The difference between cat 5 and cat 6 cables and which to go for!

The mystery though: Tired of the slow internet? Watched the “Snowden” documentary lately? Afraid someone can hack and view all your files? Gamer with a turtle paced connection?

Well not anymore! This article has a solution.

Forget wireless and find yourself the right cable for your needs. You are most likely to find CAT 5 and CAT 6 cables meeting your requirements but here are a few guidelines so that you choose the right one!

What are they and why are they being favored?
These cables are your happy link to the world and technology. How you say? Well CAT stands for category. Category of Ethernet cables. Category 5 being an earlier version of the more advanced Category 6 as their names suggest and Ethernet is the internet cable you use (and prefer over the wireless connection also known as WIFI).

Usually Ethernet cables are used because they are more secure, reliable and faster than the wireless connection. The speed of the connection is steadier. Ethernet cable influences the speed between your system and the gadgets you are using. 

If you use a server or desktop PC that sits in the same place, or if you use a set-top box or game console that just stays next to your television, Ethernet cable will be your best friend. All the while assuming you can easily plug these devices in with the cablesobviously. You will notice a considerable difference since you will get a more consistent and solid connection.

Better option
Now that you are convinced you should choose cables over going wireless, it is the right time to decide which cable to use? For that obviously you need to make your own pros and cons list.

To help you make a wise and informative decision following are the main features and differences between CAT 5 and CAT 6 cables.

CAT 5
This is an early version. These cables came before CAT 6 so obviously they don’t have the full features but you may not need the advance features once you make your pros and cons list.

Now the speed you get in category 5 cables is normally 10/100 Mbps at around 100 MHz Bandwidth (this was once thought to be quite fast and was enough for basic household usage). Check with your network provider the kind of speed they are providing. If this is compatible with your service provider get it installed.

Since this is an older version, obviously not many new installation companies use it or even sell them anymore. So if you find a way to get in touch with any company still selling and installing this version buy it.

An advantage you will get buying these will be the low cost. As it is an older version you are likely to get it at a very low cost. To meet your budget CAT 5 cables cost around fifty percent less that the newer version.

CAT 6

If price is the factor you can overlook then before even presenting CAT 6 cable features - my honest advice would be to buy cat 6 network cable rolls. These cables are a much more advance version of the CAT 5 cables. They were introduced just a few years back.

Category 6 cables support up to 10 Gigabit at around 250 MHz Bandwidth. Now that is a lot! But obviously it has its limitations. With greater speed come greater hindrances. The cable to support this fast speed could only be 164 feet long. This is why you need to measure the distance where you keep your devices from the main jack.

Just to be clear, you need to understand that you can make the cables as long as you wish since you went to buy cat 6 cable Melbourne. But if you go beyond 164 feet long cables, then you would be compromising on the speed of the connection. The speed would drop rapidly till it reaches 1 gigabit. It is still better than CAT 5 cables though.

To cut it short, if your requirement is 1 gigabit of speed- which is quite frankly enough for a household connection- then you may go beyond the 164 feet long cables. In the other scenario where you need maximum speed (mainly to impress your geek friends) you may use it as a backbone of your network instead of running the individual workstation with these CAT 6 cables. Another obvious option is obviously not going beyond 164 feet and placing all your devices within specifically measured vicinity.

To conclude, go and buy cat 6 network cable rolls today if you do not have a budget constraint, otherwise CAT 5 cables would suffice for resident purposes also. All in all – both are far better options than the conventional wireless networks.

Be smart. Choose smarter!