On the eve of the Consumer Electronics Show 2024 (CES 2024) in the United States, the Wi-Fi Alliance announced that the Wi-Fi 7 standard was officially finalized and the device certification process was initiated. This news marks that Wi-Fi technology is about to enter a brand-new high-speed era.
The Wi-Fi Alliance revealed in its press release that by the end of 2024, it is expected that more than 233 million devices will obtain Wi-Fi 7 certification. Although several months before the official certification, companies like Amazon Eero and NETGEAR had already started selling uncertified Wi-Fi 7 products, only products with the Wi-Fi 7 certification mark mean that they have passed the strict standards requirements of the Wi-Fi Alliance.
Wi-Fi 7 devices come with several remarkable new features. Among them, the Multi-Link Operation (MLO) technology stands out. It allows devices to use multiple wireless frequency bands simultaneously for uploading or downloading data, enabling users to download large files while enjoying high-definition video conferences without any pressure. In addition, the Wi-Fi 7 specification supports 320MHz channels (in the 6GHz frequency band), with a bandwidth twice that of the maximum 160MHz bandwidth of previous Wi-Fi devices, bringing users faster network speeds and lower latency.
It is worth mentioning that Wi-Fi 7 products also have backward compatibility. Even if there are still devices in the home that use previous Wi-Fi standards, normal connections can be ensured, although the speed may be slightly slower.
Globally, major operators and chip manufacturers are actively laying out for Wi-Fi 7. Abroad, AT&T plans to commercialize Wi-Fi 7 in early 2024. British Telecom and Vodafone plan to commercialize Wi-Fi 7 in the first quarter of 2024. In China, China Mobile has basically completed its enterprise standard for Wi-Fi 7 and is currently carrying out the final round of preliminary tests. The warehousing work will be carried out after the Spring Festival in 2024. China Unicom is actively participating in the formulation of technical specifications, engineering verification, and commercial deployment of Wi-Fi 7. China Telecom is focusing on improving user experience and promoting the innovative development of home Wi-Fi applications. It is also working with industry partners to compile Wi-Fi 7 white papers and conduct product function and performance uation tests.
In terms of chip manufacturers, Qualcomm has launched products such as the FastConnect 7800 Mobile Connectivity System and is working with partners to launch or is currently developing more than 450 Wi-Fi 7 products. Chip manufacturers such as Broadcom, MediaTek, and Intel have also launched Wi-Fi 7 products, and some manufacturers are about to launch their second-generation products.
With the promotion of the Wi-Fi 7 standard, it is expected that by 2028, the number of Wi-Fi 7-based devices will expand to 2.1 billion, which will bring a more enjoyable network experience to global users and promote the development of multi-user AR/VR/XR, immersive 3D training, video games, hybrid work, the Industrial Internet of Things, and the automotive field, thus ushering in a new era of the Internet of Everything.
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