Edimax HP-2002AC review

Edimax’s HP-2002AC is one of the cheapest HomePlug AV adaptors that we’ve ever seen. The box contains just the single adaptor, so it’s an attractive option if you’ve already got a network and would like an additional adaptor.

The HP-2002AC has the usual features and software, including a push-button system for creating a secure 128-bit AES encrypted connection with other HomePlug AV devices on your network. This provides security against the already low risk that neighbours on the same power ring might accidentally wander on to your network if they also use HomePlug AV. There’s also the usual management software to allow you to monitor your HomePlug adaptors and configure QoS to prioritise certain types of local network traffic.

Along with all this, it has a power socket pass-though, so you can use the Powerline adaptor without losing a plug socket. This will prove useful to anyone with a surfeit of computer hardware.

At £33, the HP-2002AC is almost £10 cheaper than Solwise’s NET-PL-200AV-PIGGY, our favourite HomePlug AV adaptor with a plug socket pass-though. Unfortunately, it’s also over 20Mbit/s slower than the Solwise adaptor, with transfer speeds of 45.8Mbit/s in our tests.

That’s still pretty fast when compared to both other budget HomePlug AV adaptors and many wireless routers, to which Powerline networking is a popular alternative. If throughput’s not that important, the HP-2002AC is a good buy, but there are better deals. TP-Link’s TL-PA201 Starter Kit, which lacks a mains pass-through is better value if you need a pair, while if performance is a priority, Solwise’s NET-PL-200AV-PIGGY is a better buy.