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Netgear debuts wireless router with built-in powerline support

Netgear announces the first wireless router with built-in support for Powerline AV by having its power adapter work as a powerline adapter.

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Dong Ngo
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The N300 Wireless Router with Powerline AV from Netgear.
The N300 Wireless Router with Powerline AV from Netgear. Netgear

LAS VEGAS--Powerline is a network connectivity solution that turns your home's electrical wiring into data cables and hence allows for expanding the wired networking through out the house without having to run network cable all over the place.

You can conveniently add a power-line connection to any existing network by using a power-line kit, such as the Linksys PLK300, the WD Livewire, or the Netgear AV 200. All of these kits include at least two adapters, the minimum you need to create the first power-line connection, since you need an adapter at each end. After that you can buy a single adapter to add more connections.

Now, it would be a lot more convenient if the router itself had built-in support for Powerline technology. After all, it needs to be connected to the wall socket anyway. This hybrid idea was first introduced by Atherosback in October and allows for more streamlined networking so that you can cut down the amount of devices you need and have a central place to manage all different types of networking, including Wi-Fi, Ethernet, and Powerline.

This idea was realized today when Netgear announced its first hybrid router, the N300 Wireless Router with Powerline AV (model WNXR2000).

According to Netgear, the WNXR200 is a whole-home "hybrid" connectivity solution that delivers all of what consumers need in terms of connectivity for their homes. The router is very similar to Netgear's WNR2000 with one big difference: its power adapter also works as a 200Mbps HomePlug AV power-line adapter.

This means that once plugged in, the router immediately supports power-line technology so you just need to add HomePlug AV-compliant adapters at the far corners of the house.

Other than this new hybrid feature, the N300 is a regular single-band Wireless-N router that comes with features popular to Netgear's new routers, including guest networking (which allows one to create a separate wireless network for guests), Wi-Fi protected setup,Live Parental Control, and more.

The N300 Wireless Router with Powerline AV will be available this month and will cost approximately $120.