3:59PM
We recently had the chance to test out Innoband's HomePlug AV+802.11n AP Starter Kit, which is a two-piece solution that consists of a transmitting unit (which connects to your router or modem via Ethernet and plugs into a nearby wall outlet) and a 802.11b/g/n WiFi transceiver, which is designed to be plugged into a different wall socket where you need an Ethernet connection or extended wireless coverage. Curious as to how things stacked up? Tap that 'Read More' link for the rest of our review.
Generally speaking, HomePlug AV (the newest standard) connection kits serve a pretty specific niche. If you've ever dreamed of running an Ethernet cable from your loft upstairs down to the Xbox 360 in your living room -- you know, for optimal ping times in Xbox Live play and stutter-free Netflix Watch Instantly playback -- you've probably considered a HomePlug alternative. In many cases, WiFi dongles are available to take the place of a direct Ethernet run, but as we all know, wireless performance can vary with the wind, and when it comes to being entertained, none of us have time for that sort of nonsense. Innoband's solution allows for network signals to be passed over your existing power network, but the bonus here is that you'll also be able to extend your wireless network range to a location of your choice -- wherever you plug in the transceiver with the antenna is where you'll get a whole new area of 5-bar coverage.
We tested the solution out on a scenario that we felt would be fairly representative of how most folks would put this to use. We plugged in the non-wireless adapter near our WLAN router, and then we jacked the WiFi-enabled one in behind our television. We linked our Xbox 360 to the adapter via one of the bundled patch cables, hit the "Sync" button, waited around 20 seconds, and fired up Xbox Live. As we were hoping, everything loaded up just fine. In fact, we couldn't tell that we didn't have an actual Ethernet cable running directly between the console and the modem, and that's precisely the point. Our on-demand movies streamed cleanly, our online gaming experience was just as snappy as connecting via the Xbox 360 Wireless N adapter and we gained another blanket of WiFi coverage in our den to boot. If you couldn't tell, setup was dead simple -- no software installation was required, and everything was up and running within a matter of minutes.
Speaking of wireless, we did find the range to be a bit weak. We had trouble getting a solid connection on our MacBook Pro from around 150 feet away, but anywhere between 0 and 75 feet netted us a fantastic internet experience. It's pretty simple to connect; just look for "Innoband" in your list of wireless networks and punch up the security key that's pasted on the underside of the wireless adapter. Our first test was to see if downloads were any slower due to routing network signals over the home's power lines, but out of the 15 files that we download from various sites (all between 35MB and 400MB in size), we didn't notice a performance hit. We saw download rates of around 900Kbps over the Innoband connection, matching the rates we experienced when connecting directly to our WLAN router. Obviously your experience will vary based on the connection in your home, but for the average cable / DSL user, you won't notice any slowdowns here. Oh, and as for uploads? Speeds over the Innoband matched our WLAN router, too.
We also tested one final scenario in hopes of uncovering something magical, but alas, our hopes were dashed when the units failed to communicate after attempting to sync for 10 to 15 minutes. We kept the non-wireless receiver plugged in (and connected) near the router, but we jacked the WiFi-enabled adapter in at a nearby barn. Said barn was only 200 some-odd feet away from the house, but it possessed its own power meter. Given that lines to the home and barn were both ran to the same outdoor pole, we were hoping that the Innoband solution would be able to drag network signals from the home to the barn. Unfortunately, that never panned out, so it's certainly something to keep in mind if you had such a scheme all worked out in your head.
Overall, the HomePlug AV+802.11n AP Starter Kit is a solid bet for those who just can't get by with their existing wireless network (or don't feel like spending big bucks on a wireless dongle for your Blu-ray deck, Xbox 360, etc.). Performance was impressive throughout our testing, and not once did we experience an unexpected dropout, connection timeout or any other unwanted interruption. The added bonus of extending the wireless range in your home makes this even more succulent to those in a McMansion, and folks who'd love to make their sunroom or outdoor patio a WiFi-enabled locale will also find even more to love. The only knock we have is the somewhat disappointing wireless range (it tended to get flaky / sluggish beyond 100 feet away), and while we wish the MSRP ($169.99) were lower, it's actually quite respectable when you consider that this kit could prevent you from buying a WLAN router, a huge spool of Ethernet (and the apparatuses to conceal the drop) and at least one WiFi adapter. That said, this makes the most sense for someone who's just now starting up a home network, but it's definitely worth a look if you could imagine this benefiting your setup in any way, and you want a non-wireless version, that's also around for $110.
I have been considering one of these solutions until I found out my home came prewired with Cat5. We just didn't have the wall outlets installws.
PROTIP: If your home was built recently (2-3 years) check to see if you already had been wired up.
It surprised me.
@Emanuel Ortego I like your Avatar
@Emanuel Ortego - I just moved into my new apartment a few months ago. So yours had the wiring but no sockets? How did you figure out that the wiring was installed?
I really don't want wires everywhere..
@Hmm a lot of builders have switched to a new wiring style. instead of using cat3 line for phones they use cat5 or cat5e. each room is wired with coax (cable tv) and phone, usually one per in each major room. all of this is tied back to a central panel that looks a lot like the boxes they use for alarm system panels. these usually reside in a closet or laundry room. inside there's a diagram of which numbered wire goes to which room and there's usually 3-5 of each actually tied in/active. if you centralize your internet connection next to or inside this panel, you can use a router and the existing lines to easily create a network inside your home.
@xkaosu9x
Schools and businesses have had this practice for a while, but I guess homes are starting that now, it's a very good idea, and if I were to build a home, I'd want to have this installed.
@Emanuel Ortego Yeah, my home is wired with two Cat 5e cables going to each jack for a possibility of 8 phone lines. Since we only have two phone lines and each jack can handle two lines, I replaced all the wall plates in areas where I needed the network connection with plates from RadioShack that had one phone jack and one network jack. The system works beautifully and is so much more secure than WiFi. Unfortunately Cat 6 wasn't in use when the house was built and the drops aren't located near where our televisions are which means my HTPCs are going to have to be WiFi.
Biggest issue I found out in practice is that the range over the Power Net is not that big. So it's not the Wifi I am concerned about, but the Powernet no1. to Powernet no2. connection.
Homes in Europe are not that big, but going from the ground floor (meter closet where all cables come into the house) to the second floor was already a no go. If you have any practical information in respect of this plug-set, that would be highly appreciated. A good connection would be worth something, since Wifi on the 2nd floor is constantly dropping out in my setup (access point in the meter closet at ground level).
@Wekkel My dad's house is big enough that he couldn't keep a strong connection to the wireless n router on the other side of the house. I put in Netgear HomePlug adapters a couple years back and it's worked flawlessly (and I mean flawlessly) since. This is in a big 'ol Victorian house that was wired for electric 70 years ago...
It's worth noting the RF spectrum in the vicinity of these devices is basically poisoned.
In the U.K. there are already moves by several groups to have these things banned altogether.
More worryingly the new Gigabit speed homeplug devices spew RF right up to UHF frequencies, destroying reception of VHF emergency services, low power UHF devices used for security, airband, maritime and amateur radio.
I would say that a cable designed for networking use is the best solution, not one designed for a completely different usage.
But that's just me.
@Threlly This is only meant to be in the home. I think people are getting confused between this and the one that was going to be used on power companies lines. The one that would have been used outside has been blocked by the fcc.
as far as i know this essentially stops at the power meter.
@majortom1981
Sadly not the case.
They basically turn the 2-core mains wiring in your house into an antenna capable of transmitting RF all around your neighborhood.
If you're in any doubt, try listening on an AM radio in or near your house.
Crazy.
Not good enough for my home network, but I'm sure it would be for some people. Price is a bit high though. Still waiting for the day when wireless can do gigabit speeds without latency issues so it will be just as good as GigE.
@DoctarPeppar
A decent wireless router/AP adds almost nothing to latency.
@chispito
Not true. If you have ever used an application that requires low latencies it is very noticable when going from wired to wireless.
A good example is Synergy -- this app shares one computer's keyboard and mouse to anothers over ethernet. Using it wirelessly, even with a very expensive 802.11n router -- there is STILL lag. There are countless other examples though. Applications like these need to run in "real time" (ie. less than ~3ms latency) or else they aren't very useful at all.
Until wireless can solve that problem, and the problem of throughput (using a dual ported gigabit ethernet card with LACP I can get almost 200 MB\sec to NAS storage), I won't be using it any time soon.
But for watching videos and playing games or surfing the web? Sure, why not. Still seems like a waste of money to me, GigE is cheaper, faster, and more reliable :)
@DoctarPeppar
You're describing applications with poor networking. Wireless is a reality, and if an application can't run properly with an added 5ms or less of latency, then it doesn't have a prayer in an enterprise environment, much less in your average home that already uses wireless.
I have been using these things for years, I tried a pair off of ebay (for some Halo 2 on my Xbox) and I never went back to wireless for my consoles/desktop. I am 100% saving up for these now, the addition of 802.11n is a deal breaker.
That's sounds good!
Run the ethernet wire, you wont regret it. Or get an old router and install custom firmware (google is your friend) to enable the router to receive the wifi signal and use the portsin the back as ethernets to talk to your excisting network. I did this in NYC from living room to bedroom (about 45ft) and in the office (roughly 300 ft) alas with a repeater in the middle. But bottom line if you can always go with good ole wiring... nothing beats it when it comes to performance and reliabilty.
I love the idea and the simplicity of being able to use existing wired infrastructure to network everything together but after purchasing this kit I had to return it. Not at all due to the quality of the kit mind you or the speeds or anything like that but instead because my home is over 100 years old and after calling Innoband, we both concluded that the wiring just wasn't up to snuff to be able to use this method. They said a few bad wires here or there could really gum up the entire system.
This goes as a heads up to those of you with older homes.
So, couldn't you have transferred a few big video files locally -- between a PC wired to the router, and your XBox at the other end of the HomePlug link -- to give us some idea of what sort of data rates this thing achieves in the real world?
@Eddy Kilowatt
Same here, I'm dissappointed they didnt do lan test to see what they can do locally. Would like to try this out in my apartment but dont wanna cash 160+ for something giving 2-3 mbs per sec.
Can a switch be hooked up to the other end? I currently have a wireless n bridge in my media room (two floors up from my wifi router) that has my DirecTV, Xbox360, Sony Blu-ray megachanger, and Slingcatcher hooked up to it. If this could give me "wired" reliability for those devices and boost my n signal for that room (most devices are getting two bars of strength) that would be fantastic and well worth the price of this kit (and I already have a spare gigabit switch).
Do yourself a favor and just get the HomePlug devices with out a built-in wireless router. That way you future proof your wireless network against outdated "combo" equipment like this.
You can pickup lots of HomePlug type devices (power over ethernet) at Best Buy. Typically they'll have 200Mb/s shared bus line rate. Just connect your favorite wireless router in bridge mode.
My BT Vision box came with homeplug. It caused my speaker system (Logitech z-5500) to hum constantly.
I don't know if these speakers are simply more sensitive than the average, or whether the technology is always poison for speakers.
I work for a company called Ethostream, which supports devices from Telkonet called the iBridge. The iBridge is essentially like these devices but more for industrial use. We have a GW that produces a PLC signal that the iBridges feed off from. It is good for about one building maybe two floors in size and about 30 iBridges, if we need more rooms we add extenders to each building or floors. This will boost the signal. All though ive never seen an iBridge do more than 15mbps, it is also limited in the fact it has a 10mbps ethernet limitation. Also the biggest issue affecting the PLC signal that causes slow speeds, drop outs, and other connection issues is interference from other devices. Basically It is a requirement to make sure nothing that uses a transformer is on the same circuit as the iBridge as it will affect signal, the worst is cell phone chargers and halogen lamps. Laptop chargers dont do as bad and florescent is also not too bad. so while this technology does have some advantages, you got to make sure the electrical lines are perfect for them to work at the best settings
well, that's a pretty worthless review unless you happen to want to use it for 360. how about taking the extra 5 seconds and actually measuring the speed through the doohicky? then, i'd actually know if i could push my windows mediaplayer library through it to my outpost HD television in the shed.
now i have to google someone who knows how to do a proper review. thanks engadget for the lead.
/me dons the reporter's cap. i'll have the scoop for presstime boss.
@dibble Yeah I was wondering WTF. "It works great with our crappy internet connection, test done!"
I have a panasonic powerline adapter setup. I bought it so I could connect my downstairs xbox to the router upstairs. It works very well, but one thing to test for is how well the unit works when other devices are being used. At first, the panasonic setup failed to work when lights turned on/off and other small appliances were used, but I guess it has some software that has to learn how your house works. But it fails when I run something high powered like an electric lawnmower or the dryer.