The best wireless Powerline networking adapter for gaming
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TP-Link AC1200 Wi-Fi Range Extender- Outstanding download speeds
- Integrated three-port Ethernet switch
- Consistently low ping
- Weak wireless throughput
- Wireless extender blocks outlet, and lacks outlet passthrough
Powerline networking is designed to provide a wired connection, but there are times when wireless is needed as well, such as connecting via a smartphone or tablet. For those occasions, a Powerline networking kit with Wi-Fi is a viable solution, functioning the same as their non-wireless brethren while also providing a Wi-Fi hotspot.
Neither of the Wi-Fi Powerline kits we tested offered very good wireless performance. Same Circuit wireless tests were largely a wash, with this TP-Link kit edging out the competing Trendnet Wi-Fi Everywhere kit in most categories. On the Different Circuit, however, the Trendnet kit performed better, though again not by much.
Regardless of the test, neither kit performed better than 39.64 Mbps wirelessly (that number coming from the Trendnet's 5 GHz Different Circuit download test), with most scores falling in the 15 to 30 Mbps range.
Those numbers are fine for occasional web browsing, but not good for streaming 4K videos or gaming.
Having said that, we recommend the TP-Link AC1200 Wi-Fi Range Extender kit. While its Wi-Fi numbers aren't great, it dominated the competition on its regular Powerline connection, even beating out the dedicated Powerline pick above with a Same Circuit download speed of 186.31 Mbps. It also kept pace in the Different Circuit test, with 95.37 Mbps download, 39.67 Mbps upload, and a stable ping of 10 to 12 millisecs throughout testing.
The TP-Link AC1200 uses a smartphone app for easy setup, and includes useful features like an electrical outlet passthrough on the adapter that connects to the modem, and an integrated three port Gigabit switch on the extender module that comes in handy, for example, if you need to connect networked AV equipment.
For $114, we recommend the TP-Link AC1200 as it can provide a class leading wired connection and a usable wireless signal for less demanding tasks, simultaneously addressing multiple wireless problems.
