The TE Connectivity 2301996-2 is a 2-port RJ45 jack — a right-angle, through-hole Ethernet connector designed for 10/100 Base-T applications with AutoMDIX support. It sits in the 2301996 base series, sharing the same 0.531" (13.49 mm) board height, brass shield, and LCP housing as its siblings. The key spec that sets this variant apart is the 4-core-per-jack wiring — meaning it's wired for 10/100 Base-T (two pairs per port), not the full 8-core gigabit layout of the 2301996-4.
Shielding and Board Retention — The Fit for Industrial Ethernet
That matters for any environment with motor drives, switching PSUs, or long cable runs where radiated noise couples into the Ethernet pair.
No Integrated Magnetics — Plan for External Isolation
This jack does not contain integrated magnetics. The 10/100 Base-T rating refers to the signal path wiring — the four cores per jack carry the transmit and receive differential pairs. The isolation transformer and common-mode choke must be placed elsewhere on the PCB, typically in a discrete magnetics module or a PHY with integrated magnetics. The 2301996-4 variant, by contrast, is rated for 10/100/1000 Base-T and uses all eight cores per jack, but still lacks integrated magnetics.