Allow me to guess: you upgraded your router, switching to Gigabit, and even refining your devices. But there is something … outside. You take a speed test, and leads away from what you pay for. Perhaps your enlargement requires stuttering, delayed your games, or transferring crawling files such as 2005.
There are possibilities, it is not your mode, router, or even an internet service provider. It can be something less clear: Ethernet cable that connects your hardware.
Let’s lift the cap and take a look at what is already happening.
False economy: Why does cheap cables cost you more?
Not all Ethernet cables are created equal, even if they all wear a “CAT6” or “Cat5E” badge. This designation tells you that the classification of the category is designed to meet. But he does not tell you how it was built or whether it has been adopted for a reliable performance under the circumstances of the real world.
Here is the dirty truth: cheap Ethernet cables often cut the corners on things like shielding, damage, jacket materials, and copper quality. Worse, they may use copper -covered aluminum (CCA) instead of solid copper. Certainly, the data may pass. But can they do so at the maximum speed, without intervention, over time? Unlikely.
Just because the cable says “1 GB per second” on the package does not mean that it can maintain 1 GB per second, especially once you start paying longer distances, operating POE devices, or working in noisy electric environments.
The bottle in the real world
Here is what happens when connecting the Ethernet cable worth $ 2.99:
Loss of package at random intervals
Strong the network without any clear reason
Learning during video calls or downloading files
Gaming time mutations even with a wire connection
You may not notice this at first. But over time, things begin to act strange. Your flow shrinks, the downloads are not consistent, and smart devices decrease without any warning.
This is because the poor -made cables offer attenuation (signal loss) and their enforcing (signals bleeding in each other). The rate of the development of wire and shield husbands, if any, helps to fight these issues. Cheap cables ignore this engineering to save costs. This settlement is shown as unreliable performance.
And let’s not forget the Po (strength on ethernet). If you are running IP cameras, VOIP phones or access points, then these cheap cables are not just low performance, you may be dangerous to the fire if they cannot deal with the continuous current properly.
Inside the cable: construction issues
Do you want to know how to separate the good cables from the garbage? Let’s get into the wire.
1. Solid copper versus CCA
Solid copper conductors provide less resistance and better connection. CCA (copper -covered aluminum) is cheaper and lighter and performs a bad performance, especially at longer distances or when used with POE. It is also not compatible with the TIA/Eia standards for network cables.
CCA cables can empty your guarantee on professional network equipment. Let that drown.
2. UTP vs. STP
UTP cables (unreasonable twisted pair) is good in low noise environments. But in areas with many electronics (think about household offices with energy bricks, routers, and screens), STP (protected twisted pair) provides additional protection against EMI (electromagnetic intervention).
The problem is that most cheap protected cables do not properly put their shields. So you get the worst thing in the two worlds: the highest cost and zero benefit.
3. Sitra and development rate
Cheap cables are often used PVC jackets that can decompose faster and difficult on the channels. High-quality cables are used as CMR-CMP jackets, which are suitable for applications inside the wall or incomplete.
The twist rate affects the speaker. If the inner husbands are not constantly and tightly not twisted, overlapping becomes a big problem.
Red Flags: Discovering a low -quality cable
Before you throw another doubtful cable in your setting, check these warning marks:
No ul certificate on the jacket
Diametical cable is suspicious (often means CCA)
Public brand or words that are volatile on the package
There is no grounding wire in the protected cables
The standards of Tia/Eia did not want
Very flexible or very harsh (indicates cheap or shielding)
Also, if you can bend the cable in half and collect it, this is not a good sign.
Quick home tests you can run
You do not need to prepare a full laboratory to discover a bad cable. Here is how you can test it at home:
Switch it: Replace the suspect’s cable with a well -known good and restore your speed test.
Use the cable test: You will see a basic test if all the eight connectors work and connect them properly.
Poe Load test: If you are running a POE device, test the warm cable after a few hours. Heat = resistance = non -efficiency.
Ping Test: Use a router or orders to operate Ping continuously and search for losing packages or high tremors.
These simple checks often indicate or run a bad correction cable.
What do you use instead
If you want reliability, here are what you are looking for:
Cat6 cables or cat6a accredited
ETL-UL cables with clear signs
The right shield if your environment needs it
CMP-or CMR jackets for installation inside the wall or leather reservoirs
Cables of well -known suppliers, such as monk cables (not the cheapest option on Amazon)
Avoid anything called “CCA”, even if it is tempting. It is not worth headache in the long run.
Also, consider your future needs. If you are connecting a new space or upgrade, go to Cat6A or even Cat7 if you plan for 10 GB per second, multiple POE devices or high EMI environments.
conclusion
We spend thousands on high -speed internet, network routers, NAS engines, and game computers. Then we all connect it with ETHERNET Cables with a value of $ 3 and wonder why it does not work properly.
Your network is good like its weakest link. If the cable is unable to connect the sign cleanly and steadily, then nothing is important.
So the next time you fix it on a slow network, not only look at the flashing lights. Get the hood. Look at your cables. The possibilities are that the “cheap” cable costs you more than you think.
