Wi-Fi and network troubleshooting

My connection is slower than the speed announced on the box. Why?

The 600 Mbps shown on the box is the maximum signal rate over the electrical wiring. It is not the speed you will measure on your devices, for three reasons:

• Ethernet ports: the adapters have 10/100 Mbps Ethernet ports. In wired use, the maximum real throughput is therefore about 90–95 Mbps, whatever the powerline speed.
• Wi-Fi: the 300 Mbps Wi-Fi rate is a theoretical maximum in 2.4 GHz. Real speed depends on distance, walls and interference.
• Electrical installation: part of the bandwidth is always used by the transmission itself. Old or very long wiring and noisy appliances reduce it further.

To get the best possible speed:

• Plug each adapter directly into a wall socket. Never use a power strip or a surge protector.
• Keep both adapters behind the same electricity meter, ideally on the same circuit.
• Unplug unused appliances that can disturb the signal, such as phone chargers and power transformers.
• Measure the speed with a device connected by Ethernet, so Wi-Fi conditions do not skew the result.

For information, 5 Mbps is enough for an HD stream and about 20 Mbps for 4K. If your Internet subscription exceeds 100 Mbps (fibre, for example) and you want to use all of it, choose a Powerline 1000 with Gigabit ports.

Can I connect Powerlines of different brands and data rates to my network?

It is possible to connect powerlines with different data rates and brands, as our devices use the HomePlug AV standard, which makes any device compatible no matter the brand or data rate. For instance, you can connect a Powerline 600 Mini with a Powerline 600 or 500 as they have similar data rates. However, we strongly recommend not connecting a Powerline 600 Mini with a Powerline 1000, 1200, 1300 or 2000, which have higher data rates than the Powerline 600 Mini. In addition, a Powerline 600 Mini can be connected to Powerline 600 adapters of other brands, but we cannot guarantee that it will work properly, as there may be software differences.

Can I repeat the Wi-Fi network of the Internet box with the Powerline 600 Mini Wi-Fi?

No, the Powerline 600 Duo Wi-Fi Mini is not a repeater. You should not try to connect it to the box by WPS: it is a Wi-Fi access point that has a different network name from the one of your Internet box.

Connect all your bandwidth hungry wired devices to the Internet using your existing electrical wiring!

Use the Powerline 600 Duo Wi-Fi Mini to connect all your bandwidth-hungry wired devices to the Internet, such as IPTV decoders, Smart TVs, Android boxes, Apple TV®, media players, computers, game consoles, etc. The Powerline 600 Duo Wi-Fi Mini is equipped with Ethernet ports. Connect all of your network-compatible devices to the Internet in minutes! No system requirements! No software to install! Just Plug & Play.

Expand your Powerline network to any room of your home by adding Powerline 600 Mini adapters!

Congratulations! You managed to install your Powerline 600 Duo Wi-Fi Mini. Now, you want to extend your network to other parts of your home to connect even more devices. Just add a new Powerline 600 Mini adapter in the room of your choice. No system requirements! No software to install! Just Plug & Play.

How many Powerline 600 Wi-Fi Mini can I connect to the same network?

You can have up to eight Powerline 600 Wi-Fi Mini adapters in your home, within the limit of a single electric meter.

How to add a new STRONG powerline product to your existing powerline network with High Security Level 1?

As your existing network has been set with the High Security Level 1 configuration, adding a product is simply Plug & Play. No action is required on the product: just plug in the new powerline product and it will be automatically added to the network. Typically, powerline adapters are paired in sets of two or three, so if you need to add additional powerline products to your network configured with High Security Level 1, follow the steps below.

1Plug the new adapter into a socket

Plug the additional device(s) into a power socket.

2Connect the new device to the Internet

Connect the device to an Internet router/gateway with an RJ45 cable.

3The new adapter is set

After plugging in the new device, all the LEDs are green on all the devices.

How to choose the right high security level configuration for your powerline network?

When setting up your powerline network, you can choose between two different high security configurations: High Security Level 1 and High Security Level 2.

High Security Level 1 is the high security level that is natively implemented in our powerline products. The devices of your powerline network are protected by a default encryption key that is set up during the manufacturing of the product. This level provides a high level of security that is suitable for consumer usage of the product. All our powerline products share the same default encryption key, which enables you to use your powerline network right after plugging in your devices. You can also add new powerline devices to your existing STRONG network at any time, without any configuration.

With High Security Level 1, your powerline network is already highly protected, which ensures that even your neighbour cannot use your connection. How is that possible? To connect to your powerline network, someone must be directly in your flat or house. Your powerline network is more secure than any Wi-Fi network as it only uses your existing electrical wires, which completely limits radiation and the chances of your network being hacked. Even if your neighbour is also equipped with the same powerline devices that have the same default encryption key, there is not even a slim chance for them to access your network due to all the signal losses encountered between the two flats/houses. Indeed, the signal must go through the two electrical meters (yours and your neighbour's), which causes a loss of 20 dB on each side.

High Security Level 2 offers you an enhanced security experience by pairing your devices and generating a new unique encryption key for your powerline network. That is why it is the perfect solution to comply with high security requirements when working from home. This security level is easy to configure on your STRONG powerline products: you just need to press the pairing button on each device for 2 seconds, one after the other, after installing all your devices. Please make sure that the RJ45 Ethernet connection is working on each device that you want to pair, to prevent your powerline devices from switching to standby mode.

Moreover, your devices not only use one of the two high security levels defined above, their communication is also secured by 128-bit AES data encryption. In other words, if you want a high-performance, stable and reliable network, you can use our powerline products with their high security levels. The only decision you must make is whether to go with High Security Level 1 or configure High Security Level 2, which is up to you!

How to configure new powerline products with High Security Level 2 on your existing powerline network?

If you want to add more than one new powerline product, each product must be configured one after the other by following the same process, not simultaneously. Typically, powerline adapters are paired in sets of two, so if you need to add new powerline products to your network that is configured with High Security Level 2, follow the steps below.

1Plug in the new adapter

Plug the additional device(s) into a power socket.

2Connect the new device to the Internet

Connect the device to an Internet router/gateway with an RJ45 cable.

3Press the Connect & Secure button (existing device)

Press the Connect & Secure button on one of the existing devices of the network for two seconds.

4Press the Connect & Secure button (new device)

Then, press the Connect & Secure button on the new device for two seconds to add it to the network. You have up to two minutes to press the button.

5The home LED blinks

The home LED should start blinking.

6The LEDs are green

After adding the new device, the home LEDs should be green on both devices.

7The encryption key is set

Your new unique encryption key is set on the device you just configured.

How to configure your powerline Wi-Fi network with High Security Level 1?

High Security Level 1 is the default high security configuration level implemented on all our powerline products. You just have to plug in your powerline devices and this high security configuration will be automatically implemented. Plug & Play: no action is required on the product.

How to set up High Security Level 2 on your powerline products?

1Put the adapters on a power strip

Take a power strip and plug all the powerline adapters into it.

2Connect the adapters to the Internet

Connect one of the powerline adapters to the Internet gateway/router with an RJ45 cable.

3Press the Connect & Secure button (first device)

Press the Connect & Secure button on the first device for 2 seconds.

4Press the Connect & Secure button (second device)

Press the Connect & Secure button on the second device for 2 seconds. You have up to two minutes to do it.

5The home LED blinks

The home LED should blink on both devices.

6The encryption key is set

Your unique encryption key is now set, and all the LEDs of the devices should be green.

Now, install the adapters in the rooms where you need them. We strongly recommend not plugging the adapters into a power strip.

I receive Internet via fibre, is the Powerline 600 Duo Wi-Fi Mini suitable?

It depends on your subscription. The Powerline 600 Duo Wi-Fi Mini has 10/100 Mbps Ethernet ports, so the wired throughput is limited to about 90–95 Mbps, whatever the powerline speed.

• If your fibre subscription is 100 Mbps or less, the Powerline 600 Duo Wi-Fi Mini is suitable.
• If your subscription exceeds 100 Mbps and you want to use all of it, choose powerlines equipped with Gigabit ports, such as the Powerline 1000 range, and make sure your electrical installation complies with standards.