Aztech Electronics has added a new “eco-friendly” broadband over powerline (BPL) adapter to its product line that automatically switches over to “energy saving” mode when any Ethernet device connected to the adapter is shut down. The company claims this new energy saving feature saves up to 60 percent of the electricity used by other powerline adapters – as most other adapters simply stay “on” when they are not in use.

Part of the company’s 200Mbps HomePlug AV line up, the new HL110E sports an Intellon INT6400 chipset that enables energy to be used more efficiently without compromising on performance.
 

"The Intellon INT6400 has the lowest power consumption of any HomePlug AV-class IC, meets European 2011 Code of Conduct requirements for adapters and delivers higher TCP throughput and improved Quality of Service (QoS), which is important for distribution of video around the home," said Rick Furtney, president and COO of Intellon, in a release. "Consumers want home connectivity that delivers entertainment-grade video and content sharing throughout their home, without having to install new wiring and without consuming a lot of power and this new INT6400-based Aztech powerline adapter meets all those requirements."

BPL is technology which allows electrical powerlines to be used as an IP network. Thus it allows for the delivery of IP-based services including high-speed Internet, VoIP, television and video security over existing electrical wiring.

Delivering speeds of more than 200 Mbps, BPL is an attractive alternative to costly cabling in order to bring broadband services to residences, housing developments and small businesses. The technology’s slight limitations in terms of speed and capacity are arguably made up for by its tremendous convenience: With BPL, all a user needs is a BPL adapter, or “modem,” which can be plugged into any wall outlet in order to get Internet access and other broadband services. There’s no need to wire (or re-wire) the entire facility with cable or DSL lines in order to deliver the services, as they are delivered over the last mile via electric powerlines which are already in the building. The technology is continuing to see growing adoption in both Europe and the U.S. (although in the U.S. it has seen much slower adoption).

BPL seems to be gaining favor among many service providers -- due mainly to the fact that it delivers much faster broadband speeds than it did in the early days (plus the key challenge of eliminating noise on the line has essentially been solved). In particular it has become a popular last mile technology for FTTH (fiber-to-the-home) deployments. In Europe, in particular, service providers are rolling out FTTH networks where they are bringing a single strand of dark fiber all the way to the curb, pole, or residence, and then using existing electrical copper wiring inside the residence for last mile access. With this hybrid architecture, service providers can effectively deliver the next generation multimedia services that consumers demand, without having to pass the high cost of rewiring every home onto the subscribers.

“Powerline technology revolutionizes the way computers, game consoles and entertainment gadgets are connected in the home in an easy and fuss-free manner,” said Michael Mun, Group CEO and Chairman, Aztech. “Our new-improved Aztech HL110E is a high-performance networking solution that also works as an energy-saving powerline solution. Connecting your devices with Aztech HL110E is not only secure and easy but an eco-friendly way to enjoy streaming your content."

 

Aztech is a member of HomePlug Powerline Alliance, an industry trade group devoted to the advancement of broadband over powerline (BPL) technologies.

Through its Smart Energy Initiative, the Alliance is working on promoting communications and networking technologies that help consumers monitor and reduce their energy consumption. It is currently collaborating with utility companies and the ZigBee Alliance to help build the Home Area Network (HAN) ecosystem that enables intelligent energy management and efficiency in the home and small businesses.

Recently it was announced that NEC (News - Alert) Electronics Corporation, SPiDCOM Technologies, Gigle Semiconductor and Intellon Corporation had joined the Alliance as Sponsor Members.

HomePlug AV is now widely deployed worldwide and is the baseline technology for the IEEE (News - Alert) P1901 powerline specification. In March the IEEE approved a preliminary version of the draft standard -- "Standard for Broadband over Power Line Networks: Medium Access Control and Physical Layer Specifications."