Trendnet Powerline 200 AV PoE+ Adapter Kit (TPL-331EP2K) Review
Powerline networking provides an easy and affordable way to bring wired LAN connectivity to any room in your house without having to run Cat 5 cable.
As with all powerline adapters, the Trendnet Powerline 200 AV PoE+ Adapter Kit (TPL-331EP2K) lets you create a secure network that uses your existing electrical wiring to send and receive data.
At $65.99, it's one of the more affordable powerline kits we've come across, but it lacks a pass-through outlet, and its performance can't keep up with some of its competition.
Design and Features
The TPL-331EP2K kit consists of two HomePlug AV2-compatible powerline adapters, two Ethernet cables, and an installation guide.
Measuring 6.1 by 2.6 by 1.7 inches (HWD) the white adapters are about an inch longer than the Tenda P1002P 2-Port adapters, as well as the adapters in the TP-Link TL-PA8030P kit.
They are significantly larger than the D-Link Powerline AV2 2000 Gigabit Starter Kit (DHP-701AV) adapters (3.8 by 2.8 by 1.3 inches).
The three-prong plug on the back of the adapter is placed high enough that the device doesn't block the second outlet in a two-outlet receptacle, but you'll still have to sacrifice one wall socket, as the body lacks a pass-through outlet.
You'll see four LED indicators on the face of the adapter, for power, powerline activity, Ethernet connectivity, and Power over Ethernet (PoE) connectivity.
The adapter is equipped with only one Ethernet port (on the bottom edge), versus the Tenda P1002P's two ports, but it can be used to supply power to devices that support PoE, such as IP cameras and access points.
On the left side of the adapter are a reset button and a sync button.
The sync button is used to create a secure powerline network using 128-bit AES encryption.
(You can add up to eight adapters to a TPL-331EP2K network.) Missing is a utility that lets you create custom names for your adapters and configure Quality of Service (QoS) settings, like you get with the Tenda P1002P kit.
Installation and Performance
Powerline adapters are known for their easy setup routines, and the TPL-331EP2K is no different.
Start by plugging one adapter into an outlet that's close to your router, and connect it to the router using the included LAN cable.
Next, plug the second adapter into an outlet in any room in your house, then press the sync button on both adapters to create a secure network.
To test powerline adapter throughput, I use an outlet in my living room that's in close proximity to an HDTV and to a Sony PlayStation 4 gaming console.
The adapter is the only appliance that uses that outlet.
I use the JPerf network measurement tool to create and send four data streams and measure throughput from point to point using a desktop PC as a server and a laptop PC as a client.
The TPL-331EP2K's throughput speed of 41.4Mbps paled in comparison to our leader, the Tenda P1002P ($88.61 at Walmart) (93.2Mbps).
While it was faster than the Netgear PLP1200 (34.5Mbps), it trailed the D-Link DHP-701AV ($139.11 at Amazon) (92.5Mbps) and the TP-Link TL-PA8030P ($249.96 at Amazon) (77.6Mbps).
The TPL-331EP2K needed 2 minutes and 16 seconds to transfer a 500MB folder containing music, photos, video, and document files from point to point.
That's a couple of seconds faster than the Netgear PLP1200 ($74.97 at Amazon) but more than a minute slower than the TP-Link TL-PA8030P, the D-Link DHP-701AV, and the Tenda P1002P adapters.
On the 1.5GB transfer test, the TPL-331EP2K needed 7 minutes and 14 seconds to transfer the folder, beating the Netgear PLP1200 by 35 seconds.
The D-Link DHP-701AV and Tenda P1002P were more than 3 minutes faster, and the TP-Link TL-PA8030P was about 2.5 minutes faster.
I played a few rounds of Fortnite on the PlayStation 4 console while connected to the adapter, and I was pleased with the relatively smooth, lag-free game play.
Watching an episode of Stranger Things on Netflix was also enjoyable.
Video was sharp, with no motion artifacts, audio lag, or stutter.
Conclusion
With the Trendnet Powerline 200 AV PoE+ Adapter Kit (TPL-331EP2K), you can bring wired Ethernet connectivity to any room in your house without having to deal with lengthy cable runs.
It's aggressively priced and easy to install, but its throughput and file-transfer performance could be better.
Moreover, it lacks a pass-through outlet and a secondary LAN port.
For a powerline solution that delivers throughput that's twice as fast as the TPL-331EP2K, check out our Editors' Choice pick, the Tenda P1002P 2-Port Gigabit Passthrough Powerline Adapter Kit ($88.61 at Walmart) .
It offers two LAN ports, a pass-through outlet, and a configuration utility that lets you apply QoS settings for optimal performance when gaming, surfing the web, and streaming multimedia content.
Trendnet Powerline 200 AV PoE+ Adapter Kit (TPL-331EP2K)
Pros
Easy to install.
Reasonably priced.
Cons
Bulky.
Middling performance.
No pass-through outlet.
The Bottom Line
The Trendnet Powerline 200 AV PoE+ Adapter Kit uses your existing electrical lines to deliver wired LAN connectivity to any room in the house.
It's a snap to install, but its performance could be better.
Powerline networking provides an easy and affordable way to bring wired LAN connectivity to any room in your house without having to run Cat 5 cable.
As with all powerline adapters, the Trendnet Powerline 200 AV PoE+ Adapter Kit (TPL-331EP2K) lets you create a secure network that uses your existing electrical wiring to send and receive data.
At $65.99, it's one of the more affordable powerline kits we've come across, but it lacks a pass-through outlet, and its performance can't keep up with some of its competition.
Design and Features
The TPL-331EP2K kit consists of two HomePlug AV2-compatible powerline adapters, two Ethernet cables, and an installation guide.
Measuring 6.1 by 2.6 by 1.7 inches (HWD) the white adapters are about an inch longer than the Tenda P1002P 2-Port adapters, as well as the adapters in the TP-Link TL-PA8030P kit.
They are significantly larger than the D-Link Powerline AV2 2000 Gigabit Starter Kit (DHP-701AV) adapters (3.8 by 2.8 by 1.3 inches).
The three-prong plug on the back of the adapter is placed high enough that the device doesn't block the second outlet in a two-outlet receptacle, but you'll still have to sacrifice one wall socket, as the body lacks a pass-through outlet.
You'll see four LED indicators on the face of the adapter, for power, powerline activity, Ethernet connectivity, and Power over Ethernet (PoE) connectivity.
The adapter is equipped with only one Ethernet port (on the bottom edge), versus the Tenda P1002P's two ports, but it can be used to supply power to devices that support PoE, such as IP cameras and access points.
On the left side of the adapter are a reset button and a sync button.
The sync button is used to create a secure powerline network using 128-bit AES encryption.
(You can add up to eight adapters to a TPL-331EP2K network.) Missing is a utility that lets you create custom names for your adapters and configure Quality of Service (QoS) settings, like you get with the Tenda P1002P kit.
Installation and Performance
Powerline adapters are known for their easy setup routines, and the TPL-331EP2K is no different.
Start by plugging one adapter into an outlet that's close to your router, and connect it to the router using the included LAN cable.
Next, plug the second adapter into an outlet in any room in your house, then press the sync button on both adapters to create a secure network.
To test powerline adapter throughput, I use an outlet in my living room that's in close proximity to an HDTV and to a Sony PlayStation 4 gaming console.
The adapter is the only appliance that uses that outlet.
I use the JPerf network measurement tool to create and send four data streams and measure throughput from point to point using a desktop PC as a server and a laptop PC as a client.
The TPL-331EP2K's throughput speed of 41.4Mbps paled in comparison to our leader, the Tenda P1002P ($88.61 at Walmart) (93.2Mbps).
While it was faster than the Netgear PLP1200 (34.5Mbps), it trailed the D-Link DHP-701AV ($139.11 at Amazon) (92.5Mbps) and the TP-Link TL-PA8030P ($249.96 at Amazon) (77.6Mbps).
The TPL-331EP2K needed 2 minutes and 16 seconds to transfer a 500MB folder containing music, photos, video, and document files from point to point.
That's a couple of seconds faster than the Netgear PLP1200 ($74.97 at Amazon) but more than a minute slower than the TP-Link TL-PA8030P, the D-Link DHP-701AV, and the Tenda P1002P adapters.
On the 1.5GB transfer test, the TPL-331EP2K needed 7 minutes and 14 seconds to transfer the folder, beating the Netgear PLP1200 by 35 seconds.
The D-Link DHP-701AV and Tenda P1002P were more than 3 minutes faster, and the TP-Link TL-PA8030P was about 2.5 minutes faster.
I played a few rounds of Fortnite on the PlayStation 4 console while connected to the adapter, and I was pleased with the relatively smooth, lag-free game play.
Watching an episode of Stranger Things on Netflix was also enjoyable.
Video was sharp, with no motion artifacts, audio lag, or stutter.
Conclusion
With the Trendnet Powerline 200 AV PoE+ Adapter Kit (TPL-331EP2K), you can bring wired Ethernet connectivity to any room in your house without having to deal with lengthy cable runs.
It's aggressively priced and easy to install, but its throughput and file-transfer performance could be better.
Moreover, it lacks a pass-through outlet and a secondary LAN port.
For a powerline solution that delivers throughput that's twice as fast as the TPL-331EP2K, check out our Editors' Choice pick, the Tenda P1002P 2-Port Gigabit Passthrough Powerline Adapter Kit ($88.61 at Walmart) .
It offers two LAN ports, a pass-through outlet, and a configuration utility that lets you apply QoS settings for optimal performance when gaming, surfing the web, and streaming multimedia content.
Trendnet Powerline 200 AV PoE+ Adapter Kit (TPL-331EP2K)
Pros
Easy to install.
Reasonably priced.
Cons
Bulky.
Middling performance.
No pass-through outlet.
The Bottom Line
The Trendnet Powerline 200 AV PoE+ Adapter Kit uses your existing electrical lines to deliver wired LAN connectivity to any room in the house.
It's a snap to install, but its performance could be better.
