Network cables and optical fiber cables are basically the two major 光纖線 tributaries of broadband at present, but the market share of optical fiber cables will be higher. The times are advancing, technology is advancing, networks are constantly being updated, and the predecessors are getting better and better. Optical fiber cable and network cable look similar in appearance, and they are both used in network communication related aspects, and they are quite different.

First, let's understand the meaning of network cable and optical fiber cable:

cable

The network cable is also a twisted pair, and the network cables with different specifications have different transmission intervals. The network cable is transmitting network signals. If it exceeds the distance that the network cable itself can bear, the signal will be attenuated. In severe cases, the network signal will be interrupted.

Category 5 and Category 6 are 100 meters, and the Oxygen-free Copper Category 6 wire on the right track can reach 120 meters or so. If you want to increase the transmission interval, you can install a repeater between the two twisted pairs, and at most 4 can be installed. Repeater. If 4 repeaters are connected to 5 network segments, the maximum transmission distance can reach 500m.

Optical fiber

The transmission interval of the network cable is unlimited, and can not solve the long-distance data transmission, then the optical fiber can be used for the long-distance transmission. Optical fiber is divided into multi-mode and single-mode. The transmission interval of multi-mode is farther than network cable, but shorter than single-mode. In 10mbps and 100mbps Ethernet, multimode fiber can support a transmission interval of up to 2000 meters; in 1GbpS gigabit network, multimode fiber can support a transmission interval of up to 550 meters; therefore, multimode is used less now. NS.

Single-mode fiber can support longer transmission intervals than multi-mode fiber. In 100Mbps Ethernet or even 1G Gigabit network, single-mode fiber can support a transmission distance of 5000m.

The devices used in single-mode optical modules are twice that of multi-mode optical modules, so the overall cost of single-mode optical modules is higher than that of multi-mode optical modules; the transmission interval of single-mode optical modules can reach 150 to 200 km. Therefore, the long-distance transmission can be solved with optical fiber, such as long-distance monitoring projects.

Let’s talk about the differences above in detail:

1. Different materials

Most of the optical fiber is made of glass fiber, which is the abbreviation of optical fiber. It is used as a light transmission object. The transmission principle is "total reflection of light"; the network cable is a copper core, and there are mainly three methods: coaxial cable, optical cable and twisted pair. The difference in data also led to the difference in technical indicators between the two.

2. Cost and price are different

In terms of cost, the price of the network cable will be cheaper, because the transmission rate is slow, and it is like the original telephone line, the network signal is converted from the telephone line, the maximum rate does not exceed 16M, and the anti-interference ability Still weak.

The price of optical fiber cable is more expensive than network cable. At first, the cost of fiberglass manufacturing is higher. After entering the home, you need to use a specially matched optical modem to analyze and convert the optical signal equipment. The cost of the network cable is higher.

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