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[Edinburgh_lad]

Hello

This post is a reflection on tech and upgrades 

Just an observation:

Over the years, I've owned a number of Devolo products, starting from dLAN 200 to Magic 2 (it's irrelevant at this stage what you think about powerline and whether one should get it or not). What I noticed about my Magic 1 adapters was that the WiFi speed was limited to 80Mbps. Having checked a number of posts on different forums, I can see that it appears that Magic 2 WiFi next has the same problem.

So, I sold my Magic 1 adapters and have recently got a pair of new and unused dLAN 1200 + WiFi 1200ac for 45 quid on eBay (p&p included). A step back, one would think. But, the WiFi on DLAN 1200 also seems to be limited to 80Mbps. I know dLAN1200 is older technology (I used to own a pair of them before the pandemic before selling them then, too, and getting Magic 1), but I came to the conclusion that it's still good value for money, especially in comparison to Magic 2 Next, which can be twice/thrice more expensive, but it seems to be comparable, and in relation to Magic 1 WiFi, which also seems to be comparable to dLAN1200.

The speeds on these Devolo things are always theoretical, and getting 200-300Mbps between the adapters is sufficient for most, regardless of whether it's a 1200 or 2400 type of adapter, as advertised, but my concern has always been with getting 80Mbps on WiFi using both ac/ax devices to measure it.

So, now onto the questions:

Why is the WiFi link speed limited to 80Mbps on Magic 1 WiFi, Magic 2 WiFi and dLAN 1200 WiFi, if all are in the ac standard?

Can anyone confirm whether Magic 2 WiFi 6 and/or Repeater 3000 WiFi 6 also have this restriction?

[I can confirm that it has nothing to do with ethernet cables, settings on the router, or the speed of the Internet, as I have a 150Mbps FTTP, and when I connect my Motorola Edge 40 (ax) to my Fritzbox (ax), I get 150Mbps on speedtests. I think 80Mbps is still fast enough, but out of curiosity, I wanted to know, plus also it's interesting to see how advertising is done of these products, and how users can be easily fooled by it. Or maybe I'm measuring the wrong thing.]

Latest tech doesn't always mean better

The thing with Devolo made me think about technology and upgrades.

I've upgraded my Fritzbox 7530ac to 7530ax: my observations are that the range is smaller and looking at the specs, not sure it was an upgrade in the end (for example, USB 2.0 vs. USB 3.0).

The same applies to my Arlo cameras: Arlo Pro 2 offers free cloud storage (7 days) and while admittedly the video quality is better on Arlo Ultra, not entirely convinced it's worth an upgrade and the price because you still pay through the nose when it comes to Arlo Ultra itself, not to mention the fact that you need to fork out big money for a subscription. (Plus, Arlo reduced the number of frames per second so your Arlo HD camera has a terrible picture while still being called HD.)

Also, what's your experience of upgrading, or maybe downgrading? Are you obsessed with the latest tech, or quite the opposite? Have you noticed that upgraded products these days aren't as good upgrades as before the pandemic?

[Alex Atkin UK]

All WiFi devices that resemble a power brick are garbage, its literally the worst spot for WiFi reception (particularly MIMO) and has the PSU really close so likely also causes some interference.  They also tend to have limited channel widths, there just isn't really space to put a decent WiFi chipset in there.  Better to plug a cheap router (that has Access Point mode) or Access Point into the ethernet port and use that to broadcast the WiFi.

I'm very pro latest tech, but I will always do the research first and never assume newer is better.

For example I love the potential speed increase of WiFi 7 but I literally have no devices that would benefit from it.  I don't use my laptop much these days and if I need to move large files to it, plugging in a 2.5Gbit USB adapter is going to be a lot more consistent in performance.  My phone is more than fast enough on WiFi 6, mostly of use when backing up to my local server.

My cameras are hooked to a local DVR, not messing with any of that cloud rubbish.

[Edinburgh_lad]

Cheers, Alex. I agree with you re powerline, but I just like the neatness of it, rather than having different devices kicking about everywhere. I only use it for extending the range for my Chromecast with Google TV, so I had a dilemma: powerline or repeater, and went for the former. I did a lot of reading, too.

I always do the reading and make decisions on what others and reviews say. So, almost every single one recommended the ax version of the Fritzbox, and if you read reviews of Arlo on tech websites, it's superb and award winning. Look at their forum and Trusted reviews, and the picture changes diametrically. I only use Arlo because I'm not sure I trust other security camera companies with where their video stream goes and who has access to the app etc. but really: Arlo's app is very poor, together with support, though hardware-wise, not too bad.

So, I checked the channel width of Devolo and it's 80, too.

[Edinburgh_lad]

Would a repeater be better instead of powerline? They do have a Devolo 3000; I just need something compact like a powerline adapter. Cheers.

[HPsauce]

I've used various Powerline/homeplug devices over the years and currently only have one such extension/pair. It goes from the router at the front of the house to the very back.
It's a TP-Link AV200 "kit" (TL-WPA281KIT) where the extension end is indeed a largeish "brick" that supplies WiFi and two ethernet ports. I use a different SSID.

In the end I actually located it at waist height on a wall, via a short (1 metre) multiplug extension into the ring main socket. That socket is rather hidden/covered/inaccessible and gave poor WiFi coverage. The new location gives decent reception through the adjacent patio doors to outside and connection speed seems unaffected by the extension cable.

The ethernet ports are used for a colour laser printer and TV box. The WiFi conveniently also supports an older WiFi-enabled monochrome laser printer that won't connect to my main router because it doesn't have the appropriate security/encryption capabilities (can't recall exactly which, maybe WPA/WPA2 vs WPA2 only?).

Most powerline equipment comes with strong recommendations to always use a socket on the ring main (not an extension), my experience (now and previously) is that this isn't as critical as you might expect.

[Alex Atkin UK]

I'd imagine the key is to make sure its NOT a surge protected extension.

[meritez]

BT mini V2 powerlines go for silly price on eBay:
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/115223131152?

Throw a decent WiFi6 router that supports OpenWRT and turn it into a dumb AP and you have a much better solution.
https://bjm.me.uk/blog/bt-powerline/

[Alex Atkin UK]

Although their existing homeplugs seem to be fine wired, so they only really need a decent AP and turn off WiFi on the homeplug.

[Edinburgh_lad]

I thought about a similar solution: use home plugs to get access to the internet in another room, with another, decent, access point.

[Alex Atkin UK]

I thought about a similar solution: use home plugs to get access to the internet in another room, with another, decent, access point.

I thought that was what we were talking about from the start?  Only instead of using the WiFi in the Homeplug, you plug an AP into it.