Wifi extender or powerline for network?

Question

I would like to connect the main part of the house to an attached apartment (over the garage) either using WiFi extender or using power line (??). Is there really a way to connect both rooms using power line?

Answer 1

If they work, Homeplug / powerline devices are a better choice as they guide the signal through the power cable rather then open air - as opposed to Wifi repeaters which waste lots of bandwidth to relay a signal [ it halves the amount of available frequency ].

Try to avoid WIFI repeaters, they are a bad technology. Rather use directional WIFI aerials if you need an extended range between 2 sites - WIFI repeaters are a quick and dirty fix for people who don't care about performance or their neighbours - they only sell because they are an "easy fix".

If its an option where you are, get a couple of powerline devices on condition that you can return them if they don't work. My experience with them is a bit different to @JourneymanGeek - They pretty much work or don't for me with virtually no configuration - its just plug in cables on either side. As to whether they will work - Its also a bit more complex then "everything being behind 1 meter" - I find that they don't work that well across an RCD either - so if you have RCD's I wouldn't go there (An RCD is a specific type of fuse used to protect against electric shock - typically they have a little green button on them, rather then a pull switch. They also take 2 fuse slots in modern circuit boards - at least in my part of the world]

The Wireless access point associated with Homeplug devices is usually designed to distribute the signal from the Homeplug to the immediate surroundings - while it is entirely possible you could use one as a fallback (depending on the hardware) I'd suggest against it - you would be better off spending the money on high performance 802.11n (Asus makes some good prosumer WIFI gear With ther RT-XXXU stuff, and DLink claims to as well).

Answer 2

It really depends.

In general homeplug would only be an option if the two plugs you use are on the same circuit (A good rule of thumb would be whether they are behind the same power meter). Its a bit finicky. Get passthrough units (They filter out noise from anything they're plugged into - I'll come to a list of noisy things in a bit) - a great idea would be to avoid putting them anywhere too near large motors, switch mode power supplies, table lamps with florescent lights. When they do work though, and that takes a bit of finassing, they're decent within the speed range. Try to get the 'newest' standard in your budget - a homeplug AV2 500 mbps is probably a good compromise. Newer standards reject noise better.

Wifi extenders need some signal, and might affect throughput. I've little experience with them though.

You could get a homeplug unit that does wireless, and get the best of both worlds, if homeplug does work for you.