RESOURCES
Buying guides & technical knowledge
Written for procurement managers, system integrators, and data-center buyers — the questions our sales team gets asked, answered in long form.
Buying GuideCAT5E vs CAT6 vs CAT6A vs CAT8: Picking the Right Network Patch Cord
Bandwidth, shielding, reach, and PoE behavior compared across four Ethernet patch cord categories — and when each one is the right call.
July 20, 2026
Technical KnowledgeMTP/MPO Polarity, Fiber Count, and Breakout Topology Explained
Type A, B, C polarities. 8/12/24-fiber MTPs. Trunk vs breakout. A field guide that prevents the most expensive cabling mistakes in 40 G/100 G/400 G parallel-optic deployments.
July 20, 2026
Technical KnowledgeCWDM vs DWDM: Channel Spacing, Reach, and Where Each Wins
The same fiber can carry one signal or eighty. The choice between Coarse and Dense WDM rides on three numbers: channel count, channel spacing, and amplifier tolerance.
July 20, 2026
Buying GuideDAC vs AOC: Picking the Right Short-Reach Cable for Your Rack
Passive copper DAC is cheaper and lower-latency, but maxes out at ~5 m. AOC pushes the same form factors to 100 m with integrated optics. Here is how to choose.
July 20, 2026
Product Guide10G to 800G: Choosing SFP+, SFP28, QSFP56, QSFP-DD, OSFP Transceivers
A practical decision tree for switch-side transceiver selection. Match lane count, modulation, and form factor to your reach and power budget.
July 20, 2026
Buying GuidePLC Splitter Buying Guide: Specs, Packaging, and Use Cases
How to choose between mini, ABS-box, LGX, and rack-mount PLC splitter packaging for FTTx, PON, and lab applications — split ratio, insertion loss, return loss, and connector polish considerations.
July 20, 2026
Technical KnowledgeWhat is a PLC Splitter? Beginner's Primer
Two-minute introduction to Planar Lightwave Circuit splitters — what they do, why fiber networks need them, and the three numbers that define one.
July 20, 2026