In order to have a better Internet connection we can use different devices. A very useful option are PLCs. They work through the electrical wiring and allow the connection to be taken from one place to another in the house. You will be able to connect both by cable and by Wi-Fi, if you have a model that is compatible. Now, what type of cable should you use to achieve adequate speed and connection quality? We talk about it in this article.
Type of cables for PLCs
You should keep in mind that not all Ethernet cables are the same. In fact, there may be important differences. This can affect a computer that you connect by cable, a game console, television… In short, any device that has an Ethernet port and connects to the router or to an access point.
And yes, this is also going to affect PLCs. It is not the same to use a Fast Ethernet cable as another that is Gigabit Ethernet. In the first case, the speed will be limited to 100 Mbps. If you have contracted higher speed fiber optics and those devices are compatible, you will not be able to achieve more speed than that. On the other hand, if you use a Gigabit Ethernet cable, you will be able to reach up to 1 Gbps of speed, so you will be adapted to current fiber speeds.
What type of cable allows it to be Gigabit and have up to 1 Gbps? You’re going to have to use at least a CAT 5e cable. There are different categories of Ethernet cables and if you use that or something higher (like CAT 6 or CAT 7) you will have up to 1 Gbps of speed. On the other hand, if you use a cable that is CAT 5 or lower (such as CAT 4), you will be limited to 100 Mbps.
The normal thing is that today you have Gigabit Ethernet cables, but if you buy some PLC devices and decide to connect some device by cable and use one that you have at home old, for example an ADSL connection, maybe it is Fast Ethernet and that will prevent you from taking full advantage of these gadgets.
The number of ports is important
Beyond the type of Ethernet cable you use in the PLC devices, it is also essential to talk about the number of ports available. There are some models that have only one, while others may have two or three, thus allowing greater flexibility to connect more devices to the wired network.
How many Ethernet ports should a PLC have? This will really depend on how many you are going to need. However, our advice is to have at least a couple of ports. This way you can connect a computer by cable and, for example, a television that is compatible and thus gain stability and speed.
However, the ideal is to have PLC devices that can work both wired and Wi-Fi. This will provide greater flexibility and will allow you to connect devices that do not work by network cable, such as a mobile or a tablet, but also have the cable option. You can even connect multiple PLC devices.
