Powerline and home networking

In short: Powerline transmits network data over the household power wiring. An alternative to long network cables and weak Wi-Fi.

In more detail: Two adapters in sockets form a network over the house wiring. The achievable speed depends strongly on line quality and sources of interference. In practice you often reach a fraction of the advertised value.

In Depth

• Alternatives in order of quality: cable (Ethernet), mesh Wi-Fi, powerline, Wi-Fi repeater (Wi-Fi repeater).
• Ethernet: Cat 6 cables manage 1 Gbit/s up to 55 m (10 Gbit/s), Cat 5e 1 Gbit/s up to 100 m.
• Mesh: several radio stations forming one network and handing devices over seamlessly.
• Wi-Fi standards: Wi-Fi 5 (ac), Wi-Fi 6 (ax), Wi-Fi 6E (6 GHz), Wi-Fi 7 (be).
• Frequencies: 2.4 GHz reaches further, is slower and more crowded; 5 and 6 GHz are faster but with shorter range.
• Tips: Place the router centrally and elevated, not behind furniture or next to a microwave.

See also: Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi repeater