So which Ethernet cable is right for me?

Well Ethernet cables (patch or fly leads) are not all the same. You have Cat 5, Cat 5e, Cat 6, Cat 6e, Cat 7 and so on. The Cat stands for Category and relates to the amount of bandwidth and the standard that the cable can provide.

For example, a Cat 5 cable can perform at 100 Mb’s where as a Cat 5e cable can perform up to 1,000 Mb or Gigabit speed for a local network.
A Cat 6 cable can perform a lot higher and pass more throughput or speed – usually found in large to enterprise level businesses or data centres.

So which cable is for you?

• Which Colour?
• Which Brand?
• Which Cat?
• How long?
• Do you need flat or round?
• How much will it cost?

All of these questions are relevant to your next ethernet cable purchase.

Usually all of todays internet routers will provide 1,000 Mb network connectivity on the local network (Lan), where your computers or printers connect to at home or office.

If you have a router that is within a 3 meter range of your computer or printer then obtaining a Cat5e cable will be suitable and will perform to 1,000 Mb standards. Then it will be what colour do you need, you can get from white, to blue (default colour) to green, yellow, black or red. Usually the colour choice is more about your aesthetics as they all should perform to the Category you purchase.

Brand names are and can increase the price dramatically. I always will look at the certification of the ethernet cable before I purchase as there are uncertified cables that can wreak havoc with your local network (Lan).

So invest in a certified, Cat 5e ethernet cable as a minimum for todays standards.

If in doubt reach out to us, and we will help you in your endeavours.