What is Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) and Why does it Faster?

Introduction

Wi-Fi 6 is the latest technology in wireless communication. Wi-Fi 6 is the next generation of Wi-Fi which makes the wireless internet faster than ever before. By using the wifi6 more devices are connected to the wireless network. Wi-Fi 6 provides more reliable connection because it has less congestion. The technology that uses behind the Wifi6 is Mu Mimo, this technology allows multiple users/devices to connect with a single device.

Differences between the different generations of Wi-Fi

WiFi 4

Wifi 4 is launched in 2009. It follows the (802.11n) IEEE standard. Wifi4 is working on the frequency range of 2.4/5GHz dual band. First time Mimo technology was introduced in the Wifi4. WiFi-4 devices have an indoor range of roughly 70 metres and an outdoor range of about 250 metres. Due to the use of MIMO technology, wifi4 supports data rates up to 72–600 Mbit/s.

WiFi 5

Wifi5 is launched in 2014. It follows the (802.11ac) IEEE standard. Wifi5 is working on the frequency range of 5 GHz. First time Mu Mimo technology was introduced in the Wifi5. 4×4 Mimo Antenna configuration used in the WiFi 5. WiFi 5 support both type of transmission multi-user transmission as well as single-user transmission. Due to the use of Mu MIMO technology WiFi 4 supports data rates up to 72–600 Mbit/s.

WiFi 6

Wifi6 is launched in 2019. It follows the (802.11ax) IEEE standard. Wifi6 is working on the frequency range of 2.4/5GHz and addition of 6GHz new band. WiFi 6 support all the previous technology that comes in the previous generation. In Wifi6 OFDMA based technology has been introduced in both directions in uplink as well as in downlink. Wifi6 supports data rates up to 600–9608 Mbit/s.

What is Wifi6?

WiFi 6 is the next generation of Wi-Fi. The performance of the wifi6 is better than wifi5. The average user might not immediately notice the difference between wifi5 and wifi6 because wifi6 is working same as wifi5. Wifi6 allows a faster connection speed and provides a more reliable connection due to Mu Mimo technology. As Wifi6 supports the higher bandwidth so it provides better download and upload speed. Today higher speed is required at every office, home etc. Higher data is required for online games, high-quality video and office meetings. Large amounts of bandwidth and a steady connection are needed to stream while playing a multiplayer game. Wifi6 can transfer data at a high speed by using different technologies. It encodes the data more efficiently. A large amount of network traffic is easily handled by the wifi6. Wifi6 is best for gamers because it supports higher bandwidth and provides fast upload and download speed. Wifi6 support both types of the signal wired signal as well as a wireless signal. Instead of utilizing the flexibility that wireless networking offers, many gamers or video creators still use Ethernet cables to connect directly to routers or network switches. Wifi6 addresses all these issues because it provides a higher speed and more reliable connection over the wireless signal.

How does Wifi6 Work Faster?

Today every home and office uses internet devices that enabled Wi-Fi. Wi-Fi 6 distributes traffic across devices more effectively and communicates better with several devices and sends data as per requirement. Wifi6 achieve higher internet speed by using the two technologies (Mu Mimo and OFDMA).

OFDMA:

OFDMA transmits data to several endpoints (devices) simultaneously by segmenting channels into subcarriers. A router or the access point that supports the wifi6 can send a different signal in the same transmission window. Instead of each device being to wait for a turn as the router sends out the data over the network, several devices can now communicate with the router via a single transfer.

OBSS:

The Wi-Fi 6 feature known as Overlapping Basic Service Sets (OBSS) is another one that might reduce network congestion. The older Wi-Fi generation uses the listen before talk method in order to communicate with each other and transmit the data. To avoid potential interference, if there is any noise on the channel that is coming from the distant network they would have to wait until the channel was clear before transmitting. WiFi 6 overcome all these issues by using the feature OBSS.  Access point or router that support the OBSS feature uses different colour in order to identify the network. If any other traffic is observed on the network but does not have the same colour as the access point already identified it ignores that traffic and continuously transmits the traffic that has the same colour. This can help increase reliability and improve latency. Communication on congested networks is improved by the collaboration of OFDMA and OBSS. By using both the speed and reliability of our connections will be preserved as more and a lot of our devices use Wi-Fi.

Beamforming:

Wifi6 uses beamforming technology that enables the wifi6 to achieve higher speed and provide a more stable connection.  Beamforming is not a new technology it already comes in Wifi5 and also comes in Wifi6. In wifi6 the performance of the beamforming is improved. Beamforming technology prevents the router or the access point from broadcasting data in all directions. It works like a switch and sends the data to the port from which the request is generated Speed is the most important thing for the average user and wifi6 almost fulfils all the requirements of the average user.

WPA3:

Wifi6 also provides better security as compared to the previous generation. Wifi6 uses the WPA3 security protocol for security.  WPA3 encrypt the password by using the Dragonfly Key Exchange system also called the SAE. It’s harder to cark the password that is encrypted by using the SAE.

Antennas:

WIfi6 support all type of Mimo antennas. It also supports the Mu Mimo antennas. The 8×8 arrangement Mu Mimo antenna are also supported by WiFi6. It provides a much faster data throughput and enables it to serve up to eight users simultaneously. Our WiFi 6/6E antenna support 2.4/5GHz and the addition of 6GHz frequency band for WiFi 6E, 6GHz is a brand new and empty band means wider bandwidth chanel and path allows more and high speed data throughput.

Conclusion:

WiFi 6 will significantly change how we use our wireless devices. Wifi 6 provides better security, a more stable and reliable connection, improves traffic prioritization and transfers data at faster speeds. Wi-Fi 6 is a significant advancement in wireless network technology.