Gatos Cat 6 Ethernet

Cat 6 Ethernet Jacks

Cat 6 (Category 6) is a standard of Ethernet cable that has become popularized in recent years due to the demand of higher internet speeds. It is used to hook up computers and servers to local networks to achieve speeds as high as 1 GB per second. These cables are compatible with legacy Ethernet networks but it will be bottlenecked by cat 4 or 5 routers and devices.

Cat 6 Ethernet cables are found in both shielded and unshielded varieties. Cables found in your home are not likely to be shielded. The cable twist of Cat 6 cables are somewhat resistant to interference, but rooms with a large amount of EMI will need these special cables.

Cat 5 is still usable in most homes, but it has a much lower bandwidth speed than Cat 6 connections. Cat-6 may achieve a speed of up to 1GB per second while Cat 5 will only have a local speed of 100 Mbps. If you live in an area that is now rolling out with high-speed fiber connections, it is advised to hook your house or office up with only Cat 6 connections.

Much like every other standard of Ethernet cables, Category 6 cabling is used to connect computers, routers, and switches together within a local network. The ability for your ISPs modem to share an internet connection with your computer or router is made possible with Ethernet cables. If your computer or router is older and only has a maximum speed of 100Mbps, then Category 6 cabling will be an unnecessary investment.

Cat 6a refers to the latest standard of Cat6, which is a maximum of 10Gbps in speed. Currently, this speed is overkill for homes and is mostly used for local connections for businesses and data centers. The cables are thicker and heavier in comparison to regular Cat 6 cables. It is also ideal for expanding a network for long distances, which is supported up to 328 ft with Cat6a.

There are USB, Cardbus, PCI, and PCI-Express adapters available to use with newer Ethernet cables. These devices may have driver conflicts if you are using an older operating system. You may also need to update your routers, switches, or modems to utilize the speed increase of Cat6 cabling.

Since both cables are RJ45 type cables and Cat6 st about any Ethernet jack. Keep in mind that the cables speed will be downgraded when used with a Category 5e or older device.