Ethernet over mains protocol

[macabethiel]

Well I like my gadgets so whilst I have been recovering from my recent heart attack and last Mondays Angiogram I bought a PC from Darwin for her indoors.

The D-Link wireless adaptor seemed to have a poor signal so I had a look on e-bay and bought myself a nifty little gadget to sort the problem out.

Its a real cool piece of of kit and gives me a brilliant internet connection anywhere in the house or in my garage with no wiring!

Hope this link works as links are not my forte'



http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=180539157033&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT

 

[Tony]

Got one works all over the house.
Tony.:thumbs

 

[Liam]

What did it cost?Seems like something I could use.

 

[macabethiel]

ethernet over mains

My winnig bid was £38 for a pair of units rated at 200 Mbs and they have built in encryption.

I suspect the bidding is rigged as everyone seems to have paid around that price for them when I looked at the sellers recent feedback.

My local specialst electrical shop (not a chain) R.F.Potts in Derby who are excellent wanted about £45 for 50 Mbs and around £100 for 180 Mbs so the e-bay option looked attractive and worth a risk.

 

[clivvy]

good one, ive installed a few of these in the past, they arent as common as you would think, but work very well so long as your house electrics are ok. Im considering one for myself to extend the wireless rather than buying an AP, so can even plug one into the garage or shed!

 

[jims-terrano]

good one, ive installed a few of these in the past, they arent as common as you would think, but work very well so long as your house electrics are ok. Im considering one for myself to extend the wireless rather than buying an AP, so can even plug one into the garage or shed!

Hope they never become common place They're pretty dam mucky, they send all kinds of signals at all kinds of frequencies not via the mains. BT are currently being investigated by OFCOM for some of these that they have been selling. Some of them are even blanking out standard FM radios (radio's as in Radio 1 ect).

Jim

 

[clivvy]

Hope they never become common place They're pretty dam mucky, they send all kinds of signals at all kinds of frequencies not via the mains. BT are currently being investigated by OFCOM for some of these that they have been selling. Some of them are even blanking out standard FM radios (radio's as in Radio 1 ect).

Jim

so far so good, no reported issues, although ill keep an open mind now you've said that...

 

[Deleted account DD]

Not a fan of these plug in doo dahs to be honest. Couldnt recommend them

One point the seller makes is about the aggravation of wireless links. What a load of bollocks, wireless routers are dead easy. Belkin for example actually give you a great big idiot guide poster to follow.

These plug ins are a throw back to when wireless was taking off . Theyre loads easier than hard wiring but not very thrilling compared to wireless.

Ive found the same as Jim on 2 sets Ive come across regarding electronic noise & interference.ie a nuisance. To be fair one was an older one some time ago but more recently one that also couldnt do the job because we ultimately discovered that different ring mains in diferent part sof the house wouldnt let it play in some areas.

Worse still you lose a mains socket to them and you still need to hardwire to the computer or gadget at the point of use.

We have 4 phones, 1 pda , 2 laptops and a desktop that all use our encrypted wireless router at any point in the house via their built in bluetooth (except the desk top) :thumb2

I also have a vodafone always on adapter and a belkin wireless hub that hard wires into the router.

No problems with any of them except the desk top who's dongle got dropped into a bowl of water and hasnt quite performed the same since :augie

 

[jims-terrano]

Check these out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9V4UiTXfIto&feature=related This one for Briggie

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z3yVu5IfaEY

Just imagine what could happen if emergency services suffered this durring a real emergency? Don't say it can't happen because it can. A combination of lots of them in one area and or weather conditions.

Jim

 

[macabethiel]

ethernet over mains protocol

Interesting posts but this is only for use in the house ring main and its maximum range in terms of mains cable is around 300 metres. Cant see that interfereing with any CB user driving by. The BT system is much more powerful and is for sending broadband via high voltage pylons.

Theoretically 300 metres could include your neighbours or other people in a block of flats but in reality that's more theoretical than actual experience.(Hence the need for encrytion)

On mine there is an LED that has three modes when plugged in,
1) green light indicates a good signal,
2) orange is reduced rate,
3) red is no signal.

If you plug the unit into a strip connector rather than directly into a wall socket you drop from green to orange so that not advised.

When I tried it in my outside fish house that is attached to my garage at the bottom of the garden the signal fell to amber but was green in the adjacent garage.

My garage is some 25 metres from the house and the signal has to go via my split load consumer unit in the kitchen along the underground mains supply to the garage where it is distributed via a garage consumer unit all have RCB's and trip fuses for added resistance!.

I have found that if I use a good quality strip connector I can maintain the green level of signal but my cheap B&Q strips are useless. I tend to buy good quality individually switched 6 plug outlet units that are rated for higher current loads. I use these for my fish tanks as reliabity is important so paying £20-£25 for a strip as against an Aldi £1.99 special is worth the cost.

OK so you need a cable from the unit to your PC but that no different from any other fixed arrangement. I tend to use my laptop plugged into to the mains power supply so an addition cable to plug in is not an issue for me.

My laptop wil not pick up a wireless signal in my garage due to my house being all solid internal walls, and screening by the metal garage door etc.

I now have three options, hard wired to my router as per my garage based old PC, wireless as per my laptop, and this neat third option of ethernet over mains.

I bet there are dozens of different makes on the market including some older designs to choose from.You pays your money and makes your choice.

 

[jims-terrano]

Hiya MB, please don't think that I'm getting at you by posting about how bad these things are.

The BT system is the Home Plug in gadgets, the High Voltage Pylon Power Line system is a different system and yes it does emit crap too.

These plug in home gadgets are radiating Radio Frequency which is the problem. The big problem is that these days controls are so slack that these technologies are being introduced without the stringent testing that used to take place. As far as I'm aware OFCOM are investigating these gadgets and with a bit of luck they'll be improved or banned.

Have to say though for most homes Wireless is adequate and when "N" becomes more common the speed will improve so much that the mains gadgets simply wont be needed.

You would be amazed at the amount of sources of interference there are around us these days.

Anyway I've said my two penneth
Jim

 

[macabethiel]

ethernet over mains

No offence taken Jim boy I am quite thick skinned, had to be been married this time round for 31 years.

As I do not have a sub-woofer booming out of my motor a little bit of anonymous interference from my home PC set-up sounds like a nice way of evening up the score with society !

I like the thought of my Neighbours lad taking his car sound system to pieces 'cus it goes all crackly when he is sat outside his Mom & Dads with his girlfriend on his knee !!

 

[Deleted account DD]

No offence taken Jim boy I am quite thick skinned, had to be been married this time round for 31 years.

Mr Tolerant

Same here re criticism, I have to say easiest way of linking computers for me has always been hard wired via ethernet links. Problem was drilling all the holes through walls around the house :augie

As far as developing the ability to sit outside in the garden or garage on wireless you can get boosters. Dont own one but have used a very good Belkin one.

 

[macabethiel]

ethernet over mains

Daved,

Its not the holes through the wall as much as the cables down the outside of the house and all those bent cable clamp nails that are the bug bind for me.

Tried sitting in the garden when its sunny and I cant see anything on the screen !