ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES
Attributes | Copper Wire | Fiber Optic Wire | Details |
COST: | - | + | Less expensive - Several miles of optical cable can be made cheaper than equivalent lengths of copper wire. This saves your provider (cable TV, Internet) and you money. |
SIZE: | - | + | Thinner - Optical fibers can be drawn to smaller diameters than copper wire. |
BANDWIDTH: | - | + | Higher carrying capacity - Because optical fibers are thinner than copper wires, more fibers can be bundled into a given-diameter cable than copper wires. This allows more phone lines to go over the same cable or more channels to come through the cable into your cable TV box. |
ACCURACY: | - | + | Less signal degradation - The loss of signal in optical fiber is less than in copper wire. |
EASE OF USE: | - | + | Lightweight - An optical cable weighs less than a comparable copper wire cable. Fiber-optic cables take up less space in the ground. |
EFFICIENCY: | - | + | Low power - Because signals in optical fibers degrade less, lower-power transmitters can be used instead of the high-voltage electrical transmitters needed for copper wires. Again, this saves your provider and you money. |
DIGITAL: | - | + | Digital signals - Optical fibers are ideally suited for carrying digital information, which is especially useful in computer networks. |
SAFETY: | - | + | Non-flammable - Because no electricity is passed through optical fibers, there is no fire hazard. |