Feature	Fiber Optic Cable	Copper Cable
Data Transmission	Uses light (optical signals)	Uses electrical signals
Bandwidth	Extremely high (up to 100 Gbps and beyond)	Limited, especially over longer distances
Distance	Long distances (up to 100 km for single-mode fiber)	Shorter distances (up to 100 meters for Ethernet)
Interference	Immune to electromagnetic interference (EMI)	Susceptible to EMI and radio frequency interference
Cost	Higher installation and equipment cost	Lower initial cost
Security	More secure, harder to tap	Easier to tap into without detection

What are they??!?

Copper cables are one of the most widely used media for data transmission in networking. They work by transmitting electrical signals that represent data between devices such as computers, routers, and switches.

Types

2 primary types

Twisted Pair Cable

Coaxial Cable

Twisted Pair Cable (Ethernet)

8 colored copper cables inside that are twisted to help reject electromagnetic interferences
4 color pairs
- Green, Blue, Orange, Brown
Commonly used with RJ45 connecters

2 types: UTP & STP

UTP

Widely used in local area networks (LANs) because it's cost-effective and flexible
UTP cables are categorized based on performance
with higher categories supporting faster speeds and longer distances

STP