2017 Network Technology Outlook: No Breakthroughs, Only Evolution

It has to be admitted that no one can live without the Internet now. The Internet economy has even been generated by the Internet and has become a new growth point for the national economy. In 2016, the Internet world had only one theme, which was "transformation". And 2017 is undoubtedly the beginning of the evolution of manufacturers to the next generation of networks after accumulating strength.

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First, facing the rapid growth of the Internet of Things, especially in the fields of automobiles, medical care, and energy, building wireless networks with larger network capacity and faster transmission speeds is the focus of manufacturers. Some manufacturers have already started to work on technologies such as 11ad and mesh networks, striving to launch new wireless products in 2017.

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Second, software-defined networking (SDN/NFV) has become the theme of the next generation of enterprise networks. Some network vendors have even begun to cooperate to jointly pursue the great cause of software-defined networking. Software-defined networking is a direction for the next generation of networks, and there are great risks in transitioning to this direction, because no one has ever defined what the next generation of networks will look like. It is precisely because of this that after the implementation of software-defined networking in enterprises, it has brought great challenges to network operation and maintenance personnel. It takes time and effort to learn a new model. Between the promotion of vendors and the resistance of enterprise network administrators, who will win and who will lose in 2017?

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Smart routers are on the decline, and home wireless networks will return to their original form. Smart routers, which were once popular in 2013, have been eliminated by the market, with only a few manufacturers still persisting. The emergence of mesh networks has pointed out the direction for wireless routers in 2017, which is good signal coverage, simple use, and fast speed. It is useless to show off those fancy plug-ins. In the end, consumers will still choose products with stable signals and fast wireless speeds.

In terms of basic network construction, the construction of high-speed fiber-optic broadband will continue. Mobile networks cannot replace fixed networks, and fiber-optic networks are still the backbone of homes and businesses. As the commercialization period approaches in 2020, the formulation of 5G network standards will be accelerated, and the battle over 5G network technology and frequency bands will soon begin.

Who will be the first to revolutionize the Internet in 2017?