Wi-Fi 7: Everything we know so far!

Over the past few decades, Wi-Fi has become the wireless internet technology of choice for small connected spaces around the world. Those looking to bring stable, fast wireless to their home, office, café, or educational institution have defaulted to Wi-Fi. The first few generations of Wi-Fi had some significant limitations compared to wired internet connections — but a lot has changed since then. Recent generations of Wi-Fi have delivered leaps and bounds in the power, reliability, security, and speed of the connection standard.

The next big version of Wi-Fi is Wi-Fi 7, which will bring a ton of real-world improvements, including lower latency, faster data speeds, improvements to the smart home, and improved networks that connect to a ton of devices. As with every upgrade, the same questions arise: What is Wi-Fi 7, what does it bring, and when is it coming? Should we upgrade?

What is Wi-Fi?

Let's start with the basics. Wi-Fi, short for Wireless Fidelity, is a brand name for a communications standard developed by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). This group decides what the next generation of Wi-Fi will include. Wi-Fi is the consumer-facing brand name given to a communications standard called IEEE802.11. Each major revision of IEEE802.11 is indicated by adding a suffix to this official name, and the Wi-Fi brand is usually all the average consumer needs to see. For Wi-Fi 7, there is a slight exception, as a set of letters are also added: IEEE802.11be Extreme High Throughput (EHT).

Wi-Fi is usually used as a local area network, connecting to the internet via wires and distributing it wirelessly to devices. This transmission is handled by an access point - usually a router. In order for a device to be able to connect to this network and the internet, it needs its own Wi-Fi receiver.

As GeeksforGeeks points out, Wi-Fi typically runs on two frequencies: 2.4GHz and 5GHz. The default frequency is 2.4GHz, which supports a wider range and covers a larger area, but has lower speeds. The 5GHz frequency has a lower range but is faster. Starting with Wi-Fi 6E, the 6GHz band is also part of it.

The Evolution of Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi has evolved a lot over the years to get to the version we use today. There have been many generations of Wi-Fi since it was first standardized in the 90s. The first official version of Wi-Fi was released in 1997 and was called IEEE802.11-1997. As Wevolver points out, it was very basic and had interoperability issues, with theoretical speeds of only up to 2Mbps and actual speeds slightly less.

In 1999, a new revision of Wi-Fi appeared, adopting two new standards at the same time. IEEE802.11b is based on the 2.4GHz frequency and can reach up to 11Mbps; while IEEE802.11a introduces the 5GHz frequency and can reach up to 54Mbps. Today's Wi-Fi routers and devices still support 11b and 11a. In 2003, 11g was revised to increase the 2.4Ghz data speed to 54Mbps.

Next came IEEE 802.11n, now known as Wi-Fi 4m. This was a major revision released in 2009 that operated at 2.4GHz and 5GHz and could reach speeds of up to 600Mbps. It was followed by 11ac, a 5GHz standard that again increased speeds to 6.8Gbps and was branded as Wi-Fi 5.

The next step in the evolution of Wi-Fi is 11ax, which itself has two revisions. The first version is Wi-Fi 6, which supports 2.5GHz and 5GHz and speeds of up to 9.6Gbps. The second, Wi-Fi 6E, was launched in 2020 and added support for 6GHz to the standard, along with a range of other features, laying the foundation for Wi-Fi 7.

What is Wi-Fi 7 and what are its new features?

The next potential revision of the 802.11 IEEE standard is IEEE 802.11be Extreme High Throughput (EHT), which may be named Wi-Fi 7. EHT refers to the high-speed potential of the upcoming standard.

The 6GHz frequency is a new frequency added to Wi-Fi 6E, and Wi-Fi 7 will focus on making full use of the new frequency. Wi-Fi 7 also doubles the bandwidth of the 6GHz band, bringing its potential speed to 46.1Gbps. This is a huge leap. It achieves this by using two channels of 5GHz and 6GHz frequencies at the same time because the two are close.

Wi-Fi 6E is an intermediate generation, but Wi-Fi 7 will be the right generation, bringing improvements in usability. The IEEE discussed how the next version of Wi-Fi can increase capacity while reducing latency. Wi-Fi 7 is not yet fully standardized. It is still under development, so there will definitely be some changes between now and the actual release.

●Multi-Link Operation (MLO)Multi-Link Operation (MLO) is a proposed feature that will be a key new improvement for the next generation of Wi-Fi if it is included in the final standard. As mentioned earlier, Wi-Fi 7 operates on the 2.4GHz, 5GHz, and 6GHz bands. However, until now, devices with Wi-Fi have only been able to connect to one of these bands at a time. This is why when using a dual-band router, you will see two different Wi-Fi networks that can be connected. With Multi-Link Operation, Wi-Fi 7 will allow devices to span all bands and establish multiple connections to the access point (in most cases, the router). As the TP-Link blog points out, this will give devices faster access and lower latency, bringing the connection quality closer to a wired Internet connection via Ethernet. The concept of multiple connections is not new to Wi-Fi - it is the multiple connections that make MLO a game changer.

●4K Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (4K-QAM) Quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) is an essential feature of the latest generation of Wi-Fi. It helps convert digital data packets into analog signals that can be converted from access points to devices. Wi-Fi uses radio waves to transmit data, and QAM improves transmission efficiency by changing the phase (timing) and amplitude of these waves. The suffix of QAM is a number, usually an even number that is a multiple of 2, indicating how many signals can be superimposed. Wi-Fi 6 introduces 1024QAM, which means that QAM can superimpose 1024 signals at the same time, enabling it to transmit more data. The goal of Wi-Fi 7 is to achieve a higher 4KQAM, which is able to superimpose 4096 signals at the same time, which is 4 times that of Wi-Fi 6. The TP-Link blog points out that this will result in a 20% increase in the data rate of Wi-Fi 7 compared to Wi-Fi 6.

●Automatic Frequency Coordination (AFC) Since the 6GHz frequency is still relatively new to Wi-Fi, there are some issues that need to be addressed. The 6GHz band is not unique, and in fact it is used for a variety of purposes, including use by federal agencies such as NASA. Since the 6GHz frequency is not unused, using it in Wi-Fi may cause interference, which may disrupt the use of all parties involved. This is where Automatic Frequency Coordination (AFC) comes into play. AFC is a system that coordinates the use of spectrum in the 6GHz band. This is a collective effort, and AFC analyzes existing 6GHz signals and antenna patterns to create a shared database that can then be used to avoid interference. RCSWIreless pointed out that Wi-Fi uses low-power access points indoors and standard power access points outdoors, the latter of which are more susceptible to interference. AFC will help Wi-Fi7 scale to higher powers through algorithms while avoiding interference, making it a key technology to simplify the use of the 6GHz band.

Wi-Fi 7 performance demonstration and real-world speeds

We have discussed what Wi-Fi 7 will offer, but at the end of the day, real-life performance is what matters. We are still in the early stages of development of Wi-Fi 7, but we have already seen the performance it demonstrates. Recently, Intel and Broadcom teamed up to show a real-life demonstration of Wi-Fi 7.

As presented by Intel and Broadcom, this real-world test shows an Intel Core-powered laptop connected to a Broadcom access point. The test was able to achieve a steady speed of 5Gbps. This is five times faster than the previous Wi-Fi 6. Since Wi-Fi 7 is still in the early stages of development, we are not sure how high the actual speeds will be. However, as mentioned before, the maximum theoretical limit is set to 46.1Gbps. The actual speed will vary depending on the setup, but we can expect a full setup to provide 30 to 40Gbps of throughput.

Wi-Fi7 vs. Wi-Fi6E vs. Wi-Fi6

While both Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7 use the 6GHz band, there are some very significant differences between the two, as the Commscope blog points out. Wi-Fi 6E is an intermediate generation, while Wi-Fi 7 is a full-on generational leap. First, as mentioned above, maximum speeds will jump to 46.1Gbps compared to Wi-FI 6E's 9.6Gbps limit. Wi-Fi 6E is also limited to 1024QAM, while Wi-Fi 7 has 4 times that of 4KQAM.

Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 6E have many similarities, the most notable of which is the maximum bandwidth limit of 9.6Gbps. Wi-Fi 6E has 6GHz bandwidth, but due to the lack of other features, Wi-Fi 6E cannot use 6GHz to obtain higher bandwidth. Wi-Fi 7 can use 6GHz to significantly increase data speeds.

The channel size of Wi-Fi 7 has also doubled from 160MHz in Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 6E to 320MHz. Wi-Fi frequency bands such as 2.4GHz, 5GHz, and 6GHz are divided into channels. Channels come in various sizes, such as 20MHz in the 2.4GHz band, and 40 or 80MHz in the 5GHz band. Wi-FI7's expanded 320MHz channel width means it can transmit more data.

All of these features in Wi-Fi 7 not only provide a better wireless Internet experience in terms of speed, latency, and device support, but also make Wi-Fi 7 a better smart home local network than Wi-Fi 6/6E.

When will Wi-Fi 7 come?

As mentioned before, Wi-Fi 7 is still under development right now. Different sources are giving different timelines at this point. However, given the delays we’ve seen in widespread adoption of Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 6E, it’s fair to assume that estimates of Wi-Fi 7’s release should be taken with a grain of salt.

According to the Times of India, Eric McLaughlin, Intel's vice president of wireless solutions, said that Intel will start supporting Wi-Fi 7 in its products in 2024, and the technology is expected to appear in major markets by 2025. We may see devices released as early as 2023, but they may not take full advantage of the promised technology because they are released before the official standard is released. We have already seen Qualcomm launch its Fast Connect 7800 Wi-Fi 7 platform, and more Wi-Fi 7 devices will appear before the official standard is released.

Of course, these devices won’t be available until the IEEE finalizes the Wi-Fi 7 standard, which it plans to do in 2024. So expect affordable and widely available Wi-Fi 7 hardware to appear in most markets around the world by late 2025 or early 2026.

Should you upgrade to Wi-Fi 7?

Wi-Fi 7 is still a while away from release, but because of the buzz it's already creating, some people are wondering if or when they should upgrade their hardware. Most people are very happy with their existing Wi-Fi implementations and won't feel the need to upgrade any time soon. When Wi-Fi 7 arrives, there will be a lot of upgrade costs. Therefore, it doesn't make sense to be an early adopter of Wi-Fi 7 unless you are running an industrial-scale business, planning to put a comprehensive smart home into action, or just want to have a very fast Internet connection to use wireless networks more efficiently.

For others, it makes sense to wait for Wi-Fi 7 to become the standard in the market, and then naturally upgrade their devices to those with native support for Wi-Fi 7. Once you get to that stage, it will make sense to upgrade your Wi-Fi setup.

At this time, it is recommended not to rush to upgrade your wireless setup before Wi-Fi 7 is officially released unless there is a very urgent need to upgrade. As stated in the ARC Advisory Group blog, Wi-Fi 6 and 6E are solid upgrades that have been steadily adopted. However, Wi-Fi 7 is underway and is a major upgrade, so it would be wise to wait for its final release unless there is a very urgent need.