Customer Reviews

Actiontec MegaPlug 85 Mbps 4-port Hub

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I bought one of these along with the matching remote adapter (Actiontec MegaPlug 85 Mbps Ethernet Adapter) so my octogenarian father could migrate his TiVo from a phone connection to a broadband connection. I was extraordinarily impressed with the ease of installation. I talked my dad through it over the phone and it just worked, first time. No configuration. No software installation. No confusing complexity. He plugged this box in between his computer and wired router and plugged the remote into the TiVo. All the necessary cables were provided in the boxes. His router dished out a new local IP and in seconds the TiVo was phoning home over the Internet. Took about five to ten minutes start to finish. (FYI, his computer is in the basement and the TiVo on the first floor at the opposite end of the house. I'd guess he got a solid connection over what would be a 50' cable run.)

I already had a pair of Actiontec MegaPlug adapters and picked the hub up so I could increase the number of ports on one side. Replaced an adapter with the hub and everything worked perfectly. I should also note that I installed the hub on the remote side, or the side not wired to the router. The Actiontec manual and website don't explicitly describe that this setup will work. Dead simple to install and use. And most importantly, seems to work without a hitch. I don't have much to add regarding throughput, except that anecdotally, surfing the web (and downloading) has been as fast as being wired directly to the router. I don't do a lot of intra-network transfers or streaming.

I want to tell you how great this hub works. I just recently moved into a bigger house and needed connectivity throughout. I called Actiontec before buying this to learn more about the product. I hooked it up downstairs and attached my PS2 to it.

I got the Actionec Megaplug twin pack as well. PS2 recognized it right away. I don't have any issues with playing mutliplayer. In fact the computer I am typing from right now is connected to this 4 port hub. It has no issues with my Actionec Router.

It works well with any of my systems (Win98,2X,XP & Linux & OSX). I do notice that the speed is not as fast as my other systems connected directly through the main router. But it is nothing to complain about. What's nice is that my other electronics are nearby and can connect to the net using it as well. So, this hub is very handy. I just absolutely like it! I am glad there is a great alternative to trying to run cables throughout your house.

I have no regrets.

SteveK

I've been a big fan of these products for a while now, and continue to find the need to keep adding more. It started out with just a pair of single port adapters to connect my DirecTV DVR (which works flawlessly), than it was connecting PCs for my three kids. Now I've added a network printer (in a central location) that the kids can share. I've recently connected my Slingbox, and several IP video cameras for remote surveillance.

I've been pleasantly surprised at the network performance. Even as I add more devices, the throughput remains strong (which is a big deal for Video on Demand), and it never goes down.

Connecting these units is as simple as plugging in a lamp. I for one am very happy not to be dealing with wireless configuration on multiple devices.

After totally unsatisfactory wireless links, including fiddling with the Linksys Range Extender I gave up on wireless, using this for connecting two buildings on the property. Plugged in and it ran. Works fine with the Acitontec 85 mbps 1-port hub.

As other reviewers have said, you have a chance it won't work if the two places you want to connect are on the opposite phases of your power feed.

If that happens, it's never gonna work so send it back.

Used for a AT&T MCell, BluRay, Wii, and Tivo for internet connection and works great. Except it needs to be plugged into a wall outlet and cannot be used with a surge suppressor of any type. Had to run separate extension cord and keep it dedicated since you don't want anything else getting unprotected power.

Well...look no further. This is my second one. I bought it as a replacement for an old one. It is the same exact make and model. I replaced it after about 7 years thinking it was the problem, turns out it was Verizon. So, the old one is still kicking strong. I use this to connect my home office PC (in separate building 30ft from the house) to my router in the basement. So, this thing is running through 2 circuit breakers.
Reliability: very close to Cat5. Downtime is almost zero (4 or 5 hard resets in 7 years and same for dropped link).
Bandwidth: very good. I get about 1.5MBps down(not bits.Bytes --> ~12Mbps) using P2P while watching online video 480-720dp with no issues. I don't care about what any company says or some bench-marking software says.

I bought this model even though its "old" because I tried the newer one and the signal didn't reach the same PC. However, if you own a newer model you need to be careful because they are not compatible.

My home network is much faster since I installed this product, which allows me to use my home wiring to pass the ethernet signal from one computer to another and avoid the interference from the networks of my neighbors.

This is the second one I have purchased over the years. They just WORK! Plug them in, connect the Ethernet cable and you are on the network. I'm using this one to stream video to my TV downstairs. Yes, I'm not going to lie - streaming HD can be problematic. You might see some stuttering, you might not. We have 5 machines on our home network at various times during the day. If the network is clear (maybe one other machine on Internet), usually HD is no problem. If not (downloading torrents, streaming music off the Internet, etc.), you might see some stuttering. Overall, I'm very pleased with this product. Very good quality - solidly built.