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Even if Wi-Fi has its origins in the 1970s, its real foundation dates back to 1997 with the establishment of standard 802.1 by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers. Its name was then coined in 1999 by a marketing agency. Needless to say, this connection protocol has since become ubiquitous and has undergone numerous metamorphoses. Here is the seventh version of Wi-Fi (802.11be standard) which is about to appear. What developments should we expect?
Major characteristics of Wi-Fi 7
First, it will be faster than 6E even if it will use the same 6GHz band, a spectrum unlocked since 2020. It will be able to However, it will still operate on the 2.4 and 5GHz bands, but it will have the advantage of offering increased bandwidth. The result: increased download speeds, a more stable connection and better congestion management thanks to improved signal modulation.
If we had to name the main marketing showcase of Wi-Fi 7, it would be the broadcast of video in 8K resolution. An already very unusual display technology, which even routers equipped with Wi-Fi 6 or 6E could handle without too much trouble.
The big advantage of Wi-Fi 7 lies in its < strong>raw speed. If the data provided by Intel is to be believed, a laptop could theoretically achieve a rather impressive threshold of around 5.8 Gps.
Technical improvements: beyond the speed
If the connection speed increases, it means that the bandwidth width does too, as explained previously. Thus Wi-Fi 7 will offer double that of its predecessor, with 320 MHz.
A new feature is appearing, Multi-Link Operation (MLO)< /strong>. It allows you to combine several bandwidths into a single connection, in order to increase its speed and stability. MU-MIMO (Multi-User, Multiple Input, Multiple Output) spatial streams will also be doubled, which will allow the router to communicate with several devices more efficiently.
In terms of connection latency, this will be reduced using a technique called OFDMA. It was already present on 6E but could be disrupted by interference. This will no longer be the case with Wi-Fi 7.
So Wi-Fi 7, a major development ? Difficult to be so affirmative, although this one brings its share of innovations. It will certainly not change the use of this connection protocol with this new version. It will certainly be faster and more stable, but we must not forget that few devices currently support this new standard. The initial prices will certainly be quite high, and the wisest thing would be to wait quietly for this new version to settle into the digital landscape before rushing for it.
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