Pitch and position count — first check for board fit
The 5499374-8: The row spacing is also 0.100", so the total footprint spans 17 pins per row across 0.100" centers. If your PCB layout expects a 34-way AMP-Latch receptacle, this header matches the hole pattern and the BOM position count exactly.
1 A per contact — where the current ceiling sits
Gold mating finish — cycle life for field-service gear
If this header lives in a panel that gets disconnected quarterly for maintenance, the gold layer alone covers decades of reconnect duty — tin would fret and rise in resistance well before that.
Latch lock and keying — vibration and mis-mate protection
Short eject hooks on the latch lock the header to the receptacle — the hooks pull the connector pair together and resist vibration-induced separation. The keying slot prevents a reversed or wrong-series plug from seating, which is a practical safeguard on a crowded harness board where multiple AMP-Latch headers sit side by side.