Comparison between Cat5 and Cat5e Cable

Ethernet cables are used extensively in the telecommunications and information technology industry. Cat5 cable and Cat5e cables are the most popular among all the cables. This blog will offer genuine insight into the difference between Cat 5 and Cat5e cable.

Cat 5 was designed as the fifth generation of twisted pair technology. It was meant to enable fast Ethernet speeds of up to 100 Mbps. Cat5e cables were an improved version with a speed of gigabit Ethernet up to 100 Mbps.

Cat5 supports only Ethernet and fast Ethernet whereas Cat5e cable is also suitable for gigabit Ethernet.

Another key difference is with regard to the intrusion in signals and mainly cross talk. Crosstalk is a phenomenon which occurs when a cable signal is disrupted by electrical interference. Cat5e provides better shielding capacity than the Cat5 cables.

Cat5e cables are also more durable than Cat5 cables due to the usage of a thicker PVC jacket during their creation.

The last distinguishing factor between Cat5 and Cat5e is related to bandwidth. Bandwidth is the amount of data carrying capacity a network possesses. Therefore the higher the bandwidth, the quicker and more efficient is the network. So for those who desire a network with greater bandwidth, quality Cat5e Ethernet cable can be considered a more suitable choice as it has greater capacity.

So after going through the above mentioned facts it could be concluded that opting for Cat5e cable would be a better option. Being an enhanced version it has numerous advantages over the older version.