Wednesday 22 October 2008

Powerline Ethernet - slinglink, slingbox


In a large (brand new 5-bedroom, 3500 sq ft house) it works pretty well. NOTE: my specific objective was to support a SlingBox (original) with cable Internet elsewhere in the house.



I've used SlingBox and SlingLink Turbo in two different configurations:



1. SlingBox connected directly to my router; SlingLink supporting other wired + wireless computers elsewhere in the house via a wireless router.



2. SlingLink connected the Internet and SlingLink broadcasting to SlingLink supporting my SlingBox and XBOX 360 as "slave" devices.



The first configuration is better (obviously) because SlingBox can "broadcast" up to a full 2.5Mbps over a LAN connection. The second configuration is better for everyday use since I get maximum Internet bandwidth on computers.



Findings:



1. Internet speed test dropped from 18-19Mbps down / 2.5Mbps up (Comcast w/ SpeedBoost) to 2100Mbps down / 800Kbps up.



2. SlingBox over SlingLink drops to 1.2Mbps (video quality is a bit choppy vs. perfectly smooth otherwise). I've had it spike to 1.6Mbps over the LAN.



3. Additionally SlingBox over the open Internet (original intended use) maxes out at 600kbps, which is a hair below what it was without SlingLink in the middle.



4. The only real "issue" with SlingLink is probably due to home wiring (i.e. on a semi-related note I had to re-wire every cable jack and replace the primary splitter that my electrical contractor originally installed because the cheap original hardware was so bad that ).



5. Newer SlingBoxes (AV/PRO/SOLO) may be more tolerant of "spotty" Ethernet connections, considering they have newer H.264 compression chips.



All in all I'm happy. Wireline Ethernet isn't perfect and would probably work a lot better in a condominium or smaller house. A larger house would/could justify multiple cable modems. Sling Media SlingLink Turbo Powerline Kit ( SL200-100 )

This may or may not work for you. I've got it working in my house. I've got a Netgear router upstairs in my bonus room hooked up to a Charter Cable box. My Dish reciever is downstairs in another section of my house. The Slinglink Turbo works fairly well; however, if I plug anything else into certain outlets in my bonus room, the whole connection basically just fails. So be aware of what you have plugged into other outlets as it might cause the whole thing to fail.

Slingbox is on par with Apple on their packaging of there products. I have the Slingbox Pro, HD Cable, and now this Powerline 4Port link. Everything you need is in the box or was with the Pro (2nd cable) I had this thing setup and running in less then 4 minutes. You open the box and the the next most difficult thing if you are like me is opening the plastic bags that each unit is in. (I did not want to rip them in case I needed to send this back) Plug in and done. I removed the 25' cable I had running across the carpet from my router to my Slingbox. (now happy wife too, thanks Sling Media)



I am using the Slingbox with my laptop and cell phone and both have great pictures coming across. I am only using one port on the SlingLink now but can see needing the others for future components near the TV. (Santa - PS3)

Where my Internet router and the Slingbox are located are not close to one another. Since I can't do wireless with the Slingbox I got the SlingLink and it works awesome. I was a little worried because the two rooms are on different circuits, but no problems. Easy to setup and no problems!! Anyone who is looking to setup their Slingbox to their router without having to run a long cable across the floor, this works great.

It works just the way you would want the device to work. Don't plug it into a surge protector - go straight to the outlet and it will connect without an issue. Only complaint is it takes a little longer to load the channel at full KB and obviously it adds more of a delay Approx 5 sec behind. But I love it - now i have an HD tv down the hall without paying for an additional cable box plus I can get my TV at work :-P

I was using my laptop via wireless network to connect to my Slingbox HD. Would occasionally provide a quality picture, but most of the time just average. Connected the SlingLink Turbo, increased my speed by almost 10 times what I was originally getting. I now receive a constant HD-worthy stream.



Would absolutely recommend.

Sling Media SlingLink Turbo Powerline Kit ( SL200-100 )



I've had this Sling Media Turbo kit for about 2-3 years now with the single port in the bedroom co-located with the router and the 4 port doing business at the other end of the house in the living room.



When I started, I might of had a Sling Box and a pc connected and found it quite acceptable.



However, today everything is internet connected. I have the 4 port behind the LCD TV chained together with an 8 port gig switch with 11, yes 11 (ELEVEN!) internet devices connected.



HP Multimedia PC

Sony Bravia TV (for firmware updates)

Sony Bravia Internet Link (Serving up Youtube, Amazon video and about 20 other Internet items)

Sony Blueray Disc player

Dishnetwork HD DVR

Standalone DVD Burner

Netflix Roku box

XBOX 360

XBOX 360 in the family room (that is what the second Slinglink will take care of - getting rid of 50 ft of cable running around thru the house)

Skype desk phone

And something I cannot remember at this moment (Oh, yea! the original Slingbox Turbo!). It is cable madness even with decent cable management behind the Sony.



Performance? Out freakin' standing - I cannot recall when bandwidth was ever an issue. Looking forward to just plugging in the 4 port, adding the XBOX, PS2 and the Wii and it will JUST WORK.



Oh, did I mention the OTHER 9 wireless devices sharing the same bandwidth? Gotta love technology and gotta love this device.



Or I just need to move the deep reaches of the Tennessee mountains and leave all this tech behind....



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