Belkin Launches 1Gbps Powerline Home Networking HD Kit

Peripheral manufacturer Belkin has announced a new product, the Gigabit Powerline HD Starter Kit, that will reignite the debate about whether promised manufacturers' speeds can really be trusted.

The pack will supposedly allow you to reach 1Gbps data speed by using your existing electrical wiring. For the magic to work, you will need to plug two of them in a new electrical wiring system and switch off as many appliances as possible to get as close as possible to that speed.

At 1Gbps, it is 5x faster than the current 200Mbps standard speed reached by most models. Unfortunately, Powerline is sensitive to old wiring, interferences and provide rather patchy coverage over long distances but can still reach speeds high enough for HD content.

A pair of those adapters are likely to cost around $150 in the US or £92 in the UK. It is currently available in the US and the rest of the world will have to wait till August to experience the benefits of Powerline HD.

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Bear in mind as well that if you use a 1Gbps setup, you will almost certainly need appropriate network cards and cabling to make good use of it. Belkin is using Gigle's Semiconductor's mediaxtrem chip to back its claim.

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