The most obvious solution for people who want web connections in multiple rooms without festooning their homes with cables is wi-fi, but setting up and securing a wireless network can be a frustrating and demoralising experience.

There is, however, a less well known alternative that makes use of the electrical wiring already in your house. The Solwise and VeseNET broadband power adaptors can be used to link a router with a PC, or to connect any other internet-enabled equipment.

They are joyfully easy to use, and even a total technophobe should have them up and running in less than a minute. There’s no software to install and no configuration: just connect your router to one adaptor, your PC to the other, and plug them both in to the mains.

The adaptors come in various shapes, speeds and colours – and at various prices. The entry-level 14Mbps VeseNET units, which will happily deal with all but the fastest of high-speed broadband connections cost £16.27 each (you’ll need two to connect a PC and a router).

If you plan to transfer music and video across your home network, you’ll need a faster adaptor. The 200Mbps Solwise HomePlug AV, which is designed to handle high-definition TV, VoIP phone calls and data networking, cost £50.61 each.

The company also sells a wireless adaptor (£47.95), which can be used to boost the wireless network in larger or older houses where thick brick or stone walls block the signal from a single router. It could also be used in a mixed network, where the user needs a fast, reliable cable-based connection for streaming video, but wants wireless coverage for a laptop or other portable devices.

Solwise sells both VeseNET and Solwise branded adaptors: 0845 458 4588, www.solwise.co.uk

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