Phonex Broadband Corp., a company that specializes in Power Line Carrier (PLC) voice and data communication devices, has announced a new product in their NeverWire line of powerline home networking device: the NeverWire Combo USB/Ethernet Bridge.
In June the company launched the NeverWire 14, a HomePlug 1.0-compliant device that uses “powerline carrier” technology to make use of the unused bandwidth in standard electrical wiring. With NeverWire 14, business or home users with multiple computers can use their existing power lines to create an instant 14MB Ethernet network that allows them to share high-speed internet access, share peripheral devices such as printers and play interactive network and Internet games. There are no software drivers involved, and the resulting network will support both Mac and Windows systems, Brad Warnick, Phonex spokesperson, told MacCentral during the product’s rollout. NeverWire works with Mac OS X and Mac OS 8.6-9.x and supports both TCP/IP and AppleTalk, he added.
Phonex will officially unveil the NeverWire Combo USB/Ethernet Bridge at the CES trade show that runs January 9-12. The new bridge product will be available to consumers worldwide in the third quarter of next year for US$99.
The NeverWire Combo is the only powerline product to implement both USB and Ethernet interfaces on the same device, according to John Knab, Phonex CEO. This offers extra flexibility and convenience to business or home users who would like to create an instant network through their existing power lines to share high-speed Internet access, share peripheral devices such as printers, and play interactive network and Internet games, he added.
Though few new products are instantly ready for the international market, the NeverWire Combo will be immediately ready for the European market upon its release, Knab said.
Consumers can use as many as 16 NeverWire units per powerline network. Each NeverWire unit is capable of handling an “unlimited number” of computers and other devices such as computers, modems, and printers, Knab said.