There’s a lot of debate in the tech world on the potential benefits of installing Cat 6 data cabling for commercial networks. And while those benefits are technically genuine, by using Cat-6 or Cat-6a cables instead of Cat 5 or Cat 5e cables you can get significantly faster speeds — up from 1 Gb/s to 10 Gb/s, when it comes to being able to use the internet at the kinds of blistering speeds Cat 6 promises, those benefits rely on four essential factors:

1. Your provider offers a multi-gigabit service or plans to roll out a multi-gigabit service in the foreseeable future.
2. Your The Internet connection supports it. It’s often your internet connection that’s the bottleneck, and Cat 6 cables won’t do anything to help that.
3. The rest of your hardware, your routers, patch panels, switches, end devices are not ALL specified to support it.
4. Your data cabling is put in professionally. It’s a simple equation – poor data cabling equals poor network performance.

Internet connectivity aside Cat 6 also means improved data transfer speed for transferring files or doing what you need to do between locally networked computers and of course there’s no way that you will ever improve on your Cat 5e 1 Gb/s speeds in the future unless you do upgrade. By the same token you can plug as much swanky new network kit into old Cat-5e ethernet cables as you like – you won’t get full future speeds though.

Questions? Advice?

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Cat 6 Future Proofing

And it’s that future proofing that makes Cat 6 such a serious consideration when weighing up the best data cabling for commercial networks.

What are we saying?

We’re saying if you’re currently running Cat 5e then really there’s no immediate need to rip it all out and run new Cat 6 or Cat 6a or Cat 7 or Fibre throughout your business in the hope of getting ahead of the game. Unless you’re running a data centre, or have large numbers of users processing vast amounts of data the gains will be marginal and probably not worth the cost and hassle.

If, on the other hand, you’re looking at a new build, a redevelopment or are seriously undertaking serious growth, then yes. It would be wise to consider the multi-gigabit options.

But the Best Cat 6 Advice we can Give?

Simple. Talk to us.

No two installations are ever the same and whatever you decide to go for you will need a suitably qualified and experienced installation team to make sure that your cat6 data cabling is fitted with the minimum of fuss and the maximum of efficiency.

There are plenty of electricians and handymen out there offering their services. Don’t risk it. Networking is a big investment, an investment that deserves pro support. The kind of expert Cat 6 network cabling that we provide clients all across Manchester and over the North West. Proven installations. Proven results.

Cat 6 or cabling questions? Vendor neutral advice?

JNB – experts in Cat6 cabling and wiring installations, Manchester based and independent.

Call free now: 0161 956 8654