During CES 2024, the world’s premier technology trade show, the WiFi Alliance made a significant announcement, introducing the certification for the latest generation of wireless networks, officially known as “WiFi Certified 7.” Let’s delve into the details.
The WiFi Alliance serves as the organization responsible for certifying all devices that are compatible with WiFi networks. Whenever you spot a device adorned with the familiar WiFi seal, it signifies that the organization has rigorously assessed the product’s characteristics, ensuring it meets the standards set by the institution.
Capitalizing on the CES 2024 event’s grandeur, the most prominent technology fair globally, the WiFi Alliance has declared the commencement of WiFi 7 device certification. Their objective is to ensure that these devices adhere to the required standards and deliver excellent performance for connecting to the new generation of home wireless networks, officially termed “WiFi Certified 7.”
Starting this year, consumers can anticipate the availability of a wide array of products compatible with this cutting-edge standard. Just like previous generational leaps, WiFi 7 promises swifter connections, reduced latency, and significantly enhanced manageability.
Three Available Bands
As wireless connections advance and introduce new enhancements, users can enjoy intriguing features that influence how we interact with our devices.
While WiFi 6 and its subsequent evolutions, WiFi 6 Release 2 and WiFi 6E, represented a substantial milestone for most users—enabling speeds that fully leveraged the potential of home fiber connections—WiFi 7 invites us to take yet another leap forward. Its primary contribution lies in enhancing the experience for activities like streaming high-quality videos, cloud gaming, and applications demanding superior performance combined with minimal latency, such as augmented reality.
The standout feature of WiFi 7 is its capacity to connect over three distinct bands: 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz. Presently, users typically choose the available bands manually or rely on routers to select the optimal one based on various factors.
WiFi 7 incorporates a technology called “Multi Link Operation” (MLO) that significantly improves connection stability and speed. MLO enables devices to transmit and receive data simultaneously across different links, resulting in superior performance and lower latency.
Additionally, WiFi 7 is backward compatible. However, to fully utilize this feature, users will need to update all their devices.
Compatible Devices
Before the official announcement of WiFi 7 certification, several manufacturers had already begun introducing products claiming compatibility with this new technology. As these products receive certification from the WiFi Alliance, they will enable this new functionality through software updates, allowing users to reap the benefits of this next-generation connectivity.
The WiFi Alliance has mentioned several brands in their press release, and these brands will serve as the testing ground for the organization. Notable names include Intel, MediaTek, Qualcomm, Broadcom, and others. The WiFi Alliance anticipates that over 233 million devices will be compatible with this technology in 2024, with projections reaching 2.1 billion devices worldwide by 2028.