Options for Extending Network to Room?

[Duncan_Mon]

The setup in my house at the moment is a simple one. BT ADSL (cant get anything else thats worthwhile where I stay ) to BT homehub (1.5 version I think) into a single PC and into a Powerline Homeplug thingy.

The Homeplug is used to give the 360 in the house internet access. It gets moved around between 2 TVs daily so just carrying a homeplug with it is perfect.

Only wireless device is my iphone which gets a decent ammount of use around the house. Buying a laptop in next couple days. Also buying another 360 for my room.

Here comes the problem. The wireless from the homehub doesnt reach my room very well for upcoming laptop, I will also need an ethernet line into the new 360 in a couple of weeks.

I though my problems were all solved when I found this: Edimax HP-8501APg.

Received it from Scan today and cant get it working very well. Got connected to it and set it up, installed the software that came with it and I can see the other Powerline devices that are working in the house but the device just doesnt seem to want to let me connect to the internet wirelessly or wired. Spent a good couple of hours looking around and fiddling but not getting anywhere. Hopefully scan will let me return it and I can get a better solution.

Ideas? I was thinking a simple homeplug in my room into a cheap access point but cant find any wireless access points also with ethernet ports so it would be, homeplug on wall into a cheap switch into a wireless access point. Bit messy.

Could also just buy a new Router and hope it would be better than the peice of junk homehub and then simply have a homeplug for the 360. My laptop Im buying will most likely have draft N wireless if that actually helps.

Probably a budget of around £150 to get this done.

Any suggestions or tips on all this?

Thanks

[Jay]

why not use a standard wireless router and plug the home plug into one of the LAN ports?

[inonefly]

try the dg834gt with 3rd party firmware, pretty good wireless range too

[Duncan_Mon]

why not use a standard wireless router and plug the home plug into one of the LAN ports?

What Im worried about is that just doing this wont give my room wireless coverage.

Have no idea how good some other routers are at covering area over the useless BT home hub.

[Jay]

no, I mean like this....



I have done it this way because I don't think you can bridge the BT Home hub.

[Duncan_Mon]

no, I mean like this....



I have done it this way because I don't think you can bridge the BT Home hub.

Im a bit clueless when it comes to networking and the likes but never knew you could use two routers on the same line.

Good idea, could do it very cheaply aswell as I dont need anything special for the second router.

[Jay]

Yes, you can use as many as you want as long as you plug into the LAN port on it and not the WAN port.

Its not the best idea becuase you are using two channels and thats a little unfair if your area is busy with wireless networks. What you will have is 2 wireles network that connect to eachother, you won't notice there are two networks once you have the auo connect setup in XP.

Let me know how you get on.

ps

I don't know where I would be without Visio!