Writes Rafe Needleman: “Powerline networking certainly sounds like a great idea: Turn your house’s existing wiring into a home network. Ever since these devices hit retail shelves a few years ago, reviewers have loved how easy they are to use. I won’t argue about that. But as a business trend to bet on, powerline networking doesn’t look so hot.”
Adds Needleman: “Powerline networking has its advantages. It’s a lot more practical to use it to wire a big house, for example, since Wi-Fi bases offer limited range. And it’s more secure than Wi-Fi, because it’s encrypted and naturally blocked from leaving your house by the power company’s transformers. ..But, given Wi-Fi’s pluses, I still wouldn’t bet on this horse.”
