Wi-Fi 6 has already reached consumer products at a very affordable price. In this sense, we can already buy entry-level Wi-Fi 6 routers for approximately 100 euros, although it is always advisable to go for a mid-range router. In more and more homes and offices it is much easier to find a router that supports the 802.11ax standard, or also known as Wi-Fi 6, in fact, operators in Spain are already beginning to provide their new routers with Wi-Fi 6. In order to take advantage of the full potential of Wi-Fi 6, we need compatible PC or laptop Wi-Fi cards. Today in this article we are going to recommend several WiFi 6 cards for desktop and laptop PCs.
Before giving an example of Wi-Fi 6 for your PC, we are going to explain the Wi-Fi standards that a router supports, and the theoretical speeds that we can achieve with them. Next, we will explain what type of adapters or cards we can put in our PCs and laptops. Then we will finish by offering a list of the best Wi-Fi 6 cards for your desktop or laptop PC.
Wi-Fi standards, from Wi-Fi 4 to Wi-Fi 6
Now it’s your turn to find out how Wi-Fi has evolved in recent years. Thus, knowing the standards they support, we can get an idea of the speeds they can reach.
- The 802.11n (Wi-Fi 4) standard was approved in 2009 that can operate on the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands simultaneously. Speeds of 600 Mbps can be obtained under ideal conditions, although the normal thing is that we achieve a speed of about 200 Mbps in the 2.4GHz band and a speed of about 300Mbps in the 5GHz band, although this depends on the class of the router. .
- The 802.11ac (Wi-Fi 5) standard approved in 2014 and only works in the 5 GHz band. Regarding its maximum speed, theoretically we could reach rates of 1.3 Gbps using 3 antennas, or 1.7 Gbps if we use 4 antennas. In real life, the actual speed is approximately 60% of the theoretical speed.
- The 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6) standard approved in 2019 is prepared to operate in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands. Currently this standard allows us to reach a speed of up to 4.8Gbps theoretical in the 5GHz band making use of 160MHz of channel width, although in real life we will stay at a speed around 60-70% of the theoretical speed. In our tests with an AX3000 class Intel AX200 card (two internal antennas), we have achieved a true speed of 1,450Mbps, a real outrage.
As you can see, the great asset of Wi-Fi 6 is a substantial increase in transfer speed. Some may wonder why it is necessary, and one of them is that by 2021 we will already have enough fiber connections with speeds of 1 Gbps, and to be able to take full advantage of them it will be necessary to have Wi-Fi 6 in our equipment. In addition, operators are already gradually introducing routers that support the 802.11ax standard. Finally, comment that not all routers can offer the maximum theoretical speed, this depends on the configuration of the antennas, the technologies that it implements and also the standards that it supports.
Type of Wi-Fi adapters for desktop or laptop PC
A very important aspect that we must highlight is that if we want to have Wi-Fi 6 on our desktop or laptop PC, it is essential that both the router and the client computers must support the new standard, otherwise, it will work with the previous standards (Wi-Fi 4 for 2.4GHz and Wi-Fi 5 for 5GHz). In short, both must be compatible with the 802.11ax wireless standard, or also known as Wi-Fi 6.
As for these adapters that we can buy, they can be of two types:
- PCI Express : they can offer a little more performance than the rest by having removable external antennas, an aspect that we must highlight is that we will have to disassemble our PC and puncture the card to the motherboard.
- M2 card : used in laptops and requires the computer to be opened. Sometimes they add Bluetooth connectivity.
Then there would be the Wi-Fi adapters with USB 3.0 interface, they would serve both for a desktop or laptop PC and do not require that we have to open our equipment. Just connecting to the USB port and installing drivers is enough. The drawback is that, at the moment, there are no products that we can buy, we would have to buy Wifi 5 cards.
We can then classify Wi-Fi cards into two different categories:
- With external antennas
- No external antennas (they have internal and small antennas).
In this sense, if the WiFi card has an external antenna, they tend to offer better reception and transmission, but they are also usually more expensive and take up more space. One last consideration is that, even if you don’t have a Wi-Fi 6 router either, some are not very expensive and for the future it may compensate for your purchase. In this article we have published a comprehensive tutorial on how to upgrade a laptop to Wi-Fi 6 with the Intel AX200 .
PCI Express cards with Wi-Fi 6 for your desktop PC
Now it’s the turn to put Wi-Fi 6 for your PC, remember that these require installation, it is necessary to disassemble the PC and insert the Wi-Fi card to the motherboard.
ASUS PCE-AX58BT
This ASUS model allows high-speed Wi-Fi connections and is AX3000 class, therefore, we can achieve a speed of up to 574Mbps in the 2.4GHz band and up to 2.402Mbps in the 5GHz band, this model supports 160MHz of width channel, a key feature for good wireless speeds. This model has all Wi-Fi 6 technologies such as OFDMA, MU-MIMO, it also has support for WPA3-Personal and Enterprise encryption, as well as Bluetooth 5.0. Finally, this Wi-Fi card incorporates two external antennas to position them in the best possible place and obtain the best coverage.
We recommend you visit our ASUS PCE-AX58BT review where you will find the real performance of this high-performance Wi-Fi 6 card.
TP-Link Archer TX3000E
The TP-Link Archer TX3000E card is capable of speeds up to 2402 Mbps on the 5 GHz band and another 574 Mbps on the 2.4 GHz band. This model has exactly the same specifications as the previous ASUS, including OFDMA compatibility, MU-MIMO, support for WPA3 and also has Bluetooth 5. On the other hand, it has a heat sink and a special coating designed to improve reliability even in hot environments
Hommie Network Card WiFi 6 with Bluetooth 5.0
This model integrates an Intel AX200 chipset like the other two models, but in this case, we do not have an external antenna base to place them in the best possible place, therefore, we could obtain less speed and coverage. The technical characteristics are exactly the same as the two previous models, but we must emphasize that it does not have any heatsink, so we could have temperature problems. Of course, it has OFDMA, MU-MIMO, WPA3 and also Bluetooth 5.0.
Ziyituod AX3000 WiFi 6
This Ziyituod card is based on the Intel WiFi 6 AX200 chipset and supports OFDMA and 1024QAM. It is AX3000 class and has support for Windows and Linux.
This Ziyituod model is also based on Intel WiFi 6 AX200D chipset and supports OFDMA and 1024QAM. Its main difference is that instead of being Bluetooth 5.1 it has version 5.0.
Ubit AX WiFi 6 with Bluetooth 5.1
This Ubit card with an Intel AX200 has support for OFDMA and MU-MIMO technology, is AX3000 class and has Bluetooth 5.1.
This Ubit model is also based on the Intel WiFi 6 AX200 chipset and supports OFDMA and 1024QAM. The main difference from its older brother is that instead of being Bluetooth 5.1, its version is 5.0.
EDUP WiFi 6 Card AX with Bluetooth 5.0
This Edup Wi-Fi 6 comes equipped with the Intel AX200 chipset and has a maximum speed of 3000 Mbps. An important fact is that it only supports the Windows 10 64-bit operating system and has Bluetooh 5.0.
M.2 cards to put Wi-Fi 6 on your laptop
After the turn of Wi-Fi 6 for your PC, now it is time for laptops, in this case, most laptops make use of an M.2 2230 interface, therefore, we must make sure that our laptop has this type of port . It is also very important to check how many antennas our current laptop has, if we have a laptop with a WiFi card with only one antenna, then we do not recommend installing the Intel AX200 if you do not put an additional antenna, because you will not get good performance. If you have a WiFi card with two internal antennas like the Intel AC7265, then you can replace it quickly and easily.
All the Wi-Fi cards that we recommend below are based on the Intel AX200 chipset, therefore, at the level of specifications they are the same, it only differs from the Bluetooth version.
Ziyituod WiFi 6 802.11ax with Bluetooth 5.1
The Ziyituod features the Intel AX200NGW chipset and supports OFDMA, 1024QAM, and Target Wake Time technology. As for its maximum speed, it offers 2402 Mbps and has Bluetooth 5.1.
Edup WiFi 11AX with Bluetooth 5.0
This M2 card from Edup comes with the Intel AX200NGW chipset and comes with Bluetooth 5.o. It only works with Windows 10 64-bit.
OSGEAR Wi-Fi 6 with Bluetooth 5.0
The OSGEAR card is yet another with the Intel AX200NGW chipset and Bluetooth 5.o connectivity.
Mavis Laven with Bluetooth 5.0 and Wi-Fi 6 AX200
This Mavis Laven model is only compatible with Windows 10 64-bit. As for its maximum speed transfer speed in the 5GHz band is up to 2400Mbps and in the 2.4 GHz 574 Mbps. In addition, it has Bluetooth 5.0.
Bigpea Wi-Fi 6 AX200NGW
Bigpea’s m2 card supports 802.11ax through 2 × 2 MU-MIMO antennas in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands. Its maximum throughput is 2.4 Gbps (160 Mhz channel width).
Once we’ve seen all the Intel AX200-based models, we also have this one:
Killer Wi-Fi 6 AX1650 with Bluetooth 5.1
The Killer AX1650 adapter offers up to 2.4 Gbps of throughput, low latencies, and the most reliable connections. This model designed for games with its advanced Stream Detect 2.0 technology automatically detects, classifies and prioritizes game traffic. In addition, it has Bluetooth 5.1 and can only be used in Windows 10 64-bit.
As you can see, today there are a large number of models of Wi-Fi 6 cards based on the Intel AX200 that we have mentioned, however, we do not currently have Wi-Fi cards with USB 3.0 adapter, but we are sure it is a matter of time.