Wi-Fi 6 is the latest in wireless technologies announced by the Wi-Fi Alliance. Wi-Fi 6 wireless is the next generation of Wi-Fi that continues to build on the previous Wi-Fi technologies (802.11ac). Many devices today are Wi-Fi 6 enabled and able to take full advantage of the capabilities afforded by Wi-Fi 6 networks.
What can you expect from the latest in Wi-Fi 6 standards?
The latest Wi-Fi 6 standards offer connectivity improvements for enabled devices, while also keeping backwards compatibility for older devices. Wi-Fi 6 works better in high-density environments, with many devices using the Wi-Fi network. Wi-Fi 6 offers increased device capacity so more devices can connect to the same network, while improving battery life of compatible devices. Wi-Fi 6 also boasts the highest data transfer rates amongst all its predecessors.
Intel reports that Wi-Fi 6 technologies are capable of a theoretical max throughput being as high as 9.6 Gbps across multiple channels; Wi-Fi 5 was capable of up to 3.5 Gbps. However, it should be noted these speeds are theoretical and are highly unlikely to be achieved in most environments. The data still shows a clear performance improvement of Wi-Fi 6 networks over Wi-Fi 5 counterparts.
Wi-Fi 6’s higher speed is due to incorporated technologies like OFDMA (orthogonal frequency division multiple access) and MU-MIMI beamforming, which enables higher data rates at a given range to increase network capacity. Wi-Fi 6 networks also take advantage of QAM (quadrature amplitude modulation) which increases throughput for bandwidth intensive uses by encoding more data in the same spectrum.
To find devices that are Wi-Fi 6 enabled, you can simply look for the Wi-Fi 6 label, or the 802.11 ax designation. This naming convention was implemented to make finding Wi-Fi 6 capable devices easier and distinguishes them from previous Wi-Fi enabled device standards.
What Makes Wi-Fi 6 Faster Than Previous Wi-Fi Standards?
Most businesses today experience a significantly increased amount of traffic over Wi-Fi. From smartphones to the Internet of things (IoT) devices like thermostats, or doorbells, almost every electronic device that is considered “Smart” can connect wirelessly. Wi-Fi 6 networks utilize a variety of technologies that make routing traffic more efficient and much faster.
OFMA - Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access works by subdividing channels into subcarriers and allowing for transmission to occur over multiple devices at the same time. This way, Wi-Fi 6 routers can send different signals in the same transmission window. This results in a single transmission from the router being able to communicate with multiple devices, as opposed to each device having to wait its turn as the router serves the data across the network.
OBSS – Overlapping Basic Services Sets is another Wi-Fi 6 feature that helps improve network congestion. OBSS enables access points to assigned unique identifiers to identify the network. Traffic detected on the channel that does not carry this unique identity allow devices on the network to ignore this traffic and continue transmission; this helps with improved reliability and latency.
Beamforming – Beamforming is another technology that Wi-Fi 6 improves on in order to achieve greater speeds. This technology enables routers and access points to detect where devices requesting data are located and transmits a more direct stream in that direction. Although beamforming is not new to Wi-Fi 6, it is improved in Wi-Fi 6 enabled network devices.
If you’re in an office that utilizes Wi-Fi for accessing data, proving guest internet accessing, streaming video, or even for less demanding needs, like checking email, we recommend you use Wi-Fi 6 for your wireless network hardware. If your interested in learning more about how a Managed IT Services company like Natural Networks can help improve your Wi-Fi capabilities, give us a call today!
