29 November 2024 | Do-It-Yourself, How to, Networking, Video, Wireless Wonderland |
It’s time to upgrade your Ethernet! New multigig Ethernet switches that run at 2.5 Gbps are now much cheaper to buy. So the only question left is: Will your Ethernet cables actually work at multigig speeds? Well, theoretically, if they’re at least Cat 5e, they SHOULD be fine… But alas, not all cables are created equal. Worse yet, popular flat Ethernet cables are super-handy, but some of them look and feel pretty darn cheap. So which ones will ACTUALLY work?? Let’s find out…
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12 November 2024 | Do-It-Yourself, How to, Networking |
With fiber internet, ultra-high download speeds are pushing the envelope in terms of home routers.
While 1 Gbps Ethernet used to be enough, many ISPs are offering 2Gbps speeds – and up!
Unfortunately, your standard home router these days usually only offers a single 2.5 Gbps multigig Ethernet port – and sometimes NO 2.5 GbE ports at all.
So what do you do if you need multiple 2.5 gig Ethernet ports?
Why, you roll your own router, of course! It’s a lot easier than it seems…
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26 March 2024 | Computers, Gizmos, How Does it Work?, Networking |
You might think Ethernet is on its way out the door. After all, everyone just uses WiFi, right?
WRONG! For the past couple of years, my most popular video on YouTube has been:
No more WiFi: How to wire your house for Internet
Published in September of 2019, the video has garnered over 1.6 million views, and it’s still going strong.
Obviously, many people want Ethernet – contrary to popular belief. That’s good, because it’s only going to get better…
26 September 2023 | Do-It-Yourself, How to, Networking, Video, Wireless Wonderland |
So, you’ve gone wired and are enjoying the speed, stability, and privacy of Ethernet.
One problem: There’s no button to turn off WiFi on your ISP’s router/modem!
What to do?
Why, hack it, of course!
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17 January 2023 | Gizmos, How Does it Work?, Wireless Wonderland |
These days, streaming is all the rage.
Whether you have a smart TV, a streaming stick, Blu-Ray player, soundbar, or even some projectors, many of these gizmos come with Android TV built in.
Too many of them also only have WiFi – no Ethernet jack to be found! This is particularly irritating for those of us who want to go wired and avoid the Wireless Wonderland.
So, how to get Ethernet? Well, you just buy a USB-Ethernet adapter, right?
Yes – sort of…
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21 July 2020 | Do-It-Yourself, How Does it Work?, Networking, Video |
This video is a continuation of Part 3!!
What happens if you want to set up a home network, but you already have existing Ethernet cabling and wall jacks?
While it may seem simple, it turns out that you need to do some investigation first.
In Part 1 of this video, I described the different types of patch panels you may find in your home, how they work, and how you will use them (or not).
In this video, I’ll show exactly how to connect everything!
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14 July 2020 | Do-It-Yourself, How Does it Work?, Networking, Video |
What happens if you want to set up a home network, but you already have existing Ethernet cabling and wall jacks?
While it may seem simple, it turns out that you need to do some investigation first.
In this video, I describe the different types of patch panels you may find in your home, how they work, and how you will use them (or not).
It’s worth noting that if you only have twisted-pair phone cabling (often called PTT-298), you CAN use that wiring for 100 Mbps Ethernet – but not for Gigabit+ speeds.
Fortunately, most homes these days have Cat 5e or higher cabling, so that part shouldn’t be a problem…
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16 June 2020 | How Does it Work?, Networking, Video |
First of all, it’s finally happened: 2.5 Gbps Ethernet is HERE!
It’s already rolling out, and consumer-grade 2.5 gig switches will arrive shortly.
The other big news is the unveiling of WiFi 6E.
A new flavor of WiFi 6, the 6E variant adds the 6GHz radio band and speeds of up to 11Gbps… Or so they say.
So, the question is: stick with wired, or go WiFi 6E wireless? Which is faster?
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31 December 2019 | Gizmos, How Does it Work?, Networking, Video |
There’s a new flavor of Wi-Fi in town: Wi-Fi 6!
In case you’re confused, I’m talking about IEEE 802.11ax, the successor to 802.11ac (which is now called Wi-Fi 5).
Are you confused yet?
While I’m not a terribly big fan of wireless stuff, Wi-Fi 6 does include several improvements that increase capacity and speed for more connected users.
The question is: does Wi-Fi 6 go far enough, or is wired still better?
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17 December 2019 | Do-It-Yourself, How Does it Work?, Networking, Video |
So you’ve read all the studies about our Wireless Wonderland, and you’d like to go wired.
You’ve also watched my first video, No More WiFi: How to wire your home for internet.
You’re not big on drilling holes and running cables everywhere, so you decide to use powerline ethernet or ethernet over coax.
Before you go that route, there are a few things you should know about these two home networking solutions.
Not only are they generally more expensive than ethernet cabling, but they’re also usually not as fast or reliable…
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It’s time to upgrade your Ethernet! New multigig Ethernet switches that run at 2.5 Gbps are now much cheaper to buy. So the only question left is: Will your Ethernet cables actually work at multigig speeds? Well, theoretically, if they’re at least Cat 5e, they SHOULD be fine… But alas, not all cables are created equal. Worse yet, popular flat Ethernet cables are super-handy, but some of them look and feel pretty darn cheap. So which ones will ACTUALLY work?? Let’s find out…
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