Network Cable Categories

                   Category X cable also referred to as CATx.The UTP (Unshielded Twisted Pair) type of cable used for Ethernet wiring the only categories of interest are Cat3, Cat4, Cat5, Cat5e, Cat6, and Cat7.These cables are using like.........

Specifications for Cat3, Cat4, Cat5, Cat5e, Cat6, and Cat7 Cables

Category Type Spectral B/W Length LAN Applications Remarks Cat3 UTP 16 MHz 100m 10Base-T, 4Mbps Now mainly for telephone cables Cat4 UTP 20 MHz 100m 16Mbps Rarely seen Cat5 UTP 100MHz 100m 100Base-Tx,ATM,CDDI Used in LANs Cat5e UTP 100MHz 100m 1000Base-T Used in  LANs Cat6 UTP 250MHz 100m Emerging Cat7 ScTP 600MHz 100m

The comparison of  CAT5 ,CAT5e, and CAT6 are given below.

CAT5, CAT5e, and CAT6 UTP Solid Cable Specifications Comparison Category 5 Category 5e Category 6 Frequency 100 MHz 100 MHz 250 MHz Attenuation (Min. at 100 MHz) 22 dB 22 dB 19.8 dB Characteristic Impedance 100 ohms ± 15% 100 ohms ± 15% 100 ohms ± 15% NEXT (Min. at 100 MHz) 32.3 dB 35.3 dB 44.3 dB PS-NEXT (Min. at 100 MHz) no specification 32.3 dB 42.3 dB ELFEXT (Min. at 100 MHz) no specification 23.8 dB 27.8 dB PS-ELFEXT (Min. at 100 MHz) no specification 20.8 dB 24.8 dB Return Loss (Min. at 100 MHz) 16.0 dB 20.1 dB 20.1 dB Delay Skew (Max. per 100 m) no specification 45 ns 45 ns