Wi-Fi 7 device certification begins: welcoming the arrival of the Wi-Fi 7 era

The Wi-Fi Alliance has recently begun certifying Wi-Fi 7 devices to ensure that they meet the requirements and can work together effectively. This marks the dawn of a new era for wireless networks.

The Wi-Fi Alliance says Wi-Fi 7 will surpass existing standards in areas such as high-bandwidth streaming and low-latency wireless gaming, This is crucial to the popularity of VR games and remote working. Wi-Fi Alliance CEO Kevin Robinson said that Wi-Fi 7 is "the first standard built from scratch specifically for the 6GHz band", and the 6GHz band has a wider , faster wireless spectrum, Wi-Fi 6E has previously supported this frequency band.

Although there are some Wi-Fi 7 routers on the market, it is still unknown whether they have received certification from the Wi-Fi Alliance. Obtaining certification gives consumers greater confidence in their purchases and ensures compatibility between devices.

Although the Wi-Fi 7 standard hasn't experienced much change since its release last October, it does have one important improvement over the previous Wi-Fi 5, 6, and 6E standards: channel bandwidth Increased from 160MHz to 320MHz, this improvement brings its theoretical transfer rate to approximately 46 GBit/s. It should be noted that authentication issues are not considered here.

Another important new feature of Wi-Fi 7 is multi-link operation (MLO), which is a new feature introduced for the first time. In previous Wi-Fi standards, data transmission between two devices took place only through one connection (link), a specific radio channel on a specific frequency. With MLO, two devices can establish multiple links at the same time. For example, two tri-band devices can communicate in parallel over different links on the 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz and 6 GHz frequencies. This means that even if a device moves out of range on one band, it does not need to reconnect to another band and the network will always remain open. The introduction of this feature will greatly increase the capacity and stability of wireless networks, allowing users to conduct data transmission and Internet access faster and more reliably.

According to our understanding, MLO technology can reduce latency because devices can flexibly choose the link with the least interference for switching. By sending the same data on every link, the sender can ensure that the data reaches the receiver with greater reliability and without interference. Additionally, if the router and client have multiple radio units, they can send and receive data simultaneously via MLO. For example, a router can send data to a laptop over a 5 GHz link, and the laptop can send other data back to the router over a 6 GHz link.

However, Robinson mentioned that not all routers can connect to all three bands simultaneously. Some affordable routers may only be able to connect to two bands at the same time. Still, this is a significant improvement, as current state-of-the-art routers can only support one band per device connection. However, to fully experience the full benefits of Wi-Fi 7, you may need to spend more money.

The Wi-Fi Alliance notes that Wi-Fi 7 offers significant improvements in efficiency, throughput, and stability. Additionally, Wi-Fi 7 devices remain backwards compatible with previous versions.

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