Understandably, you’ve probably heard about Wi-Fi 6, but have no idea what it is all about.
Well, in its simplest form, Wi-Fi 6 describes the latest version of Wi-Fi and provides numerous benefits over the traditional Wi-Fi technology, which we shall be looking at later.
Alongside an improved performance, this technology similarly comes with a new labeling convention.
However, for us to understand the performance of this technology even better, LookGadgets shares with you the top five reasons why you should consider upgrading to this technology.
Table of Contents
Greater Data Transfer Speed
Since the internet came into existence, each generation of Wi-Fi has provided us with greater speeds than its predecessor, and this is no exception with the Wi-Fi 6.
Now, I know you’re interested in knowing what the real speed of Wi-Fi 6 is.
Theoretically, Wi-Fi 6 can achieve speeds of up to 10 Gbps, which is approximately three times the 3.5 Gbps offered by Wi-Fi 5.
However, despite the increased speed, Wi-Fi 6 isn’t technically stronger than its predecessor because, in any case, it’s hard to reach these speeds, and it’s unclear whether you would need them. The typical download speed, for instance, is 72 Mbps, which is less than 1% of the theoretical speed.
Even so, this doesn’t negate the fact that Wi-Fi 6 has a superior speed compared to its predecessor.
Increased Battery Life
The battery life is extended through a feature known as target wake time (TWT) that plans out communication with the router telling it exactly to stay on and when to sleep.
The scheduled check-in time with the router on your electronic devices helps to reduce the number of times your electronic require to keep their antennas powered for transmission and searching signals. The result is that your electronics will drain less on the batteries, consequently improving the battery time in turn
However, this feature isn’t helpful across the board, though. Your laptop, for instance, needs constant access to the internet and is less likely to make heavy usage, unless it moves into sleep mode.
Better Performance In Congested Settings
One of the primary ways that the performance of a Wi-Fi is negatively affected is competition for the signals, for example, when it is used in a crowded space.
With Wi-Fi 6, however, no need to worry about competition for signals and poor performance because the newly-rolled out technology employs several technologies that will increase the utility of the Wi-Fi, while at the same time reducing network congestion.
The Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access (OFDMA), for instance, is a technology that allows the channel to be segmented into several channels, where each channel carries the individual data for the multiple devices.
The second technology that helps to promote this cause is the Multiple In/Multiple Out features, a technology that lets routers with multiple antennae to send and receive data from multiple devices simultaneously. This is contrary to Wi-Fi 5, which was not capable of receiving but only sending the multiple signals.
Better Security
In 2018, there was an upgrade to the security of the Wi-Fi connection, and this new security update was primarily based on a security protocol known as the WPA3.
This new protocol makes it challenging for the hackers to crack passwords, and most importantly, it encrypts the data, meaning that it will be less useful even if the hackers manage to crack it.
Now, while the current devices and routers have the WPA3, it’s usually optional, but for a Wi-Fi 6 device to receive certification from the Wi-Fi Alliance, it should have the WPA3 components as a necessity, and so, the Wi-Fi 6-certified devices are more likely to have a stronger security compared to other devices.
Stronger Signal
The next improvement that you’re likely to benefit from Wi-Fi 6 is the new technology known as beamforming.
This is a technology that is primarily focused on delivering a stronger signal in the direction the connected devices are located as opposed to sending directions in all directions.
In a nutshell, it attempts to optimize the signals sent to a specific device, and the result is that you get stronger signals on your devices.
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