The Different Types of Internet Cable
Internet cable instead of Wi-Fi is a wire between your computer and your router; usually comes as part of the cable TV subscription offered by companies.
What internet cable you decide to use depends on the speeds you want to use and the price point. There should be also its bandwidth and length.
Coaxial Cable
Coaxial cable is one of the most popular connections that your Internet Service Provider uses to link your home to their network and it is also commonly used to carry TV signals and run video security systems.
This cable has a plurality of paralleled sections of wire and insulation, wired together. One metallic core sends RF signals and other layers block interference and noise to keep it uniformly spaced from the others for the whole length of the cable.
Coaxial cables have their inner conductors covered with dielectric insulators and an outer shell consisting of one to four layers of woven metallic braid or foil shielding that limits transmission of electric and magnetic fields towards their central conductor (minimizing signal loss and insertion). This construction enables you to run them high frequency with low losses, in addition, these cables are compatible with moderately twisted, bent, strapped interfaces without incurring stresses from tangles or sharp bends.
Telephone Cable
Telephone wires are made to carry phone signals from one place to another. Cables made from copper wires bent and covered in plastic to prevent the wire from colliding with or corroding it usually bear two series of numbers on their packaging: pair number and wire gauge.
Twisted pairs of wires are assembled into larger groups called strands, then they are wrapped into the cable sheath for safety. A telephone cable might be 10 pairs of wires, depending on the brand.
These are the wires that can be used to join telephones and DSL internet. They can also be converted into an ethernet cable for local area network; usually blue with RJ45 connections specifically for use with telephone cables as well as coax and fibre optic cables.
LAN Cable
You connect everything in a local area network (LAN) cable. This connection can be used for a variety of reasons such as computer to computer, printers, telecom or workstation. Generally called Ethernet cable which has a data rate of megabits per second or millions of bits per second.
LAN cables are made up of a few pairs of copper wires interconnected in order to cancel out the EMI of other pairs and the environment in which they are arranged. They then each end gets a layer of LSZH or PVC insulation around each pair and is connected at either end to RJ45 connectors.
LAN cables are less expensive and reliable than wireless connections, and also less affected by electromagnetic noises from fixtures like fluorescent bulbs. If you want them to work as best as possible, keep them away from fluorescent lights or electrical source such as fluorescent bulb; keep them secure with cable ties to make sure they’re secured.
Cat 5e Cable
Cat 5e cable was once the norm for network cabling. Known also as Unshielded Twisted Pair (UTP), it has great flexibility and comfort with maximum suggested length of 328ft and is less expensive than fiber-optic cables. Cat 5e cables are also more rigorously tested to remove signal interference so that wire pairs do not crosstalk.
Stranded cables are cheaper than solid ones and the former are more flexible and bendable while the latter perform better at longer distances.
You can use both types of cables to send data at whatever speed your internet provides, but Cat 5e cables are more versatile in terms of future upgrade possibilities to greater speeds. These days most home routers come with gigabit Ethernet built-in, so upgrade or buy this cable if possible.