Everything You Need to Know about Wi-Fi 6E
Believe it or not, the FCC has opened up the 6 GHz Wi-Fi band for everyone. This is great news for both wireless equipment manufacturers and users, because the products that are built using the new frequency band will boost speed and reduce latency in comparison with the old 5 GHz and (especially) 2.4 GHz bands.
While some of us don't need lightning-fast Internet connections, many people will benefit from improved web access to virtual and augmented reality services, will be able to play demanding online games, stream videos at better quality, use 4K videoconferencing systems for business, etc.
Additionally, each Wi-Fi channel in the new band can have a width of 160 MHz, which is up to 800% wider in comparison with the 2.4 GHz channels that continue to be used by most of us - myself included. We keep using the old wireless band because the data travels much further when it is carried by a lower frequency radio signal. Unfortunately, we've only gotten 11 channels at our disposal in the 2.4 GHz band, so interference is guaranteed to happen. Not necessarily because everyone is using the same channel (though that's also important) but because most channels overlap.
With Wi-Fi 6E, the available wireless channels are much wider, and this means that more data can be transferred at once, while reducing signal interference. As always, using higher frequencies may lead to shorter signal ranges. I said "may", because Wi-Fi 6 has implemented several efficient mechanisms that will help reduce signal loss.
Wi-Fi Alliance has released a report which highlights the key benefits that arise from using Wi-Fi 6E. Briefly, the new standard will ensure that the Wi-Fi 6 benefits are carried over to the 6 GHz band as well. The bandwidth that's been made available to us will allow the accommodation of up to 14 new wireless channels, reducing network congestion, while security will be ensured by the same impenetrable (at least for now) WPA3 system.
You will need a Wi-Fi 6E router to benefit from the increased speed and reduced latency; while Wi-Fi 6 routers have been manufactured for quite some time now, only the new Wi-Fi 6E routers will be able to utilize the 6 GHz band. Do not worry, though; even if you "only" have a Wi-Fi 6 router, you can still benefit from these important features:
- MU-MIMO, which allows routers to work with a larger number of network clients at the same time and increases data transfer speeds. You can expect speeds of up to 10 Gbps for devices that are close enough to the router. This speed boost, coupled with the reduced latency, has already made Wi-Fi 6 a viable alternative to Ethernet connections.
- 160 MHz channels, which have doubled bandwidth in comparison with the previous Wi-Fi 5 standard.
- Target Wake Time (TWT) that improves battery life. This feature will benefit companies which make use of IoT devices that need to last for months on a single battery.
- 1024 Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (1024-QAM) helps send more data per channel by compressing it efficiently. QAM makes use of two sinusoidal waves which are shifted in phase by 90 degrees and then modulated, creating a radio wave that varies in phase and amplitude. The mechanism is used to encode the data, sending the resulting packets over the wireless network.
- Transmit Beamforming increases network capacity by sending targeted wireless signals to the network clients that need them, thus increasing speed and reliability, rather than spreading the signal in all directions.
- Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA) shares channels, increasing network efficiency in high-demand environments. This feature will be of major help for businesses and individuals who need to connect lots of clients to their Wi-Fi networks.
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