Where is Wi-Fi going?

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Where is Wi-Fi going? [Copy link]

Over the past decade, many people have upgraded to 802.11ac routers, yielding actual data rates of hundreds of Mbps per second, which is far higher than the data rates of many consumer Internet services.

But Wi-Fi is for more than just accessing external networks. If you use Wi-Fi to back up your computer to a local storage server or stream videos from a local device like a smartphone directly to a Smart TV (using Wi-Fi Direct), the increased data rates allow you to increase the number of internal network connections within a single wireless LAN.

For example, if multiple computers are using Wi-Fi for local backups, faster data rates can allow those backups to continue without interrupting other applications.

Please upgrade to Wi-Fi 6

Today, for most people considering new networking equipment, the next generation of Wi-Fi means IEEE 802.11ax, with certified devices bearing the Wi-Fi 6 logo. Although relatively few laptops have Wi-Fi 6 in stock configurations, compatible routers have been widely available since 2019. As usual, advertisers may make the most optimistic claims, with theoretical throughput approaching 10Gbps. But actual data rates for a single Wi-Fi 6 user are closer to 1Gbps.

The latest Wi-Fi equipment also significantly improves the user experience - not only in terms of data rates, but also in terms of the number of connected users and devices and reduced latency. The Wireless Broadband Alliance claims that its member companies have demonstrated that latency can reach two milliseconds in the environment of WiFi 6. This also gives gamers more expectations for WiFi 6.

Network administrators and small offices are used to upgrading Wi-Fi technology over a few years as users get new hardware. It looks like it will take a few years for Wi-Fi 6 to really become ubiquitous. Until then, the market seems a bit slow in the early stages of a new standard.

Cisco projects that by 2023, about 27% of wireless LAN endpoints will be compatible with Wi-Fi 6. Even so, any network administrator hoping to serve a large number of new high-end smartphones from a single access point has reason to plan to upgrade access points and hotspots now.

Is this the first year for the popularization of Wi-Fi 6E?

Before you start using Wi-Fi 6, you might want to take a look at the next phase of the arrangement - Wi-Fi 6E. UK regulators have decided to allow unlicensed use of around 500MHz of spectrum, commonly known as the 6GHz band. The decision almost doubles the amount of spectrum available for Wi-Fi in the UK.

U.S. regulators have gone further, opening up a huge band of spectrum, including the entire span from 6GHz to 7GHz, with some frequencies available only with the help of real-time online mapping and channel coordination services. The result could nearly triple the amount of spectrum available to U.S. Wi-Fi users.

The Wi-Fi Alliance said it will use the Wi-Fi 6E logo to certify devices compatible with the 6GHz band starting in early 2021. Wi-Fi 6E is expected to solve the current congestion problem that Wi-Fi encounters in some areas. This has caused trouble for users during the Covid-19 pandemic.

For years, network managers have faced the challenge of serving many users in close proximity in transportation hubs, sports stadiums, and large indoor spaces. If business and social conditions improve, the task of managing peak demand for Wi-Fi at transportation hubs during peak hours will become a problem again, just as it has in the past.

New Options for Wi-Fi 7

Since 2019, the IEEE's 802.11be task group has been working on the future Wi-Fi 7 standard, which will likely handle 40Gbps of aggregate traffic per router, about four times the throughput of Wi-Fi 6. 802.11be's developers have proposed a fairly aggressive timeline and a series of staggered improvements expected between 2021 and early 2024. By then, the Wi-Fi Alliance will likely establish a Wi-Fi 7 certification program.

However, manufacturers can implement an early draft of IEEE 802.11be, which is set to be ratified in 2021, and whose key design aspects are somewhat clear. By doubling the maximum channel bandwidth (from 160MHz to 320MHz), allowing up to 16 antennas per router, and using improved modulation techniques, preliminary Wi-Fi 7 products may allow practical portable devices to receive and transmit speeds of around 3Gbps to 4Gbps.

Computer manufacturers seem to be struggling with whether to commit to Wi-Fi 6 now or wait for Wi-Fi 6E. A year from now, network managers and designers of connected products may be asking themselves whether to commit to Wi-Fi 6E or wait for early implementations of 802.11be. Two or three years from now, the question of whether to wait for a full Wi-Fi 7 standard may be on people's minds.

The future of Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi and mobile service developers appear to be on a collision course. They have similar motivations and desires to deliver two sets of advanced applications – wearable augmented reality (AR) and industrial-scale wireless networking. Both applications require low latency.

In the case of augmented reality, smart glasses need to react quickly to changes in head position and events in the environment, lest the user experience lags and symptoms similar to motion sickness. In the case of industrial networks, low latency is important because signals in one machine can control other machines with split-second timing.

In industry, wireless technology has the potential to reduce or eliminate complex wiring harnesses that are difficult to repair. Wireless technology can also simplify the process of adding, moving, or replacing equipment. However, industrial automation tends to rely heavily on wires for high reliability and very low signal latency.

With these requirements in mind, 5G developers and service providers have focused in recent years on serving industrial users. 5G elements known as ultra-reliable and low-latency communications (URLLC) and direct device-to-device (D2D) 5G connections could migrate from current emergency radio developments to industrial developments.

But some factors still favor Wi-Fi for industrial applications. Indoors, Wi-Fi is expected to continue to be an economical choice that takes advantage of economies of scale. Organizations do not need to sign up for additional cellular accounts, and they will always have the option of using managed and outsourced Wi-Fi services, but it is by no means a must.

In addition, developers of Internet of Things (IoT) applications seem likely to use emerging features of Wi-Fi to reduce power requirements, allowing battery-powered devices to operate for longer periods without maintenance. One aspect of Wi-Fi, called target wake time (TWT), enables client devices and routers to coordinate and schedule data transmissions, with client devices remaining in low-power mode until a specified time.

Even smartglasses applications seem likely to support Wi-Fi, at least in the short term. Given that recent smartglasses haven’t lived up to fantasies of future lifestyles, users will likely continue to see solutions that emphasize indoor use for a few hours at a time before developers can reduce the size, weight, and battery requirements enough for all-day outdoor use.

When it comes to the future of Wi-Fi, we have more possible choices.