Cisco Linksys PLWK400: Power up your WiFi

Dubai

From slow speeds to weak connection, we have all had our shares of Wi-Fi woes. The Cisco Linksys PLWK400 aims to address that in a big way with little effort from you; the wireless network extender kit brings wireless connectivity to the furthest corners of your home without compromising on speed. The Network Kit uses your existing power lines to transmit data so you’re getting very close to wired speeds without having to rewire your entire home.

The box comes with two adaptors which plug straight into your power sockets. One socket must be connected to your router with an Ethernet cable, the other can be plugged anywhere you need a stronger or faster connection. The second adaptor then acts as a wireless hotspot that is broadcasting the signal it receives from the first adaptor over power lines. The second adaptor also includes a single port for Ethernet connectivity so you can establish a direct connection to any devices that may require the highest speeds; this is especially useful for your media centre to stream movies or your gaming console.

The setup really is ‘plug and play’ and you can be up and running in a few minutes, however it is recommended that you install the bundled utility to secure your WiFi. You may also buy multiple adaptors for different rooms to add to the master adaptor (connected to the router) and the utility will let you give each adaptor a unique name.

Speed degradation

For best results, it is recommended you plug the adaptors into power sockets directly and not into power extensions. They may still work with extensions, but you may face some speed degradation.

While the adaptor promises theoretical speeds of up to 200Mbps, real world usage is lower and depends on the distance between the adaptors as well as the socket they’re plugged into.

At a price of Dh349, The Cisco Linksys PLWK400 kit may be pricier than the average router but it gives you a lot of bang for your buck, as well as being far cheaper and easier than rewiring your entire home.

The writer is a digital marketing professional and an early adopter of all things digital.