Last Updated: November 24, 2018 (Refresh Now)
ZyXel PLA4231 500 Mbps Powerline Wireless N Extender
Last Updated: November 24, 2018 (Refresh Now)
8.0
SCORE
/10
Total Reviews
1000
Old Reviews
724
Unverified
56
Spam Test
!
Review Analysis - 220 recent, verified reviews
Detailed Mode
Network
60wifi, house, mbps, upstairs, network
+83%
-17%
" ... I average about 85 Mbps from my office upstairs on one side of the house to my living room on the bottom floor on the opposite side of the house. ... "
" ... I have a home office with a 27 iMac which is far from the router. ... I used the Powerline to hardwire the ethernet through a power adaptor, which got the signal from modem. ... It works quite well, and I haven't experienced any signal drops. ... "
" ... I play both Xbox One and PS4 and both of them are upstairs while the router is downstairs. ... "
" ... Good for network extension at home. ... "
" ... I have a 60Mbps cable internet connection and I am getting about 40-50Mbps in another room on the other side of the house. ... "
" ... Stable connection to the network. ... "
" ... The actual speed I got went from 70 Mbps for the Netgear to 20 Mbps. ... "
" ... Right now I have my hubs on different floors, about 30 feet away, and my connection is great! ... Funnily enough, ping to my router is a consistent 3ms. ... "
Ports
47zyxel, powerline adapter, adapters, outlet, ethernet cable
+85%
-15%
" ... I used the Powerline to hardwire the ethernet through a power adaptor, which got the signal from modem. ... "
" ... But once I set up the Zyxel powerline adapter, I have consistent connection and faster download and upload speeds. ... It’s like being plugged directly into the router with an Ethernet cable. ... "
" ... I used the these to replace a dinky USB 2.0 Wi-Fi adapter, and went from download speeds of ~10mbps to ~50mbps. ... "
" ... I've never heard of Powerline adapters before, I was honestly very skeptical of the whole thing since the place I'm currently staying at had very old wiring. ... "
" ... Works just as fast as direct Ethernet. ... "
" ... This was my first powerline adapter so I didn't know what to expect. ... You get two hubs, and either one can be plugged into your router. ... I have no issues once it's up and running, outside of the occasional disconnect because I jiggle the ethernet cable on my laptop. ... "
" ... I can't believe how much I love these adapters ... I plan on buying a second set of these Zyxel adapters to use on the laptop in my back bedroom. ... "
" ... I have used these powerline adapters for years. ... "
Setup
37setup, instructions, easy to install, easy, plug and play
+95%
-5%
" ... Works flawlessly - easy setup - speed matches provider specs. ... "
" ... absolutely effortless to hook up. ... "
" ... Installation took only a few minutes—it really is plug and play. ... "
" ... easy to setup . ... "
" ... Super easy to install, I had downloaded the spec documents in case I need to spend time with the installation but was not needed. ... "
" ... Installation is very simple. ... "
" ... I think the setup took less than 5 minutes, all I did was plug them in, one near the router in the basement, the other in the utility room. ... "
" ... Easy set-up. ... "
Product Reliability
36years, died, connect, authentication, zyxel
+72%
-28%
" ... Worked as advertised. ... "
" ... I had no problems. ... "
" ... I was skeptical about these actually working. ... "
" ... I have had good success with the original starter set I purchased some time ago. ... "
" ... I paid twice as much for my personal set up 4 years ago so this is definitely a great value. ... "
" ... Since plugging this in, there have been no issues. ... "
" ... Still working the same as day one. ... "
" ... I have only been running them for about 3 weeks, but they have performed flawlessly. ... "
Wifi
32network, wi fi, zyxel, signal, connected
+81%
-19%
" ... Good for network extension at home. ... "
" ... Would recommend for anyone having terrible wifi connection, as simple as plugging it into the wall. ... "
" ... Stable connection to the network. ... "
" ... Cheaper than a good WiFi card. ... "
" ... The 2nd router has to be connected to the 1st router via a wired ethernet connection. ... The Zyxel 600 is the solution - one end of the 2 devices is connected to the 1st router downstairs, while the 2nd is connected to the 2nd floor router. ... "
" ... much better then wifi. ... "
" ... Ever had a problem with your wifi? ... Get one of these if you want to connect any internet device to the web faster. ... "
" ... I was using a wireless repeater, but it was not doing enough to help with increasing the bandwidth. ... I connected a secondary AP to this and my far end of the hosue now has MUCH more reliable wifi signal. ... "
Capacity
30bedroom, building, basement, wifi, upstairs
+87%
-13%
" ... I average about 85 Mbps from my office upstairs on one side of the house to my living room on the bottom floor on the opposite side of the house. ... "
" ... Good for network extension at home. ... "
" ... I plan on buying a second set of these Zyxel adapters to use on the laptop in my back bedroom. ... "
" ... This worked like a charm and was able to get great connection speeds in the further away rooms. ... "
" ... I started with 2 but I may add 1-2 more throughout my house. ... "
" ... I use these to get internet out to my detached garage on the same circuit as the rest of the house. ... "
" ... My house was built in 1940 and the walls are extremely dense. ... Wifi wouldnt reach past two walls. ... "
" ... I use it to connect my Tivo mini in my bedroom to my Romeao in my living room and it works perfectly. ... "
ISP
24speed, internet, connection, zyxel, upload
+96%
-4%
" ... But once I set up the Zyxel powerline adapter, I have consistent connection and faster download and upload speeds. ... "
" ... Works flawlessly - easy setup - speed matches provider specs. ... "
" ... The actual speed I got went from 70 Mbps for the Netgear to 20 Mbps. ... "
" ... The 2nd router has to be connected to the 1st router via a wired ethernet connection. ... "
" ... Bam, you're done! ... "
" ... I was using a wireless repeater, but it was not doing enough to help with increasing the bandwidth. ... I used to get only 4-5mbps at best over wireless, but using this device i was able to get 55 (which is the limit of my ISP). ... "
" ... Instead of around 50 Mbps download which is what I'm subscribing from ATT, and what the personal computer is getting, the work one is doing so at less than 10 Mbps. ... "
" ... I was faced with upgrading my DSL service and paying $50/mo. ... "
Ease of Use
22set, install, easy to use, easy to install, web gui
+86%
-14%
" ... absolutely effortless to hook up. ... "
" ... Fantastic, easy to use product. ... "
" ... easy to setup . ... "
" ... Very easy to add extras. ... "
" ... Super easy to install, I had downloaded the spec documents in case I need to spend time with the installation but was not needed. ... "
" ... For some reason not many people seem to know about this fantastic device, and it's so easy to use a child can definitely install it because all it requires is the ability to plug it into the wall and attach the included ethernet cable to it then plug that into your device. ... "
" ... Easy set-up. ... "
" ... (Some set up may be required, but it's as easy as a click of a encrypt button on the adapter). ... "
Device Compatibility
21devices, wifi, connect, connection, zyxel
+76%
-24%
" ... I am using my laptop right now and it has never been faster. ... "
" ... The Zyxel 600 is the solution - one end of the 2 devices is connected to the 1st router downstairs, while the 2nd is connected to the 2nd floor router. ... "
" ... Device works as expected. ... "
" ... Get one of these if you want to connect any internet device to the web faster. ... "
" ... Devices like this used to cost far more and were much less reliable. ... "
" ... I needed two more “wired” connections in the basement and I bought these two modules. ... They connected to the earlier modules without issue. ... I don’t know how well they work with multiple connections streaming simultaneously. ... "
" ... Once connected, this product worked out well. ... "
" ... I can now use my $2000 smart tv like I was supposed to be able to. ... "
Marketplace
16advertised, company, buying, zyxel, works as expected
+88%
-13%
" ... Worked as advertised. ... "
" ... Works exactly as advertised. ... "
" ... Works as advertised. ... "
" ... I would do business with this company again. ... "
" ... Works as expected. ... "
" ... Works as advertised. ... "
" ... This is the real deal! ... "
" ... Thanks to Zyxel. ... "
Cables
13wall, zyxel, wiring, wires, outlet
+100%
" ... I have used these powerline adapters for years. ... "
" ... Running a very long ethernet cable to the 2nd floor was out of the question. ... "
" ... It plugs into the wall and converts the wires in your home into ethernet wires which allows you to hard plug any device that needs the internet. ... "
" ... Instead of hiring an electrician for installing cables then ending the cables in their own wall plates would easily be hundreds more. ... "
" ... Fortunately I was able to switch to MoCA 2.0 over my existing coax wiring and get more than 10x the throughput compared to what I was getting with these ZyXEL units, so good riddance anyway. ... "
" ... The PLA units are well packaged with easy to follow set up instructions and, two Ethernet cables were included. ... "
" ... Works great in every room and I hate having to run cable. ... "
" ... You can't do this with power strips, extension cords or some other outlet adapters, but I can vouch for this particular one working with the ZyXel adapters ... "
Overall performance
12fast, job, speeds, reliable, easy to use
+92%
-8%
" ... The speed is fast too. ... "
" ... Gets the job done well 10/10. ... "
" ... We immediately were up and running and the speed is lightening fast. ... "
" ... Very fast speeds. ... "
" ... I gotta say it really improved my ping and dl speed. ... "
" ... Works great, speed is 1 Gb to the PC. ... "
" ... It was 10, 100 and 1000 speed. ... "
" ... Great product and does its job great. ... "
Review Spam Test
In order to keep our review summaries as accurate as possible, we aggressively detect fake reviews. We use various signals to detect unnatural patterns and will gradually expose them here.
Spam Test could not be completed. Click here to retry.
Specifications
No specs available.
Recommendations
...