Poor Netflix streaming on Apple TV, possible fixes?

Netflix needs a lot of bandwidth, and apartment buildings usually have a dozen or more wireless networks in the building -- most of which are interfering with yours. As an independent consultant, I have never installed a wireless network in an office building (even when clients have insisted that they want one), because they're just like apartment buildings: full of competing wireless networks. I install Ethernet cabling instead, and that's what I recommend for your situation.

BTW, your entire problem is that brick wall. 5 GHz just doesn't go through brick walls, and interference from other networks more easily passes through floors and ceilings. You have a pretty hopeless situation; go with the Ethernet cable.

Yes, a powerline adapter kit is definitely a viable alternative. Just make sure that you get a decent pair of adapters that comply with the AV 500 spec, not the cheapo ones. The older inexpensive adapters often lack security, which means that anyone in your building can potentially tap into your network (or even spam it) simply by plugging a similar model into their own power outlet.

I just did some quick Googling, and CNET has recently posted a review of five of the latest AV-500-compliant powerline adapters; you can find it at http://reviews.cnet.com/2733-3243_7-568-8.html. Not surprisingly, the Cisco/Linksys PLEK500 kit has their highest recommendation (I've used a lot of Cisco/Linksys stuff in the past, and it really works well). Beware the pricing, however. Some manufacturers quote prices for a kit of two adapters, and others quote a single adapter (and of course, you need two, one at either end). Also beware that you have to plug the adapters directly into an outlet, not a power bar or surge suppressor.

One nice thing about the powerline adapters is that they will give you 4-5 times the throughput of a "perfect" interference-free wireless network (and about 10x that of an imperfect wireless), so your Apple TV performance will be really snappy.

Another alternative is to get an AirPort Express (a bit cheaper than a pair of good powerline adapters), locate it in the crux of your L-shaped apartment and configure it as a wireless repeater. Since the Express will have line-of-sight (and thus a very strong signal, well above the interference level) to both the Extreme and the Apple TV, you'll get excellent wireless performance.

Just a few months ago, I set up exactly the same thing for a friend who has a three-storey house with Apple TVs on the top and bottom floors. His Airport Extreme was on the top floor, the Apple TV on the main floor worked very well, but the Apple TV in the basement sucked. The wireless signal could penetrate one floor/ceiling layer quite well, but not two. As a bonus, he can now AirPlay his iTunes music library to the living room stereo via the AirPort Express (which has an audio output).

Good luck, and please post here once the job is done so that everyone else can see how it turned out. You're not the only one who has discovered that wireless networks don't always deliver the advertised (best-case) performance.

Thank you for the "helped me" ratings (few people do), and for the record, and the edification of others, I bill myself as a "wireless and real-time systems consultant." That's what I do, and it's why I don't always recommend wireless solutions when I know that they won't work well. Fifteen years of working for Nortel and Ericsson cellular networks is what I bring to the table.