Wi-Fi 6 is, for the time being, the most recent update of the technology that allows you to connect your devices to the Internet wirelessly. This standard received its approval in 2019 under the name 802.11ax. However, both its name and that of the previous generation (802.11ac) became, for reasons of practicality, Wi-Fi 5 and Wi-Fi 6. There is even talk of the future Wi-Fi 7.
Wi-Fi 6 is capable of providing a theoretical speed of 9.6 Gbps, which is an increase of more than 3.5 Gbps over Wi-Fi 5.
Pending the arrival of that technology in the future, both Wi-Fi 6-enabled routers and compatible receiving devices can currently provide higher data rates than Wi-Fi 5. However, this protocol is not necessarily better for that particular aspect alone.
In reality, the substantial improvement brought by Wi-Fi 6 has more to do with the fluidity and consistency of the connection in environments with a larger number of devices connected at the same time. However, in order to clear up these doubts, we will now explain other key aspects of Wi-Fi 6, such as its greater capacity, improved Wi-Fi security, lower power consumption, etc.
Main advantages of Wi-Fi 6
Wi-Fi 6 enables devices to communicate more efficiently and make better use of the radio frequency spectrum. This is made possible by unique features such as the following:
– MU-MIMO (Multi-User Multiple Input Multiple Output): the Wi-Fi access point can transmit and receive data simultaneously (and not sequentially) with multiple devices. As a result, waiting times are reduced and connection efficiency is improved.
– OFDMA (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access): helps to reduce interference and thus increase throughput through its ability to divide the radio channel into smaller subchannels. These subchannels can then be assigned to different devices and tailored to their data requirements.
– TWT (Target Wake Time): is a new feature that allows devices connected to the Wi-Fi network to set the time intervals during which they will remain active. It is a technology that optimizes energy consumption. Especially in smart home devices that remain inactive for a large part of the day.
– BSS Color: this technique allows data packets to be identified based on a color code, which indicates which Wi-Fi network they belong to. In this way, Wi-Fi 6 prevents connected devices from being confused with other nearby networks, which in turn results in noise reduction.
In conclusion, all the features listed above make connections with Wi-Fi 6 more stable and of better quality. In addition, this update makes the router capable of supporting up to four times more connected devices at the same time. It also reduces latency and delay, which is ideal for streaming content consumption and online gaming.
