powerline?

[hammerslap1]

how close is powerline to being hard wired into the router? my desktop is currently on a wireless adapter and can be quite slow at times so was thinking either run a cable or go powerline. but if powerline isnt that close to hard wired then i dont think ill spend the money

[phillrulz]

how close is powerline to being hard wired into the router? my desktop is currently on a wireless adapter and can be quite slow at times so was thinking either run a cable or go powerline. but if powerline isnt that close to hard wired then i dont think ill spend the money

i physical ethernet to your desktop will be better depends on how old/ good the wireing is , ive tried powerline however my room there is very few sockets and extension leads with powerlines are a big no no,

[hammerslap1]

i would prefer not to have a wire running all the way out to the livingroom and up and over door ways and such is all. would need to be about 150ft cable. i have a socket directly below my desk so that wouldnt be an issue

[thepriceyman]

Power to Ethernet is okay. However I can guarantee that it is no where near as fast as plain old bog standard ethernet. For instance in my house a ethernet cable will give me a nice 95mbps internet speed but if I use power to ethernet im lucky to get 30mbps! also things on your power line can also interfere with the adapters (dependant on what one your getting) 

[skywake]

Always go for proper Ethernet if you can. No WiFi or Powerline adapter can match Ethernet for throughput, latency and reliability.

 

But just for the sake of comparison, realistic "performing properly" real world numbers:

Fast Ethernet: ~95Mbps

Gigabit: ~850Mbps

WiFi: From ~1Mbps to ~400Mbps

Powerline: From ~30Mbps to ~150Mbps

 

So how much powerline is "like Ethernet" compared to WiFi really depends on what your yardstick is. If you have a high end powerline adapter, good wiring and shitty wireless performance? Yeah, it'll be a lot like plugging it directly into the back of your router compared to what you have. If you have the highest end wireless performance with the best adapters and no obstacles between you and your router? Probably not. Either way, plugging it in via Ethernet is still the best performing solution.

[ajalex74]

Powerline works pretty well and reliably, but won't be as fast as Ethernet, but will almost definitely be faster than WiFi. If you want speeds closer to Gigabit, look into MoCA adapters. It works by using your existing coaxial cabling. 

[skywake]

Powerline works pretty well and reliably, but won't be as fast as Ethernet, but will almost definitely be faster than WiFi. If you want speeds closer to Gigabit, look into MoCA adapters. It works by using your existing coaxial cabling. 

Well, it depends. If you have crappy wireless gear or are a fair distance away from your router/AP? Sure. But always? And definitely? Not really.

 

 

also MoCA. Well you have to have Coax running through your walls for a start which not everyone has. Especially in countries that aren't the US. Then you have to find the gear which again isn't that common given the limited market. And then from the benchmarks that I can find with a quick search you'll get maybe ~70Mbps or so. Which is nice but is thoroughly beaten by WiFi and powerline. So not really....