Common Cable Types Defined

Cables are a common site in modern homes and workplaces. It’s not unusual to see FireWire cables, USB cables, coaxial cables, HDMI cables, stereo RCA cables, VGA cables and so forth, connected to computers, printers, HDTVs, home-theater systems and more. Our goal is to help define the origin and use for some of these cable types, along with what their future holds and some discussion of new technologies that are emerging today.

FireWire: Apple originally developed this technology and released FireWire 400 in the late 1990s and early 2000s on its high-end PowerMac and PowerBook computers. Apple later added FireWire to the rest of its product line.

FireWire reaches constant data-transfer speeds of 400Mbps (Megabits per second), while FireWire 800 reaches 800Mbps. It is commonly used with external FireWire hard drives, the original iPod (from the early 2000s) and tape-based digital-video and high-definition camcorders. Both professional and enthusiast video editors take advantage of FireWire hard drives for video storage.

USB: Perhaps one of the most common connectors and cables, USB rose to prominence in the late 1990s when it replaced many previously common computer connection ports for external devices such as printers, keyboards, the mouse and so forth. Today, USB 2.0 and the newer USB 3.0 have faster speeds, but this connectivity technology does not have data-transfer speeds that are as consistent as FireWire, however. You'll find USB ports and cables on smartphones, iPhones, iPod touches, iPads, modems, gaming consoles, external hard drives, flash drives and more.

Coaxial: A cable and connector technology that’s been around for nearly a century, coaxial cables were first used in the 1930s to send messages to far-away places. Coaxial cable later became common as a way to transmit television signals (such as cable, satellite and so forth). Today, coaxial is still used for TV transmissions, high-speed internet and even telephone landlines.

HDMI: HDMI is the gold standard for connecting HDTVs, Blu-ray players, gaming devices and more. It’s excellent for transmitting high-definition video and audio signals, giving the best possible picture and sound that is far better than the old DVI format that was once commonly used with HDTVs.

Ethernet: Another common cable and connector, Ethernet is used with high-speed internet modems, wireless routers, networking computers in an office setting and more. The technology has been around for many years, since the 1970s, but wasn’t implemented until the 1980s. As the technology evolved, it became able to reach incredibly fast data-transfer speeds up to 100Gbps (Gigabits per second).

Subwoofer: This is a great cable for one of the most important components in a home-theater setup, the subwoofer. While an RCA cable works just fine, a subwoofer cable uses copper connectors to deliver a better bass signal from the receiver to the speaker. The cable is also properly insulated to protect it from interference.

VGA: Video Graphics Array (VGA) is an old technology that nearly dates back to the rise of the popularity of personal computers in the 1980s. VGA is capable of transmitting video and graphics to a computer monitor, and to an HDTV. Imagine working on your computer and viewing it on a 46-inch screen! However, VGA ports are starting to disappear from computers. VGA is being replaced with modern options such as DisplayPort and the next generation, Thunderbolt.

ESATA: This technology (short for External Serial Advanced Technology Attachment) rose to prominence in the mid-2000s. Today, eSATA is used on external hard drives, alongside USB and FireWire ports. Speeds vary, but it can reach up to 6Gbps (Gigabits per second); however, eSATA cables can only be six feet long at most or the signal throughput will be negatively affected.

MIDI: MIDI is an acronym for Musical Instrument Digital Interface. MIDI effectively transmits information about musical notes – including their tone, volume, pitch, duration and so forth – between musical instruments and synthesizers, processors, computers, capture cards and more. This technology has been around since the early 1980s, and countless musicians and engineers in the recording industry use it in every aspect of sound production, recording and live performance.

Thunderbolt: Intel developed this new technology and cable under the name Light Peak. It was first released by Apple on its MacBook Pros in early 2011, and was later included on the rest of the devices in its computer product line. By combining two technologies, DisplayPort and PCI-E, one port can power a monitor and a Thunderbolt device such as an external hard drive, a RAID storage drive, video-capture cards, boxes for video editing and more. Thunderbolt hits a constant speed of 10Gbps, making it one of the fastest connection devices. Sony has also begun releasing new computers with the technology.

Summary

There are many cable and connector technologies available for consumers and professionals. When you have a variety of them connected to your computer or home-theater setup, it can become an organizational nightmare. We recommend wrapping up the cables you use to keep your workspace and home theater tidy, and to use adhesive labels to mark which ones are which.

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