What is the Cat8 Cable ?

To understand Cat8 cables, let's explore them from these three perspectives:

 

What is Cat8 Cable?

Differences between Cat8, Cat7, and Cat6A Cables.

Applications of Cat8 Cable.

 

 

I. What is Cat8 Cable?

 

There are significant differences between Cat8 cables and other types of cables, primarily in terms of transmission speed, frequency bandwidth, and transmission distance.

 

Cat8 cable (Cat8) represents the latest generation of fully shielded twisted pair (SFTP) cables. It can support a bandwidth of 2000MHz and achieve a transmission rate of up to 40Gb/s. However, its optimal performance is achieved within a transmission distance of up to 30 meters. Therefore, it is commonly used to connect servers, switches, patch panels, and other devices in short-distance data centers.

The structure of Cat8 cable

 

 

II. Differences Between Cat8, Cat7, and Cat6A Cables

 

Let's first take a look at their main data.

The Performance Data Comparison Of Cat6A, Cat7 and Cat8 Cables

 

 

Cat6A Cable:

 

With a maximum transmission frequency of 500MHz, it's twice that of Cat6 cables. It's mainly used for 10-gigabit (10G) networks, labeled as "CAT.6A." In addition, Cat6A cables support 10G Ethernet and may carry a "10Gigabit" label on their appearance.

 

Cat6 cables come in two types: typically with a single-strand bare copper wire diameter of 23AWG, approximately 0.573mm, and a 24AWG Cat6 cable with a diameter of around 0.511mm.

 

Cat7 Cable:

 

Cat7 cables offer performance close to Cat6A cables. They use pure copper with eight cores and have shielding layers, providing stronger performance. The transmission rate can reach 10Gbps, making them suitable for data center environments.

The Cable Structure Of Cat7 Cable

 

 

Each pair has a shielding layer (usually metallic foil shielding), and in addition to the eight cores, there is an outer shielding layer (usually braided metal wire shielding, Braided Shield). The interface is the same as RJ-45. Total shielding plus pair shielding (usually metallic foil shielding). Cat7 (S/FTP Cat.7, HSYVP-7) has a maximum transmission frequency of 600MHz, while the transmission frequency of Cat7A is 1000MHz. Cat7 fully supports 10G.

Cable structure comparison between the Cat6A and Cat7 cable

 

 

Cat7 cable uses nearly 0.58mm diameter, high-quality oxygen-free copper as the transmission conductor. It's slightly thicker than Cat6 cables and employs foamed insulation, significantly enhancing single-core conductor transmission capabilities.

 

 

 

 

Cat8 Cable:

 

The diameter of the cores of Cat8 cables is approximately 0.64mm. It is also a double-shielded (SFTP) network cable. It has two wire pairs, an ultra-high bandwidth of 2000MHz, and a transmission rate of up to 40Gb/s. In the ISO/IEC 11801 standard, Cat8 cables are divided into Class I and Class II based on channel levels. Class I Cat8 cables have shielding types U/FTP and F/UTP, and are backward compatible with RJ45 connectors of Cat5e, Cat6, and Cat6a. Class II Cat8 cables have shielding types F/FTP or S/FTP and are backward compatible with TERA or GG45 connector interfaces, but their maximum transmission distance is only 30 meters.

 

The twisted pair design of the Cat8 cable reduces the cross-talk and Aluminum Foil Shielding reduces the interference of the Cat8 cable

 

 

Cat8 cables are 8-core shielded cables, and unlike ordinary shielded cables, the Cat8 system is based solely on shielded cables. In Cat8 cables, each pair of wires has a shielding layer, and the four pairs of wires are enclosed by a common large shielding layer.

 

However, the transmission distance of Cat8 cables is relatively short, and widespread adoption may be unlikely at present. Nevertheless, their transmission rate and frequency bandwidth far exceed other types of cables.

 

III. Applications of Cat8 Cable

 

Cat8 cables can be applied in high-speed broadband environments, such as data centers and bandwidth-intensive areas.

 

Although it has a short transmission distance, it also has advantages. Cat8 cables can share RJ45 ports, which means they can easily upgrade network speeds from 1G to 10G, 25G, and 40G. Additionally, Cat8 cables are plug-and-play and can be field terminated like other cable categories, making them easy to deploy. Moreover, due to their cost-effectiveness, twisted pair cables have always been the most cost-effective solution in Ethernet, and Cat8 cables are no exception.

 

In practical use, when deploying 25G/40GBASE-T networks and the transmission distance is less than 30 meters, Cat8 cables are more convenient than fiber optic patch cords. Therefore, Cat8 cables still have their usage space.