I don’t know about the network wiring in your office or home, but it is often necessary to connect devices that are close to each other. You might be connecting a wireless router to a cable modem or even a computer or printer to the router. In these situations, a long cable isn’t necessary and you certainly don’t want a longer cable than you need.

It is these situations where having short patch cables available comes in very handy. Typically these short cables are sold in bulk because even getting eight of them can be inexpensive. At right is a bundle where each of the eight included 3-foot cables is a different color and the whole pack sells for less than $11 at Amazon. While you may only need one or two of them now, keep the others on hand and you’ll be prepared the next time you need one.