All the different ports on computers and their peripherals can make their connections confusing. Learn about different cable types, their uses, and where computer cable connectors fit in with this.
Reviewed by Peter Kendall, Technical Support Enginner (October 2024)
Have you been frustrated with the tangled mess of different types of cables needed to set up your computer? This guide will list various types of computer cables and connectors, outline their uses, and explain how to connect computer cables.
Computer cables are the wires and cords that carry the electricity and data signals for our high-tech lives. If you’ve used home computers, you’ve likely dealt with bundles of different cables (or maybe large, tangled ‘rat’s nests’ of them) that connect the computer to its necessary support devices and peripheral accessories like monitors, printers, keyboards, mice, and speakers. All these have different cabling needs, and RS can help equip you with the cables for them all.
Before computers and peripherals can send any audiovisual, data, or network signals, they need an electrical power supply. Computer power cables connect major devices like PCs, monitors, and printers to mains power. Smaller devices like keyboards and mice can get power from their USB cables, for example, but the largest power consumers need dedicated power cables.
Computer power cables have thick, durable sheaths with sturdy connections. This keeps their wires safe inside, preventing electrical and fire safety hazards. RS carries power cables with common connectors like IEC-C and CEE.
Data cables include any computer cable types meant for transferring digital signals between computers and computer peripheral devices. They carry the information signals of the internet and other digital communications.
Data cable lengths are made of the following computer leads types:
Computer AV Cables: RS carries a variety of high-quality computer cable types for sending audio-video signals. These include HDMI, DisplayPort, Aux, and more.
HDMI Cables: High-Definition Multimedia Interface cables are one of the most common computer monitor cable types. They contain multiple shielded twisted pairs of wires that transmit audio and video signals. They also have a simple, user-friendly connector and are highly compatible with home theatre equipment. There are standard, high-speed, premium high-speed, and ultra-high-speed HDMI types offering different performance tiers.
Ethernet Cables: These are ubiquitous network cables for connecting devices to the internet or local area networks (LANs). They come in various numerical categories (like Cat 5, Cat6a) based on their speed and bandwidth. Ethernet cables easily connect using a spring-loaded clip, which you then depress to remove the cable.
USB Cables: Perhaps the most well-known computer cable, Universal Serial Bus cables are highly standardised, easily connected, and handle charging, data transfer, and peripheral connection. They too have subtypes like Type-A, Type-B, Mini-USB, Micro-USB, and Type-C (the new, small, symmetric, and high-performing type).
Fibre Optic Cables: An essential technology for long-distance telecommunications, they feature long, protected strands of plastic or glass and continuously reflect light pulses along the cable’s length. They handle high speeds and bandwidth, are highly durable and data-secure, and have no problems with electromagnetic interference.
SATA Cables: Serial Advanced Technology Attachment cables are used within computers as bus connections to link storage devices (hard drives, solid state drives) to host bus adapters such as motherboards. They allow ‘hot plugging,’ which is connecting or removing devices to or from a running computer, which then recognises the device without restarting.
VGA Cables: Video Graphics Array cables transmit analogue (wave-based) video signals at 480p resolution. They feature 15 pins across 3 rows and connect using two small screws. VGA cables were common among computer monitor cable types long before HDMI’s dominance.
DVI Cables: A more advanced and digital version of VGA, Digital Visual Interface cables bridged the journey to HDMI. DVI cables have a mixture of analogue and digital pins, fasten with small screws, and can handle 1080p, but lack HDMI’s quick-connect and audio capabilities.
DisplayPort Cables: Similar to HDMI, DisplayPort cables are easily connected computer audiovisual cables. They are used mostly for computers rather than home theatre devices. DisplayPort connections are trapezoid-shaped, use 20 pins, and can feature a locking mechanism for secure connections.
Aux Cables: The classic ‘headphone jack,’ auxiliary cables feature a 3.5mm male stereo connection at both ends. They send analogue audio signals from a source (like a mobile phone, computer, or music player) to a system with speakers (like a home stereo, car, or headphones).
Parallel Cables: Similar in function to (and largely supplanted by) USB cables, parallel cables are high-speed data cables that connect computers to each other and peripherals. They are mostly used for older, legacy equipment, though they can also connect directly to motherboards, disk drives, and external circuit boards. They come in a variety of multi-pin connectors.
Thunderbolt Cables: These are versatile cables with the same small, symmetric profile as USB-C. They support data transfer, video signals, and power delivery, and even interconnect multiple computing devices in a daisy-chain. The arrowed lightning bolt symbol on connectors and ports indicates Thunderbolt capability.
KVM Cables: ‘Keyboard, Video, and Mouse’ cable bundles allow sending these three signals to multiple computers at once using a KVM switch. They reduce cable clutter and the confusion of what connects to what. The individual cable types vary.
Serial Cables: These transfer data between computers in a serial communication method (one bit at a time), usually using the 9-pin RS-232 protocol. Serial cables originated in the 1960s, but Ethernet and USB cables have mostly supplanted them.
SCSI Cables: Small Computer System Interface cables are another multi-pin computer-peripheral data transfer cable USBs have nudged out. These ones can have high pin counts (up to 50) and come in sturdy, braided versions for high-vibration industrial environments.
DIN Cables: DIN cables (DIN being a German acronym) have round, multi-pin connectors that ensure easy connection in the right orientation without pin damage. They were commonly used for a long time for mice and keyboards before USB’s rise.
Networking cables are data cables that specialise in enabling communication between computer users. They allow one computer user to connect to a larger network of computers and their users.
Ethernet cables, which use twisted pairs, are one of the most common examples since they are easy to connect, come in varieties to meet many users’ needs, and work on most network-connectible devices. RS also carries coaxial, twinaxial (dual coaxial), fibre optic, and dedicated telephone cables for network connections.
All of these different types of cables need to connect to something, though. Computer cable connectors are the ports and sockets (female connections) needed for connecting computer cables. They’re the parts used to create cable junctions when building computers (and printers, game consoles, and charging adapters).
Cable connectors also include the plugs (male connections) used in building computer cable assemblies themselves. The plug design ensures it only gets inserted in the proper orientation, which is especially important for plugs with protruding pins. The plug must also protect its contact points from damage when not connected.
Cable connector types differ by:
RS stocks many of the types of cable connectors computers use to transfer data:
USB Connectors: These make junctions for the ubiquitous USB cable types. Female USB connectors create ports in computers and other devices like printers. Mounting options include panel, surface, and through-hole, as well as cable-mount for USB extension cables. Male ports are used in USB cables themselves. RS carries USB connectors in A, B, Mini, Micro, and C-types.
D-Sub Connectors: D-subminiature (‘D-sub’) connectors are a type of electrical connection used for various computer cable types, such as VGA. They feature a D-shaped metal shield guarding a set of pin connections. RS carries various D-sub connectors: ones suited for printed circuit boards, for crimping several wires into one connector, and insulated, solderable, or pre-wired connectors.
Computing Connectors: RS also has connectors for various other computing connections, like Firewire and SCSI, and for connecting printed circuit board (PCB) edges and memory cards.
Network & Telecom Connectors: These computer connector types transmit data and telephone signals that connect devices worldwide. They include fibre-optic connectors and ones using RJ45, RJ111, RJ12, and MMJ connectors. Ethernet couplers also fall into these cable connector types.
RS carries USB, D-Sub & Computing Connectors to suit all your computing needs, along with many other different types of cables besides computer ones.
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