Ethernet cables Cat 5, Cat 5e, Cat6, Cat 6a, Cat 7

Ethernet cables Cat 5, Cat 5e, Cat6, Cat 6a, Cat 7

Currently, the lowest recommended standard available is Cat5. Anything under that is now obsolete. As internet speeds get faster, Cat5 cables are heading towards becoming obsolete too.

Category 5 (Cat5) – an older form of Ethernet cable and enables speeds of up to 100 Mbps. (Megabits per second)
Category 5e (Cat5e) – an updated version of Cat5 and allows for faster speeds with reduces interference from electrical cables.
Category 6 (Cat6) – enables speeds of up to 10 gigabits, depending on the area. Cat6 cable has thin wires, which helps in terms of its signal to noise ratio. The cables are stiffer than Cat5 cables, which can make them harder to run around tight corners.
Category 6a (Cat6) – an improved version of the Cat6 cable. It enables speeds of up to 10 gigabits. The cables offer double the bandwidth than the Cat6s too. More often then not, Cat6 cables are often shielded to reduce electrical noise and electromagnetic radiation from affecting the signals.
Category 7 (Cat7) – Offering up to 10Gbps (Gigabits per second) up to a 15-metre distance. Cat 7 twisted cables must be fully-shielded, which will eliminate crosstalk and improve electrical noise resistance.
Category 8 (Cat8) – enables 2000MHz bandwidth and speeds of 40Gbps. These cables are specifically designed for Data Centres and enterprise networks, so are a lot more expensive.
For a business network, go for the highest type of cable to get the best results. For a home network, it is best to go for the highest cable you can justify buying that delivers the speeds promised by your internet service provider.