Before it was more difficult to distinguish the difference between different WiFi by numbers like 802.11ac. Now, it is much easier to distinguish the versions, since they will only have one digit. Do you know what Wi-Fi 6 is? Make no doubt that it is faster than the standard you know best, WiFi 5. It is the future of WiFi, and it aims to bring a better experience to users around the world. It is super fast, more efficient and allows the density that the industry requires today. Let’s analyze its pros and cons:
Advantage
It’s much faster: It has an official rating of 9.6 Gbps, a significant increase over the previous standard at 3.5 Gbps, but are we really going to notice a 3x increase in the connection speed of our devices? Probably not. With previous versions of Wi-Fi, bandwidth was shared, so the more devices on the network, the slower they went. The good news is that this will not happen with Wi-Fi 6 as it uses Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access ( OFDMA ) in order to make efficient use of the bandwidth allocated for each transmission. In OFDMA, all devices connected to a network use a single channel in different frequency bands for transmission, unlike previous standards where each device had its own channel for communication. This implementation ensures that bandwidth is not wasted with each transmission and improves efficiency up to four times. .
It will allow longer battery life : The new “activation time target” (TWT) feature means that our smartphone, laptop and other Wi-Fi enabled devices should also have a longer battery life. How does this energy saving work? Very easy: when the access point is “talking” to a device (mobile, for example), you can tell the device exactly when to suspend Wi-Fi and when to wake it up to receive the next transmission, which will save energy, since means that Wi-Fi can spend more time in sleep mode. And that is a good bit of drums. This is not only important for everyday devices like our laptops and mobiles but it will also make a difference as we see more Internet of Things (IoT) products in homes and businesses.
It’s more secure: A new enhanced security protocol called WPA3 was introduced in 2018, which is optional for older Wi-Fi networks but required for new ones. Thus, the introduction of Wi-Fi Alliance certifications enforces its use and provides an overall more secure arrangement such as better encryption and greater protection against computer intruders.
Disadvantages
Smartphones, laptops, and routers equipped with Wi-Fi 6 technology are expensive. Additionally, you need to have a Gigabit-class broadband connection to fully utilize Wi-Fi 6 technology.
Another drawback is the reach of the network. Wi-Fi 6 has a smaller range compared to the 5 GHz network, and signals will be interrupted more frequently if there is an obstruction between the router and the device.
Since when is it available?
Wi-Fi 6 certification began on September 16, 2019, and devices like Apple’s iPhone 11 support Wi-Fi 6.
Now there is also a “Wi-Fi 6E” that refers to all those computers compatible with this technology and that use a 6 GHz frequency band when they reach the market. It is a variant of Wifi focused on augmented reality.
The Wi-Fi 6e announcement was made in early January 2020 at CES Las Vegas, one of the world’s biggest tech events.
What do you need to use Wi-Fi 6?
Since WiFi 6 is backward compatible, you won’t have to replace your device, but there is something you will need. Using the correct cabling is essential if you want to enjoy all that this new standard has to offer. The cables are Category 6A cables that, among other things, have a lower probability of being damaged by the weather, so they better control the heat they generate.
Timeline of wireless standards
– Wi-Fi 1 802.11b, 1999
– Wi-Fi 2 802.11a, 1999
– Wi-Fi 3 802.11g, 2003
– Wi-Fi 4 802.11n, 2009
– Wi-Fi 5 802.11ac, circa 2014
– Wi-Fi 6 802.11ax, circa 2019
