Ask Slashdot: Is It Time To Shrink the Ethernet Connector?

New submitter jimwelch writes: HDMI has shrunk to mini, then micro. USB has shrunk to mini, then micro. The wired Ethernet connector has not changed since 1988! On the Raspberry PI, it is the largest of the standardized connectors. Is it time to come up with a new version? What if, anything, would you like to see replace that suddenly clunky RJ-45 port? I rather like that (in theory) RJ-45 cables can't be easily dislodged, but at the same time dislike that its locking mechanism can be awfully fragile. And for that matter, I'm glad that on most of my computers so far there's been full-sized USB ports as well as full-size ethernet jacks.

Comments

In practice

[Lorens]

it has been replaced in consumer equipment by the (very small) WiFi connector

It already has been replaced by RJ.5 connectors

[Anonymous Coward]

Whoever wrote this article obviously didn't do any research first.

There is already a new standard for physical ethernet cabling, calling RJ.5 (that is, ar-jay-point-five): http://www.alliedtelesis.com/videos/RJpointfive

"Allied Telesis is one of the first networking vendors to embrace the new RJ point five Ethernet connectivity standard. Built to replace the RJ-45 standard copper Ethernet connector, the new RJ point five connectors are half the size, so you save valuable space and double your port density."

They're not popular in the marketplace because the cables are uncommon and therefore expensive, and similarly the physical jacks are uncommon and therefore expensive.

Re: Yes

[Hadlock]

Someone clearly has never come in contact with a business class laptop. Your complaints about laptops are so 2004. And giving your employees laptops means making them work from home for free! Only the most important employees at my last company were issued both desktops and laptops, everyone else just got a laptop and a docking station at work.
 
Business class laptops are easy to repair and for the most part upgrade hard drives, ram, and in most cases, even the display (higher res). Not to mention "drop it on the concrete out of your car" reliable. Dell, HP, Lenovo (formerly IBM) have been doing this for years and years and years.