Showing posts with label home. Show all posts
Showing posts with label home. Show all posts

4/22/2012

Actiontec HLE200AV0-01GK MegaPlug 200 Mbps Powerline HomePlug A/V Gaming Adapter Kit (White) Review

Actiontec HLE200AV0-01GK MegaPlug 200 Mbps Powerline HomePlug A/V Gaming Adapter Kit (White)
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
Having been dealing with a weak wireless connection throughout our home, especially when we stream HD movies through our 360 and while gaming.... I jumped when I saw that this product was available.
I handed the box to my hubby LOL and he slowly began connecting everything. First he plugged one near our router which is located in a closet and the other one by our XBOX 360. A minute later the eternet cables were connected and VIOLA!!! That is it. It couldn't have been any easier... a monkey could have done it (sorry to my hubby). Instantly there was a difference while he tested it with the gaming applications. IT handled it effortlessly. The connection wasn't dropped as it would have been atleast twice a night beforehand. Then came the streaming of the HD content ( I AM SAM)... once again... it was quick and there wasn't any buffering like we had before when there was a lot of action in the scene. It works and it is a wonderful solution for hard-core gamers that can't handle the response that they receive from a sometimes sketchy wireless connection. If you NEED to be wired in many applications... not only one; and don't want to run a million wires all over your home; then this would be a sound investment. IT is a touch pricey, so that is why I say it should only be for a hard-core gamer.
Also, most do rent and they do not have the luxury of having their wires running hidden throughout their walls; hence the ugly black cords spider-weaving in many renters apartments in NY. This would be the solution to end that.
The downside... it is clunky and it takes up outlet space. Another pet peeve... you have to have outlets near the product you want it to "wire".
Highly recommend... at a price drop.


Click Here to see more reviews about: Actiontec HLE200AV0-01GK MegaPlug 200 Mbps Powerline HomePlug A/V Gaming Adapter Kit (White)

Actiontec's MegaPlug Powerline 200 Mbps HomePlug A/V Gaming Kit creates the online gaming network you crave! Using the existing power outlets in your home, you can enjoy up to 200 Mbps speeds with less than 3 milliseconds of latency! In addition to your gaming needs, your 200 Mbps Gaming Kit will transfer movies, songs or any other large files faster than you've ever seen. It's easy to set up, universally compatible and provides high security. HomePlug AV Certified.

Buy Now

Click here for more information about Actiontec HLE200AV0-01GK MegaPlug 200 Mbps Powerline HomePlug A/V Gaming Adapter Kit (White)

Read More...

4/13/2012

Belkin 200 Mbps Powerline AV Adapter (Black) Review

Belkin 200 Mbps Powerline AV Adapter (Black)
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
Encouraged by positive reviews, I tried using these to connect two Airport Extreme Base Stations (AEBS) separated by one floor and about 60 feet apart. The AEBSs were set up extend a 802.11n network wirelessly. Connecting them using these powerline adapters made the speed to drop considerably. I tested transferring a 200 MB file: with AEBSs connected wirelessly the transfer rate was about 13Mbs; with powerline adapters it dropped to 2-3Mbs.
I concluded that the wiring inside the house is not suitable for using this technology.
Otherwise, the product seems to be a polished product with easy setup.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Belkin 200 Mbps Powerline AV Adapter (Black)

If you need an ultra-high-speed network connection in the farthest reaches of your home, the Belkin Powerline AV Starter Kit is just what you've been looking for. This kit includes everything you need to create a reliable, high-speed home network providing data speeds of up to 200 Mbps using your house's existing electrical wiring.
The adapter can be plugged directly into the wall or placed on a desk. Streaming Video -- Even In Your Attic With the Belkin Powerline AV Starter Kit, you can send high-bandwidth content from the Internet to computers and network devices all over your home through the electrical wiring in your house. This kit lets you convert any electrical outlet in your home into a network connection.

For instance, if you have a computer in the attic or other room where a wireless signal is weak, the Powerline AV is the perfect solution. You don't need to drill holes to extend your Ethernet cable, and you won't have to worry about the slow data speeds and intermittent dropouts that weak wireless connections are plagued with. Additionally, unlike wireless connections, the Powerline AV network connection isn't affected by factors such as cordless telephones and other wireless interference.

There is no performance penalty that comes with the convenience of the Powerline AV; data speeds along at up to 200 Mbps, meaning it can handle even heavy Internet usage, such as downloading and streaming music and video files, playing online games, and making VoIP phone calls, all without any lag time or hiccups.

Enhanced Security Keeps Out Snoopers There is no need to worry about security either. With 128-bit DES link encryption, the Powerline AV ensures that your information is safe and secure from intruders. Since the information is all transferred with wires, hackers can't simply sniff your information out of the air, as they easily can with insecure wireless connections.

Simple Plug-and-Play Setup Setup is as simple as plugging one adapter into a wall outlet and connecting it into your router, and then plugging a second adapter into any outlet wherever you need a network connection. This kit includes two adapters, so you can create a network within minutes of opening the box. If you have need for another connection, just purchase another adapter.

The Belkin Powerline AV is HomePlug AV certified, can coexist with HomePlug 1.0, and is compliant with 802.3/802.3u standards. It is backed by a lifetime warranty.

What's in the Box Two Powerline Networking Adapters, two Ethernet cables, two power cords, two wall plug adapters, quick installation guide, and CD-ROM with installation software and user manual.



Belkin Powerline AV with Amazon Video on DemandWith Amazon Video on Demand, you can instantly watch thousands of movies and TV shows online. Now, instead of watching videos on your computer, you can stream it to your home theater for a premium viewing experience. To get the best streaming video quality, update your home theater and home network by adding Belkin Powerline AV to your Amazon Video on Demand. Belkin Powerline offers the best bandwidth and fastest speeds for the ultimate video experience in your home--even in HD. Belkin Powerline is simple to install and faster than any wireless connection--just plug it in and instantly connect to the Internet. Use Powerline to stream high quality video to cable boxes, TiVo, or gaming consoles and show Amazon Video on Demand programs in your home theater as well as any other TV or computer in your home.






Buy Now

Click here for more information about Belkin 200 Mbps Powerline AV Adapter (Black)

Read More...

12/26/2011

Sprint Airave Review

Sprint Airave
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
This product works as billed. Had one in service for about a year. Incredible signal in the defined area in a building where tower coverage was / is a problem. Could not be happier with the product and an added benefit is that the minutes that you use when talking via the Airave do not accumulate as min. used on your cell plan.
When you make or receive a call that comes via the Airave and you move out of range, if you are in range of a traditional tower you move to the external tower flawlessly. One thing to note is that if you are out of range and are on a call and come into range of the Airave you will not move to the device. Not a big deal but you should know this.


Click Here to see more reviews about: Sprint Airave

With Sprint AIRAVETM, a winner of the 2008 PC World 25 Most Innovative Products Award, you'll enjoy enhanced wireless service in your home or office - even if there is no coverage. It's like having your own miniature cell tower that covers up to 5,000 square feet.Key FeaturesWorks with any Sprint phone - up to three users at the same time.¹Installs in minutes with your existing broadband Internet access, such as DSL, cable or T1.Unlimited incoming and outgoing calls, including nationwide long distance, when using your Sprint phone and initiating your call on the device (requires an AIRAVE unlimited calling plan).**Automatically transfers calls to the Sprint Nationwide Network once you leave your home or office.²Limit access to your AIRAVE by creating a list of up to 50 approved Sprint phone numbers.What You'll Need Active Sprint phone(s)Sprint voice planBroadband Internet access, such as DSL, cable or T1.Available Ethernet port - either on your modem or via a router - to connect AIRAVE to your broadband data service.Available power outlet.Customer may still need to subscribe service plan from Sprint.

Buy Now

Click here for more information about Sprint Airave

Read More...

Cisco-Linksys WMA11B Wireless Digital Media Adapter Review

Cisco-Linksys WMA11B Wireless Digital Media Adapter
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
...
First Impressions:
Nice packaging. Nice looking device, it's not much bigger than a four port hub. It has both the Cisco and LinkSys logos on the face. Vertical or horizontal mount. The package contained the device, quick setup poster, and a CD.
Installation:
I have an existing server, running Win2K Server, that I store my MP3 collection on. This product works by installing an agent on a PC and then connecting the device over a hard wired LAN or WiFi (802.11b). My setup allows me to use either LAN or WiFi and of course I chose the wired setup for max bandwidth and so I could actually listen to music and use my phone or microwave without dropping packets and thus songs. The agent installation was flawless and the media adapter and my server were talking within a few minutes after cracking up the box. Once the agent is installed on a PC, you really only have one option: Point the agent to your media. So of course I decided to point it to my entire (29 gig) mp3 collection which began in a single MP3 folder. Well, it starts to "Search" and then simply would disappear. No error, no nothing. Ok, maybe my collection was too big, so I start dragging my genre folders which were maybe 1 gig a piece...same thing happend. Ok...so I decide to drag a single album over to the agent and finally it seems to take the 6 songs in the folder and I rush over to my TV to fire up the device...it was able to play three of the songs and then the entire folder disappeared and thus I had no music to pull up anymore. After a few reboots and trying different folders I had similar results. My trade, I'm an IT guy...so there were no 'technical user' issues...I can assure you of that. To this day the device is flakey. It forgets entire folders for no reason at any given time. I've even loaded XP with similar results.
Audio:
The sound is on par with my expectations, though I wish for the price the device would have at least coax digital out. Your stuck with a pair of RCA, which I hooked a pair of Monster cables up to for optimal sound. The unit is equipped with an Intel StrongArm 400 MhZ (The same processor the latest PocketPCs use) and thus is pretty good at decoding and playing the MP3/WMAs.
Display:
The menus are sloppy. There is absolutely no customization on for menus either. There are NO visualizations while songs are playing. You can't see anything important like bit rate or most of an ID3 tag (genre, year, etc.). You are stuck with an unsizable screen that shows you the track name and album name and running time. That's it. Plus they use such a huge display, that a band or song title with a long name (13 chars +) gets lopped off. Sloppy stuff all around on the visuals. Again, I expect more.
Photos:
Photos are displayed well. No real problems here. The device sure could flip through them faster though with this processor. One plus is the ability to play MP3s while viewing photos. However, some lag does occur on larger photos. Whether this is due to bandwidth, processor, or a combination I'll leave up to the "engineers" over at Linksys to figure out and hopefully fix over the next decade or so...
Support:
This is where the stars began to seriously dive. ... I doubt the engineers who designed this paper weight released this as a stable product under their free will. It's a joke.
Conclusion:
... I would recommend looking at the new Gateway DVD/MP3 network device or waiting as this market opens up more. We will all want to stream over DivX movies, MP3s, and every other type of media soon. I'm just going to wait a few years while they refine this technology better.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Cisco-Linksys WMA11B Wireless Digital Media Adapter

The Linksys Wireless-B media adapter lets you bring the digital pictures and music stored on your computer to your home entertainment center, without running cables through the house. Using a wireless connection, the media adapter displaysyour digital photographs on the TV for the whole family to enjoy. And your digital music collection is finally freed from those little computer speakers and can play in full glory through your stereo system.
The Wireless-B media adapter sits by your home stereo and television and connects to them using standard consumer electronics cables. Then it connects to your home network by Wireless-B (802.11b) wireless networking or, if you prefer, it can be connected via standard 10/100 Ethernet cabling. Using the included remote c ontrol and the user-friendly menus on your TV, you can browse through the digital pictures on your computer by folder, filename, or thumbnail. You can view pictures one at a time, or watch an automatically created slideshow of all the pictures in a given folder. The media adapter supports five popular picture formats: JPG, GIF, TIF, and BMP. Use the remote control's Zoom button to get a close-up of the details in your pictures. You can also use the remote to browse your MP3- or WMA-formatted music collection by title, artist, genre, folder, or playlist. Choose the music you want, and let the Wireless-B media adapter play it through your stereo system. You can even let music play in the background while you browse your pictures.
Power and Simplicity

Buy NowGet 52% OFF

Click here for more information about Cisco-Linksys WMA11B Wireless Digital Media Adapter

Read More...

5/22/2011

NETGEAR RP614 Web Safe Router with 4-Port 10/100 Mbps Switch Review

NETGEAR RP614 Web Safe Router with 4-Port 10/100 Mbps Switch
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
As other reviewers have noted, the router is very easy to set up. However, it has two major flaws which would keep me from recommend this unit:
1. The router randomly locks up several times a week. It requires a power off then on in order to start working again.
2. The router times out idle TCP session after a few minutes, and there is no way to disable or change this timeout. After the timeout the connection is dropped and has to be re-established. This is a *major* annoyance for people like me who use ssh or telnet to log into outside machines, but it can also cause problems with chat clients or other network applications if you are idle for a few minutes. This behavior has been confirmed by Netgear tech support, and they don't have a solution.
Between these two flaws, I recommend against buying this unit. Netgear's previous generation product (RP314) was rock solid, it's sad to see Netgear go so far downhill.

Click Here to see more reviews about: NETGEAR RP614 Web Safe Router with 4-Port 10/100 Mbps Switch

The NETGEAR RP614 Web Safe Router with 4-Port 10/100 Mbps Switch lets you easily share a broadband connection by creating a secure network with double firewall protection.
Simple Setup NETGEAR has made setting up network devices as painless as possible with their interactive Installation Assistant that guides you through setup step by step. Configuration is done through an easy-to-use web interface.
Outstanding Performance and Security The RP614 features four auto-sensing 10/100 Mbps Ethernet ports that will figure out each network connection without any need for manual switches. The RP614 allows for transfer of movies, music and photos at up 200 Mbps so the video and sound will be clear.
Two security methods are utilized to keep the network secure: Network Address Translation (NAT) and Stateful Packet Inspection (SPI). SPI safeguards against popular Denial of Service (DoS) attacks. For parents, content filtering allows you to set filters so that children are unable to reach websites with certain keywords or domain names, such as those associated with pornography. Web access can also be limited by the day of the week and time of day.
Styling That Fits In Your Home The RP614 has a svelte design with silver-and-gray styling that won't look out of place in your home.
The NETGEAR RP614 Web Safe Router with 4-Port 10/100 Mbps Switch is backed by a 2-year warranty.
What's in the Box RP614 Router Gateway, resource CD, power adapter, Ethernet cable, and warranty/support information card.

Buy NowGet 26% OFF

Click here for more information about NETGEAR RP614 Web Safe Router with 4-Port 10/100 Mbps Switch

Read More...