Cables, they are everywhere in our daily life, from those hanging in midair next to power transmission tower to the one charging your mobile phone. They play a critical role in almost everywhere in today’s life as long as there is electricity. However, common and important as it is, we always neglect them (except for iPhone users) and don’t think about them seriously. So let’s learn something about cables together.
What is cable?
Generally, cable is a type of product used for transmission of electricity, signals and transformation of electromagnetic energy. It’s basically made of a conductor core, an insulating layer and a protect shield.
Types of cables
Cable includes a huge variety of products. Classified by utility, there are 3 types of cables: magnet wire, power cable and communication cable. Now let’s take a closer look at what they are and what they do.
Magnet wire
Magnet wire is used to transform electricity into a magnetic field or the other way around. According to this electromagnetic induction principle, magnet wire can be used in the construction of transformers, generators, electric motors, headphones and speakers. Usually a magnet wire is a copper or aluminum wire coated with a very thin layer of insulation.
Power cable
Power cable is used to transmit electricity. Be it a power transmission system or on a power strip, the power cable is seen in them all. A power cable is an assembly of one or more conductors, often held together with an overall sheath.
Flexible cables are a flexible type of power cable, containing fine stranded conductors instead of solid core conductors, allowing them to withstand the forces of repeated flexing and abrasion. They are widely used in household appliances like fridges, washing machines, etc.
Communication cable
With the development of the Information Revolution, communication cable plays an increasingly important role. For all the electronic devices we use routinely, there are communication cables attached to them. And the internet we’re in, is also connected by the communication cables. Since the communication cable is most relevant to general consumers, in the following paragraph i’ll talk about some of them in details. Let’s see what they are.
1. USB (Universal Serial Bus) cables
USB cables are used to connect computing terminals and their peripheral devices like keyboard, mouse and so on.
- USB 2.0 cable
USB 2.0 is the last generation standard established in 2001. Its maximum signaling rate is 480 Mbps. - USB 3.0 cable
USB 3.0 is a new standard released in 2008. Its maximum signaling rate reached 5 Gbps. And this standard has upgraded to 3.2 with a maximum signaling rate of 20 Gbps. The price of USB 3.0 cable is a little more expensive than 2.0 version. - USB Type-C cable
Type-C is a new type of connector for USB cable. The feature of it is full duplex, which means you don’t need to worry about the direction when using it. The price of USB Type-C cable is near the USB 2.0 cable.
USB cables charging phones.
2. Video/Audio cables
We‘re using these cables to connect output devices and display or playing equipment.
- VGA cable
VGA is the video transmission standard released in 1987. It delivers analog signals, which is kind of out of fashion nowadays. - DVI cable
DVI is a second type of video transmission standard which delivers digital signals, but it can only transmit video signals. - HDMI cable
HDMI also delivers digital signals, and it can deliver video and audio signals simultaneously. - DP cable
DP cable has the best quality among the four cables above.
The price comparison of the first four cables: DP > HDMI > DVI > VGA. - DC 3.5 mm audio cable
Used to connect audio playing devices with 3.5 mm standard socket. - Type-c audio cable
Audio cables using USB type-c connector.
That concludes what we have to say about the basic types and usages of cables. What more do you want to know about cable? Feel free to let us know by leaving your comment below. Come on, we’re listening.
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