SMC 's EZ Connect SMCHT-ETH Turbo Powerline adapters piggy-back an Ethernet data connection onto household mains wiring.

They live up to their name in that they really are easy to connect: plug a pair into power sockets and essentially you have a network.

They are compatible with the Homeplug 1 specification but use a turbo version rated six times faster at 85Mbits/sec.

The real throughput in any networking product is always much less than the rated speed, but we thought we must have hit a problem when we managed to get no more than 13Mbits/sec out of pair reviewed.

Checking round, we found this was a typical speed, though you might get faster over a short link. But don't think you will be able to get any more speed out of another Homeplug turbo product because they all use the same Intellon chip .

Still, a real transfer rate of 13Mbits/sec is not to be sniffed at, and is around double what you'd get out of a Homeplug 1 device with a 14Mbits/sec rating.

Physically, the adapter consists of a smart silver box little bigger than a cigarette packet, with a AC lead (which of course also carries data), an Ethernet port that provides your network access, and LEDs indicating power, Ethernet status and data-transfers.

No special drivers are needed so the adapters work out of the box with Linux PCs, Macs, games machines, and switches that allow you to connect multiple devices.

But the supplied management software works only with Windows and you need this on at least one of your linked devices if you want to encrypt your data.

There are concerns over RF interference from powerline data; but if that doesn't bother you, and you are prepared to pay around £139 (for two adapters) to avoid running a proper Ethernet cable between rooms, then these adapters are worth considering.

But bear in mind that a new generation of products will soon hit the market offering a real throughput of 70-150Mbits/sec.