INTRODUCTION

   It's no secret that if you require the best possible internet access both in terms of performance and security then your best option is obviously to use a wired connection. Wireless connections are obviously the only choice when on the road so no one can really deny their usefulness but the current level of technology isn't close to providing the same data transfer speeds and security one can enjoy by using a wired one so until that changes we also prefer to follow that path. Because of that Powerline adapters have become quite popular amongst consumers who want to extend either their home or business network and although still not perfect since they rely much on the quality of the structures electrical grid they do offer a great alternative to using extra cables and WiFi. We've already reviewed quite a few such devices but today it's our very first encounter with one manufactured by Linksys the PLEK500 500Mbps Powerline Homeplug AV2 Kit (contains two PLE500 adapters).

   The Linksys brand has pioneered wireless connectivity since its inception in 1988 with its leading innovation and engineering strategies, and best-in-class technology, design, and customer service. Linksys enables a connected lifestyle for people at home, at work and on the move, and with its award-winning products, simplifies home control, entertainment, security and Internet access through innovative features and a growing application and partner ecosystem.

   Although in the market currently one can find numerous Powerline adapters with various features such as built-in electrical sockets (some of which even record power consumption of devices plugged to it), up to 4 LAN ports, Wi-Fi connectivity, energy management and remote access Linksys has decided to keep things really simple with their PLEK500 500Mbps Powerline Homeplug AV2 Kit since aside being quite small these adapters just offer 500Mbps speeds over a single LAN port. Also Powerline adapters may use the local electrical grid but data encryption is still a must so the PLEK500 adapters offer AES 128bit encryption with key management. It goes without saying that we'd like to see more LAN ports and a built-in electrical socket but performance is equally important so let’s see what the PLEK500 500Mbps Powerline Homeplug AV2 Kit can do.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

The main product features are listed at the front right next to a product picture.

A list of available accessories is placed on the left side while on the opposite side we see the extras offered by Linksys.

The serial number, barcodes, bundle contents and OS compatibility can be found at the bottom.

Moving at the rear we see the features and specifications list in 12 languages.

A formed piece of cardboard helps keep both adapters safe during transport.

Inside the box you will find two PLEK500 powerline adapters, two Ethernet LAN cables, quick start guide and a software CD.

THE PLEK500

Linksys has used a nice white glossy finish at the front of the 90mm long, 61mm wide and 36mm thick adapters (bad however for our photo bench).

Size-wise the PLE500 powerline adapter is just slightly larger compared to the ETH-500 adapter by ASOKA.

The PLE500 adapters feature 3 activity LEDs at the front for power, home network connection and active internet connection.

A small button placed on the left side of the adapters is used to enable AES 128bit encryption.

The single gigabit LAN port is placed at the bottom along with the reset switch.

At the rear we see the serial number, mac address, device password and the products electrical requirements.

USING THE PLEK500

To use the adapters you just need to plug them into the power socket but if you wish to perform firmware updates, change the security key, restart the adapter(s) or even to just change the name of each adapter you will need to download the Powerline AV2 utility from Linksys.

TESTING METHODOLOGY

   As already mentioned plenty of times in the past the performance of Powerline adapters is directly linked to the quality of the buildings electrical grid/wiring so the output speeds from such devices will most probably vary between new and old structures. Still the results recorded when testing Powerline adapters inside the same building should easily point out the best one and so to that end we used the well-known Passmark Performance Test to measure the data transfer rate in wired, wireless and Powerline modes with a fixed (for every test) distance of 15 meters between our Netgear DGN3500 Gigabit modem/router and the primary and secondary systems (30m in total between both systems). For Wi-Fi capable powerline adapters we left the secondary adapter at the same spot as with the other tests and used it with an 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac compatible Toshiba Qosmio Laptop placed roughly 5 meters away.

   The network data transfer test was set to duration of 40 seconds and was repeated a total of 7 times after which the average numbers were recorded into our charts. As a secondary test we are also using QCheck by Ixia which is considered amongst the top measuring tools of its kind. Tests are performed 7 times at throuput mode with a data size of 1000Kb and in the end the average numbers once again get recorded into our charts.

TEST RESULTS

CONCLUSION

   We've been testing products by Linksys for quite a few years now and never have they let us down so when we saw that their flagship powerline adapter PLE500 only had a single LAN port and no electrical socket all our hopes fell on its performance levels and price. Indeed the PLEK500 500Mbps Powerline Homeplug AV2 Kit contains two compact yet solid adapters with very good performance levels but unfortunately these levels were simply not high enough for us to ignore the lack of two very important features such as multiple LAN ports and an built-in electrical socket. Of course even just a year ago we wouldn't be having this conversation since such features weren't as widely available but today they are so many products with them that we can't figure out the why Linksys hasn't followed the same path. We can only hope that they will soon but until then the PLE500 Powerline adapter seems to fall short.

   So what about price? Well the PLEK500 500Mbps Powerline Homeplug AV2 Kit by Linksys currently retails for USD97.71 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and 79Euros inside the EU (Amazon.co.uk) a price tag which is actually more than most 500Mbps kits in the market currently. Sure the performance is there and you can always count on the quality from a manufacturer like Linksys but without the extra features offered by the competition things don't look good. Of course if your only goal is to find an compact powerline adapter with very good performance and you can afford to sacrifice a single electrical socket (and providing of course that 1 LAN port is sufficient for you) then we really suggest considering the PLEK500 500Mbps Powerline Homeplug AV2 Kit by Linksys however if the above don't apply then you might want to look elsewhere.

PROS

- Build Quality
- Size
- Very Good Performance
- 500Mbit/s Compatible
- AES 128bit Encryption

CONS

- Price (For Some)
- Single LAN Port (For Some)
- No Electrical Socket (For Some)