Fiber vs Copper
choose the perfect solution for your cabling infrastructure is not an easy task. But once you be aware of the different properties of copper and fiber your solution may seem clearer. There are many advantages of fiber vs copper cable as explain below
Fiber vs Copper Data Bandwidth
Bandwidth is the main character of communication so here first we are going to compare fiber vs copper for bandwidth. Fiber-optic can support data bandwidth from 10 Mbps to 10 Gbps. But copper wire infrastructure and TDM technology; are limited. Because it was originally designed; for transmitting voice calls only, the demand for bandwidth wasn’t high. So it supports 10 Mbps to 100 Gbps data only.
Distance Covered
The distance is another important consideration for comparison between fiber vs copper. The signal travel on copper wire networks degrades with the length of the cable. So the distance covered by copper wire is very Short which is from 1 meter to 100 meters. But the signal travel on fiber optic cable does not degrade as the signal degrade in copper wire. Distance covered by fiber optic is very long from 1-100,000 meters.
Security
The security between fiber vs copper is important to consider. We can easily intercept copper cable only connecting taps to a line to pick up the electronic signals. So it is very easy to compromise your security and difficult to trace compromise cable. But Putting a tap on a fibre-optic cable to intercept data transmissions is very difficult. It’s also easy to quickly find compromised cables, which visibly emit light from transmissions.
Immunity to EMI and RFI
Copper wire is a conductor so there is very low immunity to EMI and RFI. But Fiber Optic Cable is non conducting materials and electrical signal do not interfere on it. So the immunity to EMI and RFI is very High (Completely immune)
Immunity to electrical hazards
The immunity to electrical hazards in the copper wire is very low. But the fiber optic has high electrical hazards immunity because of its non-conducting materials.
Size of Cable
The speed via copper cable is directly associated with the weight of cable used. For achieving a higher speed, more cable required, which requires more space in a system room. But fiber cable’s speed does not associate with its size, and it’s far lighter weight than copper. This renders it easier to use and less demanding of limited space in small rooms.
Media and connector costs- The connector and media cost of copper cable is low. But the fiber optic related media equipment and connectors are very high.
Installation skills required – The installation skills are most important between fiber vs copper cables. Copper cable required only some installation skills. But fiber optic cable required highly skilled technicians and engineers for installation.
Safety precautions- The copper wire safety precautions is low. But fiber optic required high safety precautions.
Power over Ethernet (PoE) – Copper cable provides the facility of power over Ethernet(POE); but fiber optic not providing such facility.
Flexibility – Copper wire is more flexible than fiber optic cable.
Reliability- Copper wire is less reliable than fiber optic cable.
