Bell and Rogers offer incredibly fast internet for home use some speeds are up to 3 Gbps. At those speeds you need very good WiFi device of at least WiFi 5 (theoretical max of 3.5 Gbps) and you would be better using WiFi 6 (theoretical max of 9.6 Gbps) or better. That means your WiFi router needs to support WiFi 6 and your client/phone needs to be WiFi 6 or better. More likely at those speeds you want to be on your home computer with a 4k monitor using ethernet. Wired ethernet connection has a few advantages: offers fast reliable, low latency and consistent speeds and is more secure and is simple.
Your service provider access point/router will provide ethernet ports that you can connect to your computer. Most new computers or laptop ethernet have speeds up to 2.5 Gbps. Choosing the right ethernet cable is important. Ethernet cables also called RJ45 cables are rated for speed and distance/length:
- Cat 5 – speeds up to 100 Mbps
- Cat 5a – speeds up to 1 Gbps
- Cat 6 – Up to 10 Gbps at shorter distances (55 meters or 180 feet) and 1 Gbps at full length (100 meters or 328 feet)
- Cat 6a – “Augmented” Cat6, supporting 10 Gbps speeds up to 100 meters
- Cat 7 – Designed for data centers, supporting up to 40 Gbps at shorter distances.
- Cat 8 – The latest standard (2025), offering up to 40 Gbps speeds
If you want to achieve reliable speeds of 3 Gbps that your service provider gives you then I would recommend:
- Cat 6a: If you need consistent 3 Gbps speeds over short or longer distances and its ideal for future-proofing your network
You could also use Cat 8 cables but for home use that would be overkill. Cat 7 uses a proprietary GG45 connector, its backwards compatible with RJ45 but not all networking equipment work well with Cat 7. Bottom line, if you want to get the highest speed ethernet possible at home with the fewest problems choose ethernet (RJ45) Cat 6a or Cat 8 cables from a reputable supplier.
This tech article was written by:
Andrew Miles, Sr Systems Administrator
School of Computer Science, Carleton University