Belkin has begun selling the Gigabit Powerline HD Starter Kit, a new expansion to its series of powerline-based networking peripherals. The kit consists of a router adapter matched by another for a target device's Ethernet port. Computers, consoles and other hardware can thus tap into a home's powerline LAN, although Belkin notes that the kit does not handle routing functions by itself.

The kit is claimed to be the fastest available for powerline networks, as a result of streaming at a maximum of 1Gbps instead of a more typical 200Mbps. Actual speeds are dependent on factors like traffic and electrical interference, though performance is said to be consistently stable. Belkin adds that when using three or more of its adapters, stability and performance should be enhanced through the creation of a mesh network. The kit is priced at $150 in North America, and should ship to Europe in early August.