AmazonBasics RJ45 Cat-6 Ethernet Patch Internet Cable – 5 Feet (1.5 Meters)

This is a review of the AmazonBasics RJ45 CAT6 1Gbps Ethernet LAN Patch Cable

They’re well-built, look quite sturdy, and perform well. My only reservation is that the actual RJ45 transparent connector is partially covered in a rubbery shroud – as, indeed, are many types of Ethernet cable from other manufacturers. I bought four of these, all of which were to be plugged into my Virgin Media SuperHub 3 broadband router. Maybe the problem arises because the Ethernet ports on the router are a bit too close together, but what I found is that the (fairly thick) rubbery shroud makes it a tight fit to get the cables to plug into adjacent ports – to the extent that it was difficult to get the connector to lock into place. I’d prefer to use a cable that wasn’t such a tight fit.

My internet speed package is 600mbps down and 30mbps up. When I run a speed test on the Xbox One with my current old CAT5 cable, I consistently get 300mbps down and 20mbps up. I replaced the old CAT5 with the new CAT6 and there was absolutely no difference. The cable has no marking or writing stating what the cable actually is. The cables are thinner than my existing CAT5 cables. That right there makes me doubt that these are actually cat cables. I have never seen an Ethernet cable without marking. Because these supposedly CAT cables were so inexpensive, I will keep them as backups but I ended up reconnected my CAT5 cables. I also ran the same test on my desktop PC and there was no difference in speeds. I would suggest that if a consumer was looking for real CAT6 cables, look elsewhere.

This cable is of just what I was looking for. As it is always the case with AmazonBasics, it arrived in a simple box, which is great to reduce waste. Out of the box, the product seems to be very well made. I needed to move my router and could not find a more convenient choice. One thing to keep in mind with ethernet cables when plugging/unplugging is to handle the little plastic tabs with care. Don’t rush. Just squish gently and push out. When I think about AmazonBasics, I think about peace of mind. Buy with confidence.

As some reviewers have pointed out, the Title of the item says Cat6 but if you look at the description it only says “Transmits data at speeds up to 1,000 Mbps (or to 1 Gigabit per second)”. Further, other reviewers have pointed out that the connectors are not Cat6 connectors, but Cat5e connectors. After doing further research let me see if I can dispel some of these inaccuracies made by these other reviewers.

First, Cat6 cables are really only CERTIFIED at 1 gig (1,000 Mbps), but are able to support up to 10 gig (10,000 Mbps) at lengths 37 meters or less. Cat5e cables are really only CERTIFIED at 100 mbps, but can support up to 1 gig. Notice the use of the word “CERTIFIED” – I think this is where the confusion is regarding cable ratings. I believe this is what the manufacturer ACTUALLY means from their description stated above – that the cable is CERTIFIED at 1 gig, not that its maximum rating is 1 gig. Think of CERTIFIED as “guaranteed”. The official spec for Cat5e and Cat6 GUARANTEE 100 Mbps and 1000 Mbps, respectively, but can support more (it’s just not guaranteed).

Secondly, the connectors on this cable are not actual Cat6 connectors (see the pictures by other reviewers), but Cat5e connectors. However, the official spec says that the different Cat6 connector is only a RECOMMENDATION, not an actual requirement for a Cat6 cable. Simply put, Cat6 cables have the option to go with Cat6 connectors or can use the Cat5e connectors as long as the cable maintains the rating of a Cat6 cable. So just because it doesn’t have the official Cat6 connector, doesn’t mean it’s not a Cat6 cable. Making a determination by looking at the connectors is not a sure fire way to tell if a cable is Cat6. Reviewers stating it is NOT a Cat6 cable based on the connectors are incorrect. The only way to truly tell if you are getting a Cat6 cable or not is to test with a network tester – something regular home owners don’t have and aren’t willing to drop another $75 to $300 dollars for. Cable manufacturers are basically on the honor system when it comes to their cables. If you want to feel warm and fuzzy about your cables, then buy from a known and trusted cable provider. Monoprice comes to mind but there are many others.

Thirdly, these cables are thin and while there is no AWG (American Wire Gauge) printed on the cables themselves or listed in the description, I believe these to be 28 AWG. I have numerous 24 AWG at my house and these Amazon Basics cables are clearly thinner. The higher the AWG, the thinner (or, smaller diameter) the wire. So a 24 AWG will feel “thicker” than a 28 AWG. Also, 28 AWG is a ratified spec for a network cable and was designed mostly to conserve space and increase airflow in IT rooms with crowded network racks and cable runs used by businesses with tens, hundreds or thousands of devices that need a wired connection. The regular homeowner doesn’t even come close to this. However, 28 AWG has more signal resistance (the longer the wire) because it’s thinner so it’s recommended to keep 28 AWG wires at a length of 15 meters (roughly 50 feet) or less. Again, most homeowners probably don’t have this issue and shouldn’t worry about it.

So, with all that being said above I ultimately returned these cables and here’s why: I don’t like it when I don’t have that warm fuzzy about something I buy. I THINK these are Cat6 28 AWG network cables but I’m not absolutely sure. If the manufacture had listed more DETAILED specs and had a more clear description then maybe I would have kept these. Also, almost all of the network cables I buy have the the AWG listed on the cable itself along with the Cat type and some other details. These cables only have “Cat 6 Cable” listed on it. That’s it. Nothing else. So if I’m trying to determine the gauge of a wire I need to know the differences between the types of AWG – something most regular people don’t know and which I had to do to write this review. I’m a stickler for accuracy and being CLEAR about communicating your product. I should have read the other reviewers BEFORE I pulled the trigger on these. Instead, I got wowed by the price and didn’t due my due diligence.

Will these work for you? Absolutely. Before I sent these back they were working for me. Most homeowners won’t even need to worry about going over 1 gig speeds so whether this is a Cat6 cable or actually a Cat5e, most won’t even know the difference. But I’m OCD about this stuff so don’t let my review necessarily dissuade you from buying these. Use it as guide to become better informed and to be able to discern between reviews that are accurate and reviews that are CLEARLY misinformed because they don’t have all the information about cabling specs and are just shooting from the hip.

Nice quality and good price- you can swap cat6 for cat5e without changing anything other than the cable itself. Used this to connect incoming internet network connection to a laptop docking station. Cable is sturdy and well made and much cheaper on amazon than buying from most box stores.

It’s a Cat6 cable, and it works. How exciting is that? As long as the cable has well-connected terminations, and isn’t easily subject to kinking (which breaks the internal traces), then the only other requirement is bandwidth. I bought 10 of these longer cables to wire a new office backbone switch setup, and they worked fine in a gigabit Ethernet setup. Each cable comes in its own box (a bit of a waste of packaging, but it is recyclable) and the terminators are well made, and I had zero issue with any of the cables. The cables met the gigabit Ethernet speed requirements without issue.

Cheap Chinese cable. Replacing the Amazon basics cables with actual cat6 cables fixed our network issues.

Had a few in as patch cables while testing our POE gear before running the permanent lines through the walls (aka test before install). Could not get expected speeds, all of the Amazon cables failed testing.