Rosewill RPLC-500 500 Mbps Powerline AV Networking Adapter Starter Kit Review

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Every once in awhile, you come across a situation where normal solutions just won't work or cannot be easily executed. In a more recent case where things didn't come together as expected, I was attempting to run an Ethernet line from my office to my garage to connect an additional PC that I normally use to lookup parts when tinkering with my toys.

Typically, I would grab a healthy length of Cat5e or Cat6 and start running the line towards my destination. This time, a few things landed in the way. The first being the distance, and the second, a twelve inch beam.

In situations like this, you start to look elsewhere. Traditionally, I would use wireless, but even that at times doesn't deliver the speed I would like to have. Luckily, technology has evolved enough to the point where Powerline networking has matured quite a bit to the point where we are reaching upwards of 500 Mbps.

Today, we have the Rosewill RPLC500 in house and tested. This kit features one push 128-bit security along with gigabit Ethernet built into each Powerline receiver. Maximum speed of this kit is said to reach 500 Mbps with a range of 300 meters. MSRP of the Rosewill AV500 Powerline Kit sits at $69.99 with a one-year warranty.

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Scope of delivery for the RPLC500 kit included Powerline adapters, two Cat5 cables, and utility DVD.

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Looking at the front of the adapter, we find a set of three LEDs. The first two are green with the third changing colors from green to orange and red depending on how good your Powerline connection is.

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On the back of the adapter, we have a standard North American plug.

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On the input side of things, we have a gigabit RJ45 LAN port. To the left, the security button and reset are present.

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Here is the testing layout for the charts that follow.

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As you can see, we didn't quite hit the 500 Mbps mark set forth by marketing, but we did manage to reach 230 Mbps at peak. As we moved our second receiver further away, things did take a turn for the worse, but it was quickly noticeable as the LED color changed.

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Above, we have the file transfer test for each of the situations above. At its peak, we reached 27 MB/s.

With the Rosewill RPLC500 being the first time I have had the chance to use Powerline networking, I must say it's a great beginning. The build quality of the Rosewill units was great and the ease of use made the experience even better.

Performance of the units didn't quite hit the advertised speeds, but I was able to obtain 230 Mbps, which isn't too bad for a wired connection that uses existing infrastructure. Even better, this product will successfully allow you to extend your network even further, taking you to the garage or second story without the need to run Cat5 through walls.

Additionally, you can setup up to sixteen of these adapter into one network with each device having a built-in QoS making for a pretty powerful video streaming network for a bedroom or home office.

MSRP of the Rosewill RPLC500 Kit is set at $69.99 with a one-year warranty. Current market pricing can be found below.

PRICING: You can find the Rosewill RPLC500 Kit for sale below. The prices listed are valid at the time of writing, but can change at any time. Click the link to see the very latest pricing for the best deal.

United States: The Rosewill RPLC500 Kit retails for $69.99 at Amazon.

Canada: The Rosewill RPLC500 Kit retails for CDN$136.76 at Amazon Canada.

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