The internet and WiFi access are now regarded as extremely essential to us and are absolutely necessary in our daily lives. WiFi 6, which is faster than 802.11ac (Wi-Fi 5), is the next-generation wireless standard that provides higher data transfer speeds. When using a single device with a Wi-Fi router, the maximum possible speeds should be faster with WiFi 6 than with Wi-Fi 5.
What is Wi-Fi?
Wi-Fi is a wireless networking technology that connects devices to the Internet, including computers, mobile devices and other equipment. In simple words, Wi-Fi is a wireless networking protocol that allows devices to interact without using wires. The nonprofit Wi-Fi Alliance coined the term “Wi-Fi,” which refers to a range of wireless networking protocols based on the IEEE 802.11 network standard.
Networking Protocols
| Generation/IEEE Standard | Frequency | Maximum Linkrate | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) | 2.4/5 GHz | 600–9608 Mbit/s | 2019 |
| Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac) | 5 GHz | 433–6933 Mbit/s | 2014 |
| Wi-Fi 4 (802.11n) | 2.4/5 GHz | 72–600 Mbit/s | 2009 |
Older Wi-Fi standards aren’t commonly used and were not formally branded (given names like 802.11ax).
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Why is Wi-Fi 6 Different?
When you’re in a crowded area with a lot of Wi-Fi enabled devices, Wi-Fi tends to slow down. Wi-Fi 5 has a maximum throughput of 3.5 Gbps, whereas WiFi 6 has a maximum throughput of 9.6 Gbps across multiple channels. Wi-Fi 6’s data encoding is more efficient than its predecessors, resulting in increased throughput. Local networks may not attain this maximal speed in real-world scenarios since it is only a theoretical potential. By managing massive amounts of network traffic more efficiently, Wi-Fi 6 can result in up to 75 percent less delay.
The third iteration of WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access) is introduced in WiFi 6. For a long time, WPA2 was the standard, but WiFi 6 comes with WPA3. WPA is a Wi-Fi security standard that encrypts and protects passwords on your router and other WiFi devices. WiFi 6 allows up to 30 people to share a single channel at the same time, whereas WiFi 5 only permits one person per channel. There’s also a “Wi-Fi 6E,” which stands for WiFi 6 over 6 GHz rather than the standard 2.4 or 5 GHz. Wi-Fi 6E devices may use the 6GHz frequency band, which has a bandwidth of 1,200MHz and is perfect for transferring large volumes of data over short distances.
