Talk to me about how to get my internet connection on 2 PCs

[ADragonIs4LifeNotJustHalloween]

I know I could do it via a wireless network but a friend (who is annoyingly offline atm) raves about Devolo plugs which give a network using the mains.

What are the pros and cons about either way of doing it?

[RustyBear]

I use Devolo plugs for our desktop pc - ours cost about £70 for 2 (you need 2) but you can get faster ones for more, and you could probably get the ones I have for less online - I needed a quick solution so I went to Maplin.

One plug is connected to our router by Ethernet cable and plugged in to the ordinary electrical socket, the other is connected by Ethernet to the PC & plugged in nearby (they do have to be on the same ring main, so check that you haven't got more than one)
It literally worked within seconds, I didn't even have to reboot, just restarted my browser.
Since we've had them (about 3 months) they have lost the connection twice, first time I just had to right click the connection icon & click repair, second time I had to turn both plugs off & on again, but it was very quick.
It's early days yet, but so far I'm quite happy with them.

[ADragonIs4LifeNotJustHalloween]

I've been looking on the Maplin site but am clueless really so couldn't make any judgement between the different types It seems very clever though.

[RustyBear]

I have this one but you can get ones which are twice as fast, ones that incorporate a wireless access point, so ou can use a wireless laptop in the room, and new ones that stream audio. Mine is 85 Mbps, which is fine for me, but I don't do a lot of downloading or watch online video a lot- if you do you might want to go for the faster version.

[MrVibrating]

One big advantage of wireless is that it might not cost you anything as most broadband suppliers will give you a wireless router when you sign up, and modern laptops have wireless built in.

One big disadvantage of plug-in is that (obviously) you need to be able to plug in the equipment you want to use - and (less obviously) as already pointed out it must be on the same ring main. In virtually all modern houses there are at least 2 ring mains (upstairs and downsatirs), with most having the kitchen on a separate one too.

Why not start with wireless, and think about plug-in if you are unhappy with it?

[RustyBear]

I agree about the wireless probably being cheaper - we do have wireless too, it was only one pc that didn't have a wireless card, we had an ethernet cable going through a doorway & it suddenly became necessary to be able to shut the door (!) & the pc was the one with the shared printer on. So the plugs were the quickest solution.

[MrVibrating]

Sorry, my last post was wrong - see this FAQ from the devlolo site:

Question:
My house/ building has different ring mains serving different parts of the house/ garden office/ attic etc. Can devolo HomePlug adapters work in this situation?

Answer:
Yes - This is a normal situation, and as long as there is one electricity meter in the house/ building; generally, all the ring mains converge there and the data signal can cross ring mains .

I had in my memory that this wasn't true, and the previous poster in favour of Devolo seemed to confirm it. Should have checked first, but at least I checked afterwards!

[ADragonIs4LifeNotJustHalloween]

Only 1 PC has a wireless card so I'd need to sort that out anyway and I don't have a wireless router so would need one of those too.

[ADragonIs4LifeNotJustHalloween]

What I really want is to wake up and find someone's made the decision and sorted it all out for me

[RustyBear]

Maybe you got the idea from the same place I did MrV - not that I know where that was, but I definitely had it in my memory too!
I haven't needed to check if it was a problem here because we only have one ring main in most of the house & another for the kitchen & garage.