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What is a wireless network?
Generally speaking, Wi-Fi refers to wireless LAN technology that utilizes the IEEE 802.11 standard for communication. Wi-Fi products use radio waves to transmit data from client devices to access points, including routers, which complete the connection to other devices on the LAN, WAN, or the Internet.
Initially the technology used the 2.4 GHz frequency, but it has since expanded to the 5 GHz, 60 GHz, and soon 6 GHz bands. (A competing standard called HomeRF also supported wireless connectivity, but vendors and customers ultimately chose Wi-Fi and the 802.11 protocol as the wireless standard.)
802.11 Obfuscation
A big reason the term Wi-Fi caught on is that it was simpler than trying to keep up with the "alphabet soup" created by each subsequent technology standard name as it evolved. Oddly enough, 802.11b was developed before 802.11a, which then evolved into 802.11g, 802.11n, etc. Instead of having users remember which letter they used on a specific device to see if it would connect, people started calling the entire technology Wi-Fi.
Recently, in order to add specificity to the term Wi-Fi, the naming convention has appended a number. So, for example, technology compliant with 802.11ax is called Wi-Fi 6.
Wi-Fi is different from other wireless technologies, including Bluetooth and wide-area cellular networks used by wireless service providers that use terms such as 3G, 4G, 5G, etc. In basic terms, Bluetooth is used for short-range wireless connections (for example, from a smartphone to a speaker or headset), Wi-Fi is used for LAN connections, such as in a home or office environment, and long-range connections use 4G and 5G. While some of these technologies can overlap with each other, distance comparisons are generally accepted as a rule of thumb.
Protect your Wi-Fi connection
As Wi-Fi has grown in popularity, so have the abilities of hackers and other bad actors to exploit it. Initially, most Wi-Fi networks were open, and data was transmitted unsecured over the air. This created problems for companies concerned that employees connecting from a public coffee shop could leak data to anyone else using a Wi-Fi receiver in the room. The Wi-Fi Alliance addressed the problem by adding different security protocols to the standard, including the latest, WPA3. Users who connect to secure access points through properly configured WPA and VPN connections are now generally immune to some of the open network issues of the technology's early days.
Beyond Computers and Routers
Another reason for the technology’s success is the exponential growth in the number of devices that can be installed with Wi-Fi, including home appliances, TVs, video game consoles, smart watches, etc. The growth of the Internet of Things (IoT) can be traced back to the low cost, strong performance and reliability of Wi-Fi products.
Why Wi-Fi Still Matters
Now, more than 20 years later, Wi-Fi isn’t going anywhere. In addition to supporting shorter-range connections (such as 60 GHz products for technologies like virtual reality), the Wi-Fi Alliance is working to certify interoperability for Wi-Fi 6 products that operate on the recently opened 6 GHz band. Certification for Wi-Fi 6E (the brand name for Wi-Fi 6 devices that support 6 GHz) will be available in early 2021, although as with previous versions, vendors’ products may be available sooner and then receive firmware upgrades to match the official standard.
6 GHz technology is expected to bring more than six times the combined capacity of the 2.4 and 5 GHz frequencies, as well as seven contiguous 160 MHz channels, reducing interference from traditional Wi-Fi devices and delivering multi-gigabit Wi-Fi speeds. Because 6 GHz is unlicensed spectrum, there are concerns that cellular service providers will use the spectrum for their own cellphone networks (for example, to enhance existing 5G services).
In addition to additional spectrum, Wi-Fi upgrades will focus on increased connection speeds, reduced congestion, interoperability, and new devices that can provide network connectivity for local networks or the Internet. New initiatives and concepts such as ambient computing or Wi-Fi Aware based on proximity discovery will push the technology in other directions. With more than 50,000 different types of products capable of supporting Wi-Fi, the technology is here to stay.
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