More than half of the Wi-Fi devices sold in 2024 will support Wi-Fi 6, opening up a range of options for broadband and mobile service providers.
Earlier this year, the Wi-Fi Alliance decided to adopt a more user-friendly nomenclature, abandoning technical standards like "Wi-Fi 802.11ac" for a more generational approach. This means that the next major iteration of the technology, Wi-Fi 802.11ax, will be called "Wi-Fi" 6.
Wi-Fi 6 makes it possible, among other things, to accelerate speeds, increase capacity and improve performance in congested areas or in times of high demand. The Wi-Fi 6 kit will also support speeds of up to 10 Gbps.
Wi-Fi 6 growth
For broadband providers, Wi-Fi 6 will allow broadband providers to improve Wi-Fi speeds in the home by reducing churn, and differentiate their services with additional offerings such as the smart home.
ABI Research predicts that the demand for faster applications requiring lower latency will result in the sale of 254 million wireless devices for wireless installations, more than half of which will be Wi-Fi enabled.
"Many applications, including streaming video, games and smart home applications, are being used simultaneously by broadband users from multiple devices," said Khin Sandi Lynn, analyst at ABI Research.
"With gigabit speed broadband now available to many residential broadband users, consumers are increasingly demanding whole-home Wi-Fi coverage with reliable and high performance."
OEMs and many operators believe that Wi-Fi 6 will be a complementary technology to 5G, contributing to the creation of converged network services.
Specifically, convergence will see the boundaries between cellular and wireless connectivity blurred, allowing operators to seamlessly transfer traffic between networks while maintaining a high level of control and visibility. The end user should benefit from a superior experience and better connectivity.
The Wireless Broadband Alliance (WBA) has already issued guidelines and a set of minimum specifications to drive adoption.