ASUS Unveils the PL-X51P and PL-X52P 500 Mbps Powerline Adapters

[Cristian_25H]

ASUS PL-X51P and PL-X52P powerline adapters enter the market as part of a new trend that makes use of prevalent power plugs to offer easy-setup networking that covers entire homes and offices. Doubling the utility of electrical outlets without creating additional clutter, they offer high speed 500 Mbps data rates, four Gigabit LAN ports, VIP bandwidth prioritization, and a smart energy-saving standby mode.

With their extra-outlet noise filtering design, the compact PL-X51P and PL-X52P deliver on the promise of uncompromising powerline connectivity, giving customers access to wider coverage with no additional infrastructure. The PL-X51 includes one powerline adapter, while the PL-X52P ships as a two-adapter bundle.





Great alternative to conventional networking
The PL-X51P and PL-X52P connect to any existing power plug at homes and offices. They require no standalone power adapter, and therefore eliminate additional clutter with space-saving dual-use design. As part of the new powerline networking trend, they offer all the utility of a high speed internet connection minus the dedicated space and power typically allocated to standard routers and adapters. Setting up the PL-X51P and PL-X52P is a simple matter of connecting them to a power plug, as they auto-detect connected devices and can be configured from any PC. They include an extra outlet that means power plugs can still be used even with the adapters connected. An integrated noise filter compensates for powerline fluctuations to ensure consistent networking performance regardless of power grid conditions.

Fastest powerline performance available
The PL-X51P and PL-X52P support up to 500 Mbps in data rate, which is currently the fastest offered by any powerline adapter. As such, they do more than expand networks wherever a power plug can be found. Their speed supports fast downloading, HD content streaming, and multiplayer gaming, proving that the simplicity of powerline networking need not come at the expense of high speed performance.

Quad LAN ports and priority VIP management
Despite their compact and lean design, the PL-X51P and PL-X52P integrate four Gigabit LAN ports, similar to conventional routers and adapters. They therefore allow for the same number of devices to be connected to them directly, being the first powerline adapters on the market to offer four Gigabit LAN ports alongside an extra-outlet design that keeps power plugs free for use by other appliances. They also feature a dedicated VIP LAN port, which uses smart built-in bandwidth supervision and online traffic control that put data rate-sensitive applications first to ensure smooth lag-resistant performance. The design is especially useful to customers requiring online multitasking, such as downloading while HD streaming or gaming. Once more, this shows that powerline networking offers features similar to those found in conventional products.

Smart energy-saving standby lowers electric bills

ASUS has engineered the PL-X51P and PL-X52P with an intelligent auto-detecting standby mode. When not in use or whenever net traffic loads are minimal, the adapters go into an energy-saving mode, resulting in better efficiency and lower electricity bills over time, plus overall reduced environmental impact.

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[Filiprino]

500 Mbps half duplex and a 4 port gigabit switch without wasting an outlet. Not bad.

 

[Drmark]

Do these actually work? I have hard wired my home with Cat5e, I am looking at a new home of 2-3 years, these a good alternative?

 

[Solidstate89]

I hope these come to the U.S. soon. Moving into an apartment soon and I can't exactly drill holes in the wall and start stringing Ethernet cabling.

 

[Jstn7477]

I wonder how well these remain immune to interference these days. Had a friend who uses powerline adapters (no idea how old) and he had to keep as many lights and appliances turned off as possible to get decent speeds.

 

[Nordic]

A tpu review could answer all question..

 

[Am*]

So they've slapped a switch and a bog standard powerline adapter in one enclosure. Big deal.

But seriously, what is the point of it having 4 Ethernet ports? I happen to use a powerline adapter now, which only has one -- of all the things needed to improve about these, adding more ports is most definitely NOT one of them -- a pointless waste of time and money IMHO. I have a switch to do the exact same thing for £9 when I need multiple devices connected, no doubt for less than the cost of adapters like these. Then again, with this being ASUS branded, it is no doubt guaranteed to be overpriced for the overrated brand and the gimmicky crap they've tacked onto it.

These need improving on a fundamental level of function before adding worthless features to them. Bandwidth and number of ports do not change the fact that the traffic for ONE of these ports is not clean enough (and I happen to use one of the better performing powerline adapters). I play BF3 online on an identical 500MBit powerline adapter without the extra ports, which uses no more than 200KB/second of traffic, and more often than not, there is just too much packet loss. So the extra 3 ports on this will do nothing but waste power and reduce the connection quality for the other ports.

500 Mbps half duplex and a 4 port gigabit switch without wasting an outlet. Not bad.

Not good either. I'd love to see the price of this thing, no doubt it will be north of 100 Euros at least.

Do these actually work? I have hard wired my home with Cat5e, I am looking at a new home of 2-3 years, these a good alternative?

They work alright, but not up to the standard of a good old Ethernet cable. Depends a lot on the house's electrical wiring and what electrical appliances are in use in the house. If you're buying the new home you're moving to, stick with the Cat5e cable, or better yet, go for a Cat6. The only time I'd recommend these is if you're renting a property that has a terrible wi-fi signal -- for these sorts of situations, these are a godsend.