While there are a lot of different factors to consider when it comes to the efficiency of your network, picking the right crossover cables should never be disregarded. With quality network Ethernet cables, you can easily eliminate a lot of the troubles that might arise in a workplace setting that relies on high performance internet speed. Dropped connections, poor signals, and fuzzy communication between your devices may all be the result of a lacking network setup. If it’s your aim to facilitate an optimal network in your business, regardless of the industry, then starting with the right crossover cable is the first step to take.

In their most basic form, crossover cables are used to make connections between Ethernet network devices. There is a range of applications for crossover cables in the information technology space, but most of the time you will discover that most crossover cable uses are a practical piece of any thorough network configuration. If your office setting has a lot of different devices all vying for their piece of the network, then you’ve probably noticed that crossover cables make communication between the devices possible. Conversely, if you’re having troubles with different devices connecting to each other, then it may be time to do an audit of your cable configuration.

Choosing cables can be frustrating and confusing, especially if you’re not an expert or if you have more urgent tasks on your mind. This is why it’s usually best to consult with experts when it comes to installing and maintaining this important piece of your network configuration. Cost can also be a burden if you’re not sure what to look for. Trustworthy specialists know how to suggest options that limit redundancy in your setup and save you money. It’s always wise to leave ample room in your budget for network installations and maintenance. As an interconnected society, we will only continue to do business and transact on the internet, so it’s wise to keep up on your network so that you can continue to offer the same level of quality in all other parts of your business.

If you do any type of business online, which, let’s face it, everyone does these days, then it’s crucial that your network functions to the best of its abilities. A slow, lackluster connection can cost a business seemingly endless amounts of funds and lost productivity. The degree to which online business continues to grow is easy to observe in day to day activity, but it’s also supported by hard data. Take, for example, the sheer number of people who are now online. As of 2017, there were 3.74 billion internet users in the world. As mobile technology has improved and internet connectivity has expanded, this figure has risen in a significant way. Further developments in all forms of technology will lead to even more people being online. While this is an enormous benefit for business and electronic commerce, it also places an increased demand on the overall efficiency of your network. As your business operations continue to carry weight and importance, your networking cable, including crossover cable, should be assessed to ensure that all of your devices are operating at peak efficiency.

Maintaining all parts of your network, including your Ethernet cables and crossover cables is an important part of your IT setup. It’s incredibly helpful to deal with professionals that have years of experience in the field. An expert can assess your situation, take your specific needs into account, and cater solutions that fit both your vision for your business, and your budget. It only makes sense to spend a little more effort up front to ensure your network is the best it can be, rather than running into unexpected complications, headaches, and roadblocks as your business grows and develops.

As you can see, the overall efficiency and well being of your network can either enhance your day to day operations or hamper them. If you want to be sure you’re choosing the right crossover cables for your network, then don’t hesitate to get in touch with us today.

If you’re like most Americans, you have a setup for Internet and cable in your home. How else would you be able to connect your wireless devices to the world wide web? In fact, products such as iPods, Macs, iPads, Apple watches, and iPhones were owned by 64% of Americans in 2017. But is it time to install a new system? Here are some pros and cons for a do-it-yourself network installation.

1. Costs

If you decide to take on your network installation, whether it is a 500 ft Ethernet cable, a 75 ft Ethernet cable, or bulk fiber optic cables, you will save yourself the cost of having a professional come to your home and do the installation. However, you will probably have to purchase an installation kit, which costs money. And if there is a problem that comes up, you will be on your own.

2. Scheduling

Arranging to have a technician come to your home and do a network installation is not an easy process. There are limited appointment times, and limited days during the week that the company may be able to come to your neighborhood. Often it is extremely inconvenient to have a professional come to the house and do an installation. It may even require you to miss work, or to let the technician in unaccompanied or unsupervised. However, if you are a do-it-yourselfer who knows what to do with a 500 ft Ethernet cable, for instance, and you can do the network installation on your own, then you can decide what a convenient time is. Then, it can be done when you want it done, and when you have time to do it yourself.

3. Owning/Renting Equipment

If you decide to do your own installation, you will be able to purchase the equipment that you need based on the requirements of your household. Don’t need a 500 ft Ethernet cable? Then you don’t have to buy one. In addition, you will not have any monthly payments and you will keep the equipment for yourself. However, this is possibly a bit more expensive up front since you have to pay for the equipment yourself. Also, further down the road, it could be a little bit more difficult to get technical support appointments because many internet and cable companies are reluctant to repair equipment that they have not installed themselves.

4. Upgrades

Most of the time with an internet and cable company, upgrades are done as part of the service. However, if you install your own network connection, any upgrades that you are interested in will be entirely up to you. This may result in incurring extra costs. And as previously mentioned, it may be much more difficult to get tech support.

So, if you’re at the point where you’re shopping for a new Internet service provider, you have two choices for installation. You can either do it yourself, or you can have a professional from your service provider do the installation. Maybe you are a pretty good do-it-yourselfer and think you can tackle a network installation. Great, then, go ahead and good luck. Many folks do installations using a surge protection service, power lightning cables, or even cell phone cables successfully. But, if the prospect of a 500 ft Ethernet cable seems a bit daunting to you, you may be wise to call and have a professional do the installation for you.

Congrats, you brave pioneer of media! You’ve upgraded your TV and DVD player and can now enjoy Ultra High Definition content, otherwise known as 4K content.

4K Ultra HD basically has quadruple the pixel density of 1080p, its predecessor. For now, 4K runs 24 frames per second, because nearly all of the currently available content is either TV or movies, which are virtually all 24fps. However, there could come a day when content that has a higher framerate — like a sports broadcast — could be shown in Ultra HD. What’s more, considering the previous leaps in AV technology — from black and white television to color to high definition — the sheer quality that this latest jump delivers is truly awesome.

Now, in order to enjoy your new toys, you’re going to need to be able to make them talk to each other, which means you’re going to need the right cables.

You’re more than likely familiar with HDMI cables, which are basically what you need to get your system set up. The key is understanding the specifications and the bandwidth rating.

According to the HDMI Forum Technical Working Group, there are four, basic video resolution guidelines:

• Standard HDMI runs up to 720p or 1080i at 30Hz
• High-Speed HDMI runs up to 4K resolution at 30Hz
• Premium High-Speed HDMI runs up to 4K resolution and has an HDR (high dynamic range) at up to 60Hz
• Ultra High-Speed HDMI runs up to 10K resolution with an HDR at 120Hz refresh rate

You also need to consider the bandwidth rating. Choosing the wrong one means you’re not going to get quadruple the pixel density, which would be more than a shame. The various bandwidth ratings include:

• High Speed equates to 10.2Gbps
• Premium High Speed equates to 18Gbps
• Ultra High Speed equates up to 48Gbps

Although it might seem common sense, it bears saying: your 4k Ultra HD equipment will require an HDMI cable capable of 4K. Just follow the connection instructions in your equipment’s owners manual, and you’ll be off to the new frontier of content!

Surge protectors are devices used to control the frequency of the electrical current flowing to your computers, televisions and all other electronics. It is a device often forgotten, but, it’s necessary to have one in every homestead, computer lab, and office.

Another critical thing about surge protectors is that they have ratings in terms of joules. The number of joules for each protector dictates the absorption of energy. Therefore, if you need a surge protector for computers and home theaters, choose one with a joule rating of 2500 and above.

How Does a Surge Protector Work?

When you connect a surge protector into a power source, you can then insert a computer charger into outlets on the device. So, when electric voltage spikes or surge, the device directs the excess voltage to a grounding wire. Inside the power surge, there is a metal oxide varistor that is between the grounding wire and the current wire. The MOV diverts the excess voltage into the grounding wire.

What to look for when buying a surge protector

1. Number of outlets

Chances are, you will always add more electronics. Therefore, invest in a device that has more outlets than you require for purposes of connecting more electronics in the future. For example, if you have four electronics, choose a power surge protector with six outlets.

2. Enough spacing

The spaces between outlets should be large enough to accommodate large plugs. Therefore, when purchasing a power surge protector, consider the space between one socket and the other.

3. Joules

Surge protectors protect your gadgets in the form of units called Joules. If a surge protector has a rating of 1000 joules, it can protect many small electronics. The higher the value, the more likely that the device will handle huge power surge and spikes that might put your equipment at risk.

4. Differentiate between power strip and power surge protector

A power strip is like a wall socket. The only difference is that it has several outlets on it. To use it, you have to plug it into the wall socket then connect your device’s cable on it. It’s essential to have it when you have a few wall sockets that can’t serve all your electronics. But, since it has several outlets, it can conveniently serve all your electronics.

However, it doesn’t protect your electronics from power surge and spikes. It only has a circuit breaker, which is not enough to protect your electronics.

The importance of identifying the difference between surge protectors and power strip is to ensure electronics like fridges are safe. A power strip surge protector seems like the perfect combination to handle power spikes in your home.

It’s advisable to have a surge protector for your computer. It might save you from incurring losses in amounts of hundreds of dollars when the computer’s hardware succumbs to a power surge. Above all, source your surge protectors for computer from a reliable supplier — contact CableWholesale today.

Lag can often make or break your gameplay. But once it sets in, what can you do to fix it? Here are a few things you should know and a few suggestions to help you live your best lag-free life.

Fast Facts About Lag

Everyone has experienced lag at some point or another. Whether it’s cost you the win in a video game or not, this phenomenon means something is probably wrong. And you’d be surprised at how fast you notice it, too. While the average lag time on a computer is 0.2 seconds, some gamers will notice a delay as small as 0.05 seconds.

As far as what’s causing your lag, there are three possibilities. It could be that your ethernet cables aren’t functioning properly, your router doesn’t have the capacity you need, or your computer’s ethernet port just isn’t capable of hosting the bandwidth you need.

How Can You Fix Lag?

Fortunately, there are a few easy suggestions that might help you fix your laggy connection. First and foremost, you should adjust one of two settings on your computer: video and audio quality. It could be that your quality settings are just too much for your network to handle.

Next, you should check up on your latency. Keep in mind that any latency under 100ms is acceptable for gaming, but between 20ms and 40 ms is typically ideal.

And if none of that is working out for you, consider that your network might be the problem. If you haven’t changed out your ethernet cables in a while, investing in a new set could be handy. And when you think about the fact that Cat 6a cables can handle twice the bandwidth capacity of their predecessor, Cat 6 cables, upgrading seems like a solid solution.

Don’t let video game lag get you down.

For technical professionals, differentiating the various types of ethernet cables is an easy task. But, for the untrained eye, all cables look alike. However, there are different types of network cables on the market, all with different bandwidth capabilities.

Cat 5e cable

Cat 5e cables have been in the market for over 15 years. During its initial release, the hardware that would support certain speeds was limited because they were prohibitively expensive. But in the recent past, high-performance hardware has become more affordable, and now it is possible for more businesses and individuals to use Cat 5e cables.

Cat5e supports speeds of up to 1,000 Megabits per second (1Gbps) Ethernet at 100MHz. The Cat5e cable is an improvement of the Cat5. The “e” stands for enhanced due to the reduced crosstalk. Additionally, the Cat5e cable is flexible and good for setups that require frequent changes. Cat5e is available in either shielded or unshielded wires as well as stranded and copper wires.

Cat6 cables

Cat6 cables are an improvement on the Cat5e cables in terms of both speed and reliability. The Cat6 cables have more twisted pairs, which give them less crosstalk than Cat5 and Cat5e cables. Cat 5e and Cat6 ethernet cables have the same size jacket size, despite this. Some Cat6 manufactures will place a spline in the cable to allow for fewer twists and more separation, thus requiring less copper. Since the Cat6 has the potential for higher speeds and less crosstalk, many home and business owners are opting for a network with Cat6 cables.

Like the Cat5e, the Cat6 can also achieve speeds of 1 Gbps, but the main difference is that the latter achieves these speeds at a bandwidth of up to 250 MHz. The cable is more tightly woven than the Cat5e.

Cat6a cable

The other category of ethernet cables is the Cat6a cables. This cable was created to support 10Gbase-T networks, as the Cat5e and Cat6 cables are only able to support a max of 2.5 Gigabit and 5 Gigabit data rates, respectively. The “a” stands for augmented which mean it performs at higher speeds over a long distance, and it is also backward compatible with Cat5e and Cat6. It also has very minimal crosstalk. Because Cat6a cables have better performance, they can support bandwidth frequency of up to 500 MHz which is double the capabilities of the Cat6 and five times the capabilities of the Cat5e.

The cables have more shielding which enables them to eliminate crosstalk. The Cat6a cables have a thicker jacket than the Cat6, but is grooved to help guide the twisted pairs around each other. Cat6a is often constructed with a spline to help with cross talk. Cat6a cables are best suited for more demanding setups like industrial environments, or anywhere you have greater than a Gigabit network connection.

Understanding UTP, S/UTP, and F/UTP

• UTP – UTP stands for Unshielded Twisted Pair. This is a baseline cable, where there is no shielding. In this type of cable, there is an outer jacket and insulated conductors configured in pairs.
• S/UTP – S/UTP cables are fairly standard. They are similar to the previous cable, except this has a braided shield in it. This creates a barrier to resist outside interference.
• S/FTP – This stands for Foiled Unshielded Twisted Pair. As a more complex cable, it is both designed to reduce outside interference through the braided shield, and internal interference through the foil. This foil is wrapped around each pair inside of the cable.

Which Type Of Ethernet Cables Should You Use?

The type of cable that you decide to use will ultimately be informed by several factors. They include cost, the life expectancy of the cabling, network speeds and lastly the environment of the system. Cat5e cables are the most affordable and in most cases will get the job done. However, for heavier usage, you should use Cat6 and Cat6a cables.