The adapters are sleek and attractive, with an unobtrusive security button, a pinhole for resetting the unit, and LEDs to show power status, Ethernet connectivity and PowerLine status. The PowerLine Status LED glows green for rates over 80Mbps, amber for 50-80Mbps, and red for under 50Mbps so you can easily see the status of your network.
Running the included CD-ROM lets you handle advanced configuration tasks such as naming your network and setting passwords and custom encryption keys. You might want to set up encryption between adapters to ensure privacy, especially if your PowerLine network shares wiring with other housing units that also use PowerLine. It’s easy: Just plug in the first module, push its encryption button (which is labeled "Security"), then plug in the second module, and press its encryption button within two minutes.
I found no interference issues, even when appliances and other devices were turned on, and I was able to consistently achieve speeds of 500Mbps. (The software lets you monitor the communication speed between devices.) Plugging the devices into surge protectors or power strips degraded network performance, although the PowerLine adapters still operated at higher speeds than the average Internet connection. I was also able to add additional PowerLine devices, which delivered plenty of high-speed bandwidth. At around $125, the PowerLine AV 500 Adapter Starter Kit is a straightforward, speedy way to connect devices to your network without running wires.
This story, "D-Link PowerLine AV 500 Adapter Starter Kit (DHP-501AV)" was originally published by BrandPost.