ZyXel AV2000 HomePlug AV2 (model PLA5456) review - cummingsmandeproper

At a Coup d'oeil

Expert's Rating

Pros

• Fast carrying into action
• Power pass-through
• Dual ethernet ports

Cons

• Likely to be incompatible with other HomePlug adapters
• HomePlug branding volition confuse consumers
• Ships with just unity short cable

Our Verdict

As irritating as the cunning HomePlug marketing is, sophisticated consumers will find that this adapter delivers high-top performance. The dual ethernet ports will come in very handy, likewise.

ZyXEL's newest and fastest powerline adapter kit up, the HD Powerline Adapter 2000 (ZyXEL's model number PLA5456), delivers the same super-speedy performance we've descend to expect from HomePlug AV2 MIMO gear based on Broadcom's chips. It likewise offers such useful extras as a exit-direct outlet (so you don't fall behind use of the wall outlet you plug the adaptor into) and duple ethernet ports (so you tin use a single adapter to hardwire ii devices to your network).

Buyers should be awake, however, that the PLA5456 is non certified away the HomePlug Alliance, despite the prominently displayed HomePlug AV2 MIMO label on its packaging. ZyXEL has not submitted this adapter for interoperability testing with other HomePlug Alliance-certified products, and that label does non seminal fluid from the HomePlug Alliance.

ZyXEL makes no promises that its part will function with different brands of powerline adapters, although our experience indicates that it should work with other adapters that are based on Broadcom's AV2 MIMO chipset.

Zyxel

Having two ethernet ports in the same adapter could be very useful, enabling you to connect both your fashionable TV and your gaming soothe to the network, for example.

HomePlug is losing its meaning

If you've invested in ZyXEL's previous AV2 MIMO product, the PLA5405 and endeavour to add PLA5456 adapters to the coalesce, you might be foiled with the result: The PLA5405 is supported on chips from QualComm, and our tests showed that Qualcomm and Broadcom AV2 MIMO products generally put on't run recovered conjointly. ZyXEL did not obtain HomePlug Alliance certification for its earlier production, either, but still set down the Sami AV2 MIMO label on the promotion, which might lead buyers to think that the cardinal models are compatible: They are not.

In short, the networking industry has made a muddle stunned of the powerline networking market, with the HomePlug Confederation acquiring wrong pretty very much everything the Badger State-Fi Alliance got right. It seems it can't smooth protect its own HomePlug stigmatisation. As a result, consumers stimulate little Oregon atomic number 102 self-confidence that different models of HomePlug AV2 MIMO products will work well together even if they're from the same manufacturer.

As for the product in hand, ZyXEL's PLA5456 is equally as fast as the Extollo LANSocket 1500, our reigning powerline speed chomp, which is likewise supported Broadcom's AV2 MIMO chips. Both adapters have a pass-through electric outlet, but the ZyXEL offers one boast the Extollo does not: A endorse ethernet port. The $90 LANSocket 1500 outfit is a little cheaper than the ZyXEL—which NewEgg is selling for $100—but that's not an illogical premium for the service program of that 2nd ethernet embrasure. Be certain to shop around, though, as Amazon is charging $130 for the PLA5456.

The ZyXEL PLA5456 delivered TCP throughput of 350.3Mbps back in our JPerf benchmark tests, which is about 16Mbps slower than the Extollo; however, when I retested the Extollo on the same day as the ZyXEL, it delivered the real like norm operation. I ascribe the remainder to the presence of noise along the electrical circuit during the second test. When I paired the Extollo with the ZyXEL, carrying into action born by a worthless 6Mbps.

ZyXEL provides a single, rather skimpy 56-inch ethernet cable for each adapter—you're on your own when it comes to using the second ethernet port (luckily, CAT5E cables are identical inexpensive). The units themselves are full-size and bulky, merely designed so that if you plug them into the bottom socket of a typical duplex wall outlet, you should be able to insert a normal plug into the top of the inning socket.

The PLA5456's speed, pass-through outlet, and second ethernet port make it well right for utilisation in your media nerve center, especially if Wi-Fi International Relations and Security Network't acquiring the task finished (cerebrate urban environments where threefold Wi-Fi networks are competitive for bandwidth, or full-size homes where a WI-Fi signal whitethorn not reach all rooms). If you can look past the marketing blarney and build out your network using however adapters, information technology's a good buy.

Source: https://www.pcworld.com/article/418598/zyxel-av2000-homeplug-av2-model-pla5456-powerline-adapter-review-speedy-hardware-dodgy-marketing.html

Posted by: cummingsmandeproper.blogspot.com

Share this post