Cat 5 vs Cat 5e Cables

darkcloudi

Is there any way to tell the difference between Cat 5 and Cat 5e? I've read threads about number of twists, etc but is there an easier way without stripping the cable before I move in?

I wanted to install Cat 6 in my new home but Taylor Wimpey (TW) for some reason only install Cat 5, in particular the phone line.

After some discussions I managed to get TW to wire my some additional Cat 5 into my study. Now question I have is can you still get Cat 5 cables as I thought this was obsolete since 2001 ( I could be wrong on the year) and you can only find Cat 5e.

I went into the house and the cable said LAN cable, I am going to visit the premises again to look at the cable in more detail to see if it has more details, but was wondering if there was an easy way. I know it has 4 pairs (8 wires).

I asked TW this and they responded since my diagram that I sent stated CAT 5 that is what got installed, don't believe they have asked the electrician. I think this is going to be an expensive mistake, if it is Cat 5.

I am guessing once I move in I should be able to test it somehow, check if it transmits, 1 gigabit? If it maxes out at 100Mbps then I know its Cat 5.

unforeseen

You'll probably find that it is Cat 5e unless the electrician has been hoarding some cat 5.

Cat 5 being obsolete means that 5e has taken over the name Cat 5 to differentiate between it and Cat 6 & 7.

As for testing to find out. With such short runs in a house Cat 5 would still manage 1Gb quite happily. The speed limit is not a hard limit but more the guaranteed speed.