TRENDnet Launches Affordable 2.5G Switches

"Affordable" at $145, aka $29 per port.

Just for reference, gigabit switches are ~$15 for 5 ports and even cheaper for no-name brands (AliExpress)...
Double the speed, 10 times the price. AFFORDABLE.

Great, now even switches are scalped by the manufacturers.

 

Don't forget the additional cost for the internal switching speed required. I'd say the price is fair.

 

Yep, still a bit too expensive for most pockets, but at least it's something. Hopefully prices will continue to go down with time.
Some internet providers are starting to offer +1 Gbps for residential connections, but routers and switches that support 2.5 Gbps are still quite scarce and expensive.

 

MikroTik CRS305-1G-4S+IN goes for the same price and does 10GbE.
My maths says that the money will go directly to 10 GbE, no point in spending a dime on 2,5GbE.

 

Nice to know!
Edit: Didn't see that they are fiber, not copper.

 

Look for YouTube reviews, you'll be surprised.

 

@Hilbert Hagedoorn Indeed, but once one steps/wants to upgrade to 10GbE, that's a given. However, you are right- point taken, those SFP cables and connectors aren't exactly for free and sums up.
But in the long run, the cost is covered by the performance.

 

Cheapest 10GBASE-T switch that I could find in Amazon EU is the 5-port Netgear XS505M, which costs 290€ in Amazon Germany, 420 € in Amazon UK, and around 300-330 € in the rest of Amazon EU.
The 8-port one (XS508M) is around 100 € more than the 5-port one.

Whoever already has their house cabled with CAT6/6A still has to pay quite a premium price if they want a 10 Gbps switch.

For us mortals that have CAT5/5E, I couldn't find affordable 2.5GBASE-T switches, let alone 5GBASE-T ones, so yep, Hilbert, those just-launched Trendnet ones can be considered the most affordable MultiGig copper switches today!

 

@heffeque
Actually TP-Link has slightly cheaper ones.
https://www.tp-link.com/us/business-networking/unmanaged-switch/tl-sg105-m2/

And they do exist in Europe, for about 20% less than Trendnet.

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Still too much at 110-120 euro for 5 ports, 165 or so for 8 ports, unless this stuff goes down to 40 (5)/60 (8) $/E or less, it won't get mainstream adoption.

That was a massive increase in speed, just like today a move from 1g to 10g. I can understand it costing 5 to 10 times more...

But for 2.5gbit the speed is a just a bit more than double, but the price is 10 times...
It also doesn't have to be, the transceiver chips themselves are sold for under $1 per piece. Total BOM for one of these switches is under $10, but they sell them for over 100. Bit ridiculous profits, capitalizing on the "gaming" craze

 

I see that it's available in Amazon, yep, though not easy to find without searching for that specific model. Thanks for the heads up!

Personally I wish that 2.5Gbps was skipped altogether and the tech industry went directly to 5Gbps, seeing that CAT 5E supports both.
A shame...

 

Well, until they produce this product as a router, I do not find it as a useful device for my needs, at all. (I have 2 computers with a 2.5Gbps and a modem with a 2.5Gbps connection.) I also have a Gigabit internet connection that is provisioned for 1200Mbps,

 

Until some crazy ISP like starlink starts pushing multigig service en masse this wont get too far, its got "niche" written all over it, sad noises**

 

Not only that, good quality CAT5e can reach 5Gbit/s and even 10Gbit/s on very short distances. I'm talking about full copper wires, not those cheapo treaded crap. I would skip both 2,5GbE and 5GbE and go for 10. The latter can fall back to slower speeds just as well.

1GbE needs to move on. I was on 1Gbit since 2005. I still have those US Robotics 1Gbit PCI cards and they still work.

 

Except that 10Gbe does not support 5Gbe or 2.5Gbe and I have two machines and a cable modem with 2.5Gbe.

 

That sucks, but I'm sure I've seen 10GbE switches capable of handling both 2,5/5 as well. I guess that comes with a price as well (as in unaffordable).

 

Do you mean like Open Fiber and now also TIM that are starting to offer 10 Gbps in Italy?
https://www.totaltele.com/509173/Open-Fiber-launches-10-Gbps-service-with-TIM-hot-on-their-heels