TRENDnet 5-port Unmanaged 2.5G Switch review - Power Consumption and conclusion

Power consumption 

We connected three 2.5G compatible PCs directly towards the switch. And added a 1G uplink to the internet. We stressed the three CPs at 2.5 GigE and the WLAN uplink to our maximum of 600 Gbps (internet).  As you can see you can expect power consumption of 6 Watts. Hugely stressed you can add 1 or two watts at best. 

Green and orange LED indicators 

Perhaps a little odd, normalized is a purple led for Multi GigE, this one is green for 2.5G and orange for anything slower. No biggy of course.

Conclusion

We need faster and cheaper switches in our transition towards 2.5, 5, and 10G  ethernet. This is a good first step, albeit 22 bucks per port is still expensive compared to 1 Gigabit switch in the consumer segment. We've seen the 8-port version sell at roughly 165 USD/EUR, which is 21 bucks per port. Still expensive, but at least these are figures that people can and perhaps are willing to pay. Those that do need some extra features, like remote management, will likely need to look elsewhere. But you won't find anything like the TEG-S350 at this price point currently. 

What it might come down to is versatility. The Trendnet unit worked wonderfully well in our local network. Unmanaged; you can reliably plug it in, starting with any type of CAT5E or better cable, and forget about the rest. The performance of the TEG-S350 was just fine. It didn't have any problems working as advertised in our ad-hoc LAN situated lab, despite the review unit's weird location of the power connector there is little to complain about. Needless to say, once it was installed, it became an indispensable part of the home network.

If you need a little more speed in your LAN, recommended. Plug it in and let it begin.

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