The choice between angle-polished connectors (APCs) and ultra-polished connectors (UPCs) can make a significant impact on how a particular network will perform. There are several considerations to make, including the network design or purpose and the types of services that will be transported over the fiber. This paper will compare and contrast these two categories of connectors, highlighting their differences in terms of physical appearance, insertion loss and return loss characteristics, as well as their overall performance in particular applications | Choosing the right connector APC vs. UPC Choosing the right connector The choice between angle-polished connectors APCs and ultra-polished connectors UPCs can make a significant impact on how a particular network will perform. There are several considerations to make including the network design or purpose and the types of services that will be transported over the fiber. This paper will compare and contrast these two categories of connectors highlighting their differences in terms of physical appearance insertion loss and return loss characteristics as well as their overall performance in particular applications. Passive Optical Network PON infrastructures deployed in fiber-to-the-premises FTTP networks require numerous fiber connections to achieve the distribution of services to multiple homes. Although splicing has its place in these systems use of reliable angle-polished connectors APCs provides numerous advantages in terms of overall network flexibility testing and troubleshooting. For more detail regarding connector choice in PON video applications please see the white paper Connectors in FTTP Networks Which Connector Do I Use in My FTTP Network Literature 103178AE on . Historically UPCs have been the top performers particularly with regard to insertion loss. For that reason they are considered the legacy connector and have been deployed in many networks to typically handle digitally-transmitted information. However due to the improved manufacturing techniques being used today APC s are now on par with UPCs in terms of insertion loss. There are many other benefits provided through the use of APCs and each should be carefully considered during the network design process- particularly within the FTTX network architecture where numerous fiber connections are required to achieve the distribution of multiple services triple and quadruple play to multiple customers. Physical attributes The generally accepted color code for connector bodies and or boots .
