2.5 Gbps Ethernet going Mainstream? Realtek launching RTL8125 mobo chip
I've been evangelizing faster Ethernet for a year or so now. In the years to come, we will slowly transition to faster Ethernet as 1 Gbps is getting out of fashion. There's a move coming though, Realtek will be releasing three new 2.5 Gbps Base-T Ethernet controllers.
While Quantia already offers up-to 10 Gbit/s solutions, steps are always small in the world of mainstream technology. And yeah, 2.5 Gbps in theory roughly 325 MB/sec in PHYs that is going to make its way into motherboards. Basically, in the initial launch wave, you're going to notice the RTL8125, RTL8156, and RTL8226. The RTL8125 is the chip to get and will be embedded onto motherboards and is based on a PCI-Express 2.0 x1 host (has 5 Gbps bandwidth, not to confuse with the 2.5 Gbps link).
The RTL8156 is designed for USB dongles over USB 3.1 gen 1 (5 Gbps) and then the RTL8226 is a chip that will end up in routers and switches. We think you'll see the new 2.5Gbps implementations real soon, even on some new Z390 motherboards. The standard is obviously backward compatible at 1 Gbps / 100 / 10. For 2.5 Gbps to work, obviously your network infrastructure will need to be updated as well, that means your switches. Cabling will be fine though, even CAT5e can easily reach 5 Gbps.
If you like to have a taste of what super-fast ethernet brings to the table, might I steer you to these two reviews I made (here),(here)?
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Problems making it affordable, cable length, shielding, protocol.
LTT (Linus Tech Tips) covered a 100Gb/s connection (non-Ethernet), where devices could use other computer's resources more directly. Which isn't "current tech".
LTT itself is using 10Gb/s a lot, normal protocol.
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I agree, Though for most people 1GB is still more than enough with most service providers still not even hitting those speeds, for me 1Gbps is enough and it could be for some time due to lack of competition between the service providers.
2.5, could be a nice alternative if the price is right, but i do agree we should make the next minimum standard 5Gbps, though i have no idea how long it would even take for internet service providers to reach this point, in the UK over a best part of half a decade i think the highest (non-business, so consumer) rate has gone from 200Mbps to 300 Mbps, Even if speeds over the next year jump 5x it still wouldn't be anywhere near the limit
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Only in 2018 service providers in Portugal started to offer 1Gb/s.
Some are cost prohibitive, others are really affordable, but unfortunately not widely available.
I'm currently at 100D/10U and paying 27.99€. I'd kill to switch company and have 100D/100U for 29.9€, but the service ends about 500 meters from my house!
As a reference, 1000D/200U costs 40.9€ at the same company I can't subscribe to, not expensive at all!
2.5Gbps sounds like a joke, but it will be good to have for those with 1Gb internet.
As someone said before, next standard should be 5 or 10 Gbps.
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I know I'm a bit of an outlier here but uh... I don't really care about faster ethernet on mainstream boards, especially if it means keeping prices down. Could I take advantage of faster bandwidth? Sure, but whether I'm at work or at home, the speed isn't bad enough for me to really care. If I want all that extra speed, I'm willing to pay for a discrete NIC.
All that being said, any modern server or high-end workstation boards that come with anything slower than 4Gbps is a bit ridiculous, since they do actually warrant the need of all that bandwidth.
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2.5Gbps is very "meh". The jump from 100Mbit to 1Gbit was 10x increase. Should be looking at 5Gbps minimum as the next standard imo.