Wi-Fi 6
routers
AllthebigroutermanufacturershaveWi-Fi6 routers
availablealready,orareduetolaunchthemimminently.
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Wi-Fi6 router.It’sdual-bandandoffersupto6,000Mb/s
ofWi-Fithroughput,alongwithfourantennas,andeight
LANports.It costs£300.
Asusalsohasthegaming-orientedROGRapture
GT-AX11000,a tri-bandrouterthatcankeepone5GHz
banddedicatedtogaming,andcosts£380.There’salso
theAsusAiMeshAX6100Wi-FiSystem,whichis a mesh
Wi-Fisystemthatcancoverthewholehome.It should
launcharoundthetimeyoureadthisissue.
Asoneofthebiggestnamesin networking,it’sno
surprisethatNetgearis goingall-outonWi-Fi6, and
thecompanyhasa numberofWi-Fi6 routers
alreadyavailable.TheNetgearNighthawkAX8(RAX80)
offerseightstreamsofwirelessconnectivity,160MHz
channelsupport,and6,000Mb/sthroughputovertwo
bands.It alsolookslikesomethingyou’dexpecta Sithto
Á\ DURXQGLQ ,W·V DYDLODEOHQRZ IRU£300.
TheNetgearNighthawkAX12(RAX120)upsthe
antewith 12 Wi-Fistreams,plusAlexaandGoogle
Assistantsupport,andNetgearclaimsit’sthemost
powerfulrouterthecompanyhaseverproduced.It
is alsoavailablenowforaround£400.
Netgearis alsoupdatingitsexcellentOrbimesh
Wi-FisystemtosupportWi-Fi6, whichthe
companyclaimswilloffergigabitspeedsacross
theentiremeshnetwork,withtheabilitytohandle
12 streamsat once,alongwithMU-MIMOand
OFDMAsupport,andis availabletopre-orderat
thetimeofwriting.
D-LinkwasearlytotheWi-Fi6 game,launchinga
numberofdevicesbackin 2018.It’salsogota new
Wi-Fi6 router,theD-LinkDIR-X6060,whichis dueto
launchsometimein 2019.
TP-Linkhasa fewWi-Fi6 routers,too,including
theArcherAX6000(availablenowfor£350),Archer
AX11000Tri-BandWi-FiGamingRouter(availablefor
£380),andtheDecoX10MeshWi-FiSystem,whichis
duetolaunchin late2019.Asyou’dexpect,NetgearispushingWi-Fi6 hard.budget devices use that band. Meanwhile, 5GHz isn’t just
getting more crowded as more devices are released that use
that band, but its spectrum is too limited to support wider
bandwidth channels. Not only that, but parts of the 5GHz
spectrum are still restricted in how they are used.
This has lead to many manufacturers pushing to
expand the number of bands available for Wi-Fi devices,
with a proposal by some of the biggest names in
networking suggesting that the 6GHz band would be
“essential to meeting demand for the next generation
of wireless broadband services.” Fans of wordy, overly
technical documents can read the entire proposal at
http://bit.ly/6GHzProposal. The bottom line is that Wi-Fi
networks need more space. If you think of networks as
roads, the more data (vehicles) there is, the more congested
they become. Adding additional bands would be similar to
opening up more lanes on a highway, to allow traffic to pass
more easily.
It looks as though, with Wi-Fi 6, those demands for
more bands will be met. This could be one of the most
important changes the new technology ushers in- particularly because of our increasingly congested
wireless networks. So, while there will be an improvement
in speeds with Wi-Fi 6, it seems as though the bigger
focus with the new technology is making sure that Wi-Fi
networks have enough capacity to support the demands
of modern connected homes, where every smart device
Netgear’s excellent Orbi routers
are getting a Wi-Fi 6 upgrade.© TP-Link, D-Link, netgearTP-Link and D-Link have both announced Wi-Fi 6 routers.
Technology
Wi-Fi 6
December 2019 | |^51