The latest generation of SPE offers Ethernet data transport rates of 10 Mbps, full duplex. This may not seem like much considering CAT6A can run at speeds up to 10 Gbps full duplex. Yet, in many situations, a 10 Mbps max is more than enough throughput required. Additionally, the 802.3cg Ethernet specification uses the 802.3bu standard for power transport. This is also known as power over data line — or PoDL. The PoDL standard can power compatible devices belonging to 1 of 10 different power classes that range from 0.5 to 50 W of power to the end device. In many cases, 50 W of power is more than any single device would need.
SPE also has a second benefit that will be crucial for some enterprise deployment situations. Instead of a 100-meter distance limitation for both data and power over Ethernet (PoE) that’s common in 4-pair Ethernet standards, SPE supports cable lengths for data and PoDL up to 1 KM in length.