Logitech is selling an interesting product called the Play Link, essentially a wireless bridge designed to act as a ‘virtual cable’ to connect game consoles (or anything with an Ethernet port) to your home broadband connection. While the idea isn’t new at all, what is interesting is that Logitech’s $100 device doesn’t use Wi-Fi, instead running a 900MHz encrypted link between the two links. Both plugs are paired at the factory, so it’s an entirely plug-and-play experience—no nerdiness required.
Now if you are a nerd, you don’t need this, especially since it only runs at 1.5Mbps—fast enough for gaming data, but not steaming media or anything—but I wonder if there are a lot of people who want to try out online play on their consoles, but just didn’t want to run a wire (or didn’t know how to go wireless). The press release quotes a study that says only about 13-15% of Xbox and Playstation users are actually playing online, so there is potentially there.
Press Release [DesignTechnica]
