Best Powerline Adapter for Virgin Media?

Best Powerline Adapter for Virgin Media?

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Virgin Media customers are always looking for ways to improve their internet connection, whether that be at home or in the office. It’s a tough job to find the best powerline adapter for virgin media service.

After all, there are so many options on the market with varying ranges and speeds! This article will help you narrow your search down by giving you detailed information about these Amazon UK products: what they do, how they work for Virgin Media services, why people need them and more importantly which one is right for you.

Table of Contents

Powerline adapters are great for extending the range of your home network and improving signal strength. You can buy a powerline adapter to plug into any electrical outlet in your house at as low as £30 for a pair!

Once you have done so, connect it to Virgin Media’s Hub with an Ethernet cable and then plug another powerline adapter into an outlet near where your WiFi router or booster is located.

Check the table of contents below at our recommended products if you don’t have time to read the full article. Don’t worry, we won’t be offended! Click on the ‘We Recommend’ entry one the table of contents to go right there.

Our selection represents different price points and features that should cover your budget and technical needs.

Powerline adapters for Virgin Media

What are powerline adapters?

All anybody seems to talk about these days is WiFi. This is because these is a demand for high quality, cheap connectivity for both households and businesses. Although WiFi is a great service to have enabled in your home or office, sometimes it doesn’t quite reach all the areas where it is needed.

Wireless boosters work great, but if your current location isn’t letting your WiFi signal flow properly, then you will need to think about installing an additional WiFi station, which in turn means that you also need to think about cabling.

An Ethernet cable travels from your internet router to your WiFi station, a which then acts as a relay between the wireless devices in your area, and your Virgin Media router.

It is not always possible to run a network cable through your house, however, so powerline adapters give you a simple solution to connect network devices together by using the copper wires in the building.

How do powerline adapters work?

A powerline adapter works by transmitting Ethernet signals over the power cables in your home.

Just plug one adapter into a live socket: it will then create its own network and broadcast on that to any other device with an Ethernet port, from your computer to game consoles, Virgin WiFi Booster or streaming devices.

There are two types of Powerline adapters available broadly across the market for most people, even non-Virgin Media users.

How far do powerline adapters work?

There are many factors that will determine the maximum distance that you can accomplish with a powerline adapter. The age of the copper in your home or office can affect the transmission rates of your Ethernet signal, as can cable breaks and interference.

In ideal conditions you can expect your powerline adapter to reach a maximum distance of around 900 feet. You need to remember that electric cabling never runs in a straight line, so you will have to take into account the less than optimum paths that your electrical cables will take as they snake their way around your ceiling crawl space.

How many powerline adapters can you use?

While there is no limit to the number of powerline adapters you can use, you will be limited by how many wall outlets you have and how much bandwidth you have.

Depending on your available bandwidth, you may want to limit your use of powerline adapters.

How do powerline adapters work?

Data is transmitted over existing electrical wiring within your walls by powerline adapters.

Due to a frequency difference in the copper wiring inside your walls, powerline Ethernet is able to provide AC power and power simultaneously. 

A typical household’s AC power is generated at 50 or 60 Hz, while a powerline ethernet system operates at 2 to 86MHz (2 to 2 Mhz).

As with DSL internet, your landline phone and high-speed internet use the same cabling; they operate at different frequencies, as well.

Powerline network adapters pair with the router adapter essentially acting as the master.

Powerline adapter to second router – is it possible?

Yes it certainly is. As long as you are not experiencing any packet loss or network performance issues, then you will be able to plug in a router, switch or WiFi booster to the other end of your powerline adapter at its final location.

This means that you can potentially connect your powerline adapter to the router of your ISP and then, for example, plug a switch into it which can be used as an access point.

The final step is connecting a WiFi extender or booster (or even two) to this same switch on the other end of the powerline adapter connection – depending on how much coverage you need in your house, office or even garden. (Just make sure that your WiFi password is not easy to guess!)

Easily set up your powerline adapters for virgin media today and enjoy the benefits of a strong WiFi connection wherever you are in your home once you connect a WiFi booster to the setup.

Powerline adapter to shed – can I finally get YouTube in there?!!

As long as you don’t exceed the maximum distance to your out buildings then you should be fine. You need to remember that you have to have both powerline adapters connected on the same circuit so that the adapters can communicate with one another.

The video quality settings that you can expect will vary depending on how good your connection is to the building and how much traffic there is on your network, but as a general rule you can expect to get HD quality.

So yes, if you have powerline adapters for virgin media then it would be possible to watch YouTube in your shed!

Can I connect my powerline adapter to a WiFi extender?

Yes you certainly can! There are a few drawbacks to doing this if you have low quality powerline adapters though.

There are some very inexpensive powerline adapters and virgin WiFi boosters, and when used in conjunction with one another you might be in for a poor performing network setup.

Can I connect my powerline adapter to my Ethernet switch?

Again, the answer is yes, and again, the quality of your Ethernet switch will determine the performance of that segment of the network.

You don’t necessarily need a fancy managed switch with advanced features in order to achieve acceptable network speeds, but try to avoid passive network hubs.

These are cheap devices that replicate the network signal and have no speed or filtering capabilities and are generally a drain on your network’s speed.

We will have a list of great Ethernet switches to try out in the near future, so be sure to check back in with us!

Can I run my powerline adapter to my garage?

Again, the answer is a resounding yes! Just like our ‘ YouTube in the shed’ scenario, all you need to do is make sure that your power cables are connected on the same circuit breaker.

This will ensure that the powerline circuit is only running between the two points you want it to be on, and prevent any possible interference with other circuits in your home.

Facing Off: Which Option is best for you?

Now that we know some of the basics about how powerline adapters work, we can look at which scenarios are better or worse than a powerline adapter.

Powerline adapter vs WiFi extender

If you have problems with WiFi signals being sent in your home or office thanks to issues such as thick concrete walls, floors or ceilings, then a powerline adapter could be the right choice for you. It’s quick and simple to install, and can give you good speeds.

Powerline adapter vs WiFi

WiFi coverage can be an issue if you are in a heavily populated area where there are a lot of different WiFi channels and SSIDs floating around the spectrum.

You might be better or running a cable directly to your laptop or computer, but if you don’t have that option then a powerline adapter can help get you over the line and connected to the network.

Powerline adapter vs Ethernet

As we just alluded to, Ethernet cables are going to give you the best possible signal speeds between 2 network devices. But there are a few reasons why you can’t run Ethernet cables between your network segments. These include things such as:

  • high installation costs for a professional cabling job
  • renting a house, flat or office that won’t let you run cables
  • there is no way to run the cable without causing damage to a floor, wall or ceiling

In any of these scenarios, it might be a good idea to use a powerline adapter instead.

Powerline adapter vs Mesh

Mesh networks are awesome! But they can be a bit pricey, especially for premium examples. Using a relatively inexpensive powerline adapter kit can help you to get your network up and running for a fraction of the cost.

Mesh networks allow you to connect multiple base stations to one another wirelessly, negating the need for a cable or powerline adapter, but this is a more costly option.

Powerline adapter – is it worth purchasing?

If you have a home networking issue, then the best powerline adapters can help fix your problem.

As there are many different brands of these products on the market, and not all of them work well or carry an equally good warranty with their sale, we recommend these 4 as decent mixes between price and performance.

If you use our links then we get a small commission which costs you absolutely nothing extra.

Get a stable and high-speed connection for the way you watch movies online, play games or upload photos. Use Powerline to connect two existing power sockets in your home and create an instant network with speeds up to 300 Mbps – 10 times faster than traditional WiFi!

The latest HomePlug AV standard compliant provides data transmission through electrical wires which is perfect for HD video streaming, uploading large files or playing online games. No setup required. Simply plug and play.

TP-Link’s TL-PA4010PKIT Passthrough Powerline Adapter Starter Kit provides real, stable data transmission speeds over the household power circuit. For more information about this product check out out affiliate link here.

NETGEAR PLP1000-100UKS 1 Port,1000 Mbps, 1 Gigabit Port Powerline Adapter

NETGEAR PLP1000-100UKS is the next generation of home networking with 1000Mbps speeds and Gigabit performance. It works with HomePlug AV or Green PHY technologies for scalable, reliable network connectivity through any electrical outlet in your home.

The pick-a-plug LED displays optimal plug connection status so you can choose your best available powerline to get the fastest connection possible. So if you want amazing bandwidth without running internet cables throughout your home, NETGEAR PLP1000-100UKS is perfect for you!

Tenda PH6 AV1000 Passthrough Powerline Adapter Kit with 1 x Gigabit Port

The PH6 provides a transmission rate as high as 1000 Mbps, allowing you to watch 4K HD videos and effortlessly transfer bulky data over your existing powerline.

With the gigabit ethernet ports of the AV1000 Passthrough Powerline Adapter Kit, you receive connection speeds of up to 1000Mbps for wired devices in your home theater, such as TVs, games consoles, set-top boxes, PCs and printers.

The cordless design means that this kit not only eliminates clutter from computer peripherals but also offers additional outlets at either side of the PH6’s power socket – which allows it to supply power while connected directly into an electrical outlet with current levels up to 16 amps.

For households where space is limited or people are worried about cables every where, this is a good option.

Zyxel 1800Mbps Pass-Thru Powerline Adapter 2-port Gigabit Ethernet 2-Pack

Known for their outstanding customer service, Zyxel was one of the first to introduce a 2-port Gigabit Ethernet adapter with MIMO technology.

The pass-through powerline adapter provides dependable internet without the hassle and mess of using multiple cables. With 1800Mbps Powerline Technology, you can enjoy lag-free gaming and streaming movies and other multimedia content on your devices from afar.

Its plug-and-play functionality lets you have easy set up right out of the box so that you can get started enjoying your home networks soon after unpacking this versatile product. Order your Zyxel 1800Mbps Pass Thru Powerline Adapter today!

TP-Link TL-WPA4220T KIT 2-Port Powerline Adapter WiFi Starter Kit (TL-WPA4220) is a powerline AV500 Wi-Fi range extender that allows you to build a wireless network in your home, instantly and easily.

With the TL-WPA4220, you will be able to extend your existing wired or wireless network by using electrical outlets throughout your home.

It provides users with an easy way to add high speed networking capability to any room in their home without running new wires or drilling holes for Ethernet cables. With this kit you can truly get the best of both worlds with wired and wireless range extension capabilities.

FAQ

Do powerline adapters have to be on the same breaker?

Yes they do. This is because power wires need to intersect or connect with one another at some point. Breakers are physically isolated from one another for safety, so a Powerline Adapter cannot bridge between separate breakers.

Are powerline adapters good?

Yes they are good in certain situations where WiFi, mesh or Ethernet options are not possible. Powerline adapters are great for connecting devices to a home network that is not in the same room as your router.

Are powerline adapters good for gaming?

They are not ideal for gaming in all environments as some houses introduce a bit of latency. However, the best way to find out is to try it for yourself and see what kind of performance you get.

Are powerline adapters better than wifi?

same electrical circuits. Some of the units that we have recommended above can achieve gigabit speeds, so there is definitely potential for better-than-WiFi performance.

Are powerline adapters safe?

Yes they are safe. They work just like any other electrical appliance that plugs into the wall. You don't have to open up an electrical outlet or do anything dangerous at all in order to get them working. Simply plug them in like you would any other electrical device and make sure that you observe all normal precautions when handling them.