Actiontec Ethernet Over Coax MoCA Adapter - Twin Pack

by Actiontec

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 3.8 x 1.2 x 5.5 inches ; 1 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B0022NHMZY
• Item model number: HME2200-02K
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (48 customer reviews)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: March 30, 2009

Product Description

The MoCA Network Adapter bridges the divide between coaxial cable and Ethernet networks, allowing users to experience the future of home multimedia experience home today. Designed specifically for homes with cable television, this MoCA adapter is strong enough to handle any transfer load and is optimized to provide high-speed delivery of all multimedia applications. Leverages the existing coax wiring in any home for fast network connections. Eliminates the need for rewiring or settling for lesser-performing wireless solutions. Perfect for home theater/home entertainment, gaming or simply adding an Ethernet connection where coax exists.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simple solution for a common problem, December 14, 2009

By 

S. Chennamaneni - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Actiontec Ethernet Over Coax MoCA Adapter - Twin Pack (Personal Computers)

My Environment:
I want to use my PS3 to access Netflix , HULU (via PlayOn) and the shows that are recorded in my PC (a combination of HD and SD). My PC is upstairs (where the cable modem is) and my TV is downstairs where i do not have any Ethernet port and rewiring is not an option in my home.

Various Methods Used for connectivity:
Tried Wireless G and N but was never able to stream anything from my PC. Then tried various power line products from Sling, Belkin (rated as 1000 MBPS) but was not satisfied. Belkin one worked quite well but was not consistent, something was interfering and impacting the performance as the output would vary wildly at different times. Then heard about MOCA technology and was initially skeptical but wanted to try it out.

Set up using Actiontec MOCA device:
Ordered these Actiontec ones as they are cheaper than Netgear ones. Received them and all the package had was the two units, two Ethernet cables, power cards and a sheet of paper with instructions. Just plugged them in with the following set up and within few min the set up was done and configured my PS3 to use wired connection.

Coax from wall --> Input of first unit ,Output of first unit --> Cable modem.(Office) and then plugged in the ethernet cable from my router to the ethernet port of first unit
Coax from wall --> Input of second unit,Output of second unit--> STB(Living Room)and then plugged in the ethernet cable from the second unit to the PS3.
Input is labeled as Coax and output is labeled as STB/TV on the two Actiontec units

So far did not see any degradation in the TV signal or the internet connection.One thing to note is, if you want to use this set up i,e use this as a pass trough for your Coax signal, you need a couple of Coax cables(F-pin) which are not included and might be better to order along with these units, if you want to do the set up right away.

Conclusion:
I did not measure the throughput and do not know if my home has any splitters or amplifiers but could see reliable connectivity and could stream HD video (only have 1080i) flawlessly,Netflix and HULU worked quite well and would recommend it to anyone who has Coax wires all around the house. I hope that the same performance continues in the future and do not have to update this review.

21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Plug-n-play for FIOS systems, November 6, 2009

By 

Chino "Chino" (Miami, FL USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Actiontec Ethernet Over Coax MoCA Adapter - Twin Pack (Personal Computers)

It's a long review, so here's the executive summary:

Pros:
- plug and play (with my Actiontec MI424WR router)
- reliable connection (vs. WiFi)
- great bandwidth (vs. ethernet over power line or WiFi)
- can use the pair (this particular item) in a non-MoCA home to "extend" your ethernet LAN

Cons:
- not easily configurable

The review:

I bought the Actiontec MoCA adapters because I needed to extend my network into the basement where I was building a media room. Unfortunately, my house was not pre-wired for ethernet and my WiFi signal was spotty down in my media closet to use it effectively. So, since Verizon uses MoCA natively to distribute their IPTV, LAN, and WAN signals, I figured I could pick up a MoCA adapter and hardwire an AP/switch to it in the basement!

My concerns with the Actiontec product is that it is basically unconfigurable. There is no http server on the device that allows you to adjust the settings. I believe, however, that you can TFTP into the device, but I did not try that route.

Fortunately, for me, my gamble worked, and getting an ethernet connection in my basement was as simple as plugging the MoCA adapter into my coax outlet, plugging the AP/Hub into the ethernet port, and then powering everything up. The Actiontec MI424WR (default FIOS router) recognized the MoCA adapter immediately and also recognized everything attached to the MoCA adapter (and provided DHCP addresses to all devices). I have a PS3 and a Squeezebox Duet attached to a Belkin Wireless Router, which itself, is attached to the MoCA adapter.

I had to split the coax coming in before the the MoCA adapter so that I could also have a FIOS TV STB in the media room as well. From what I understand, the "TV/RF out" port on the MoCA adapter (it comes capped) does NOT pass through MoCA signals to the STB. I can safely report there has been no interference between the MoCA adapter and the STB (which also uses MoCA) using my setup (split before the MoCA adapter).

With regards to bandwidth, I have had no problems with HD streaming over my 20 mb/s FIOS WAN connection nor my 100 mb/s LAN/MoCA setup.

Finally, with regards to my particular setup, I could have done with just one MoCA adapter as a bridge (the MI424WR is my MoCA "source" if you will). If you don't have FIOS (or don't have a MoCA adapter), you can still extend your LAN using the PAIR (one as a "sender" and one as a "reciever"). I just purchased the pair to (1) have a backup device and (2) for potential future expansion of my LAN (another ethernet location upstairs, for example).

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Working Great in Comcast TriplePlay environment., February 8, 2010

By 

J. Hardy IV (Snohomish, WA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Actiontec Ethernet Over Coax MoCA Adapter - Twin Pack (Personal Computers)

I have a 7 machine network in the house. I opted to give the MoCa technology a try after getting Windows 7 and set up three MediaCenter machines. With Win7 Homegroup there is more transparent baked in sharing of recorded TV, movies, and other media. Until the Ceton quad tuner card is released I am dealing w/ multiple AverMedia Duet 2 tuner QAM cards. Their HD playback from one machine to another was hampered however by my 802.11N network, too much interference and congestion. This shows itself as stu-stu-stuttering when trying to watch HD on the target machine playing from the host. Annoying.

I went w/ 3 Actiontec adapters, the twin pack and a third. A lot of the reviews here are integrations into an existing FIOS network which is great since they're all the same brand and coupled w/ an Actiontec router works fine. I was mildly leery to see if it would work in my Comcast triple play setup equipment. I have their [Moto?] Cable Modem/VOIP combo box. Very easy setup w/ the Actiontecs. Just connected one of them directly to the coax out from the wall, put a co-ax pass thru out from the Actiontec to the Cable Modem/VOIP box, Ethernet from Actiontec into my wireless 4 port D-Link router. Done. Then on the satellite Media Center computers you just do the same thing; on the Actiontec coax in from wall, coax out from the pass through to your tuner card on the back of the computer and then Ethernet between computer and Actiontec. Took about 30 seconds to get an IP once all the lights came on and I had connection.

Speeds have been a great improvement over my N network. Roughly 4 times. You're limited by the 10/100 ports on the Actiontec but that works out to about ~88Mb/s or 12MB/s on my system.. more than enough for multiple HD streams and pushing around the redundant backups I do to their hard drives. I also do not see any interference or degradation in picture quality on any of the channels which is nice.

You basically have a couple choices for MoCa adapters right now, these Actiontecs and the Netgears. I went w/ the Actiontecs because the twin pack was 60 bucks cheaper and you could actually buy the third one separately instead of having to buy 2 2 packs like the Netgear. I've been very pleased w/ this setup, it also has a high W.ife A.cceptance F.actor as she hated the pauses and stuttering even more than I did. Win7's built in Netflix and other Internet streaming is buttery smooth now too and it looks like it's not down sampled as much. Overall very high marks, no cons that I have seen. Highly recommended.