Please fill me in on this
 

So I was browsing London Drugs computer section and came across a linksys product that uses your electrical outlets to carry your internet signal. I always prefer hardwired things over wireless, so I thought this might be a good idea.

Buy.com Canada - Cisco Linksys PLK300 PowerLine AV Ethernet Adapter Kit&&

1. Is this product as fast/reliable as a cat5 cable?
2. Are there any drawbacks I need to know of?

I don't care that it is some money, where my router is in relation to my computer drilling and running cable isn't happening. Also, it was really difficult to find this product online, is it being discontinued or something?

Thanks.

i tried a TrendNet kit when the powerline units first came out... what a waste of money. I'll never try it again... maybe someone using a more reliable kit can chime in on their bandwidth speeds in relation to a wireless N setup?

The latest models are much better but they're rare and much more expensive than your regular wireless setup. If you don't like wireless I recommend you spend the money to get a good experience with it. I have a Dlink DIR-825 and used to not at all like Dlink, but they're great now. This router does N with 2.4 and 5ghz and has dual radio. Frankly I love it. I can stream 1080p over it no problem.

Btw if you have a house older than 15 years old stay away from those power solutions. They need decent power cables to work and the newer the better too.

Alright, thanks for the responses. The house is 3 years old and the model I linked is the higher end "audio/video" model linksys offers. How would this experience compare to wireless N?

I use them, works fine.

Powerline vs Wireless vs Ethernet Networking (NCIX Tech Tips #52) > Tech Review | Geek TV

I know of some ppl that use these products and are happy with the results. Netgear has a product that I know works well.

It highly depends on the quality of the in-house wiring. As you can see above people are happy with their performance. As your house is 3 years old, assuming the wiring was done right its probably got the best chance. Make sure you get a later model though, the very early ones that came out introduced high latency and weren't nearly as good.

The comparison to wireless is difficult to say without trying it. Wireless is generally a mixed bag as well given where you live. If its an apartment, then you have to find an unused channel and go from there. If you're in a semi detached or a single, you should generally be fine and get full coverage.

Is the model I linked in the OP a later model? Are there any better ones?

Why is it that the product in the video advertises 200 mbps but when Linus transfers the file he only gets 5-6?

200 mbps is NOT mb/s. 200mbps is actually 25mb/s or so. And still, that's THEORETICAL speed

Thanks for the clarification.