WiFi6 is the most recent generation standard in WiFi technology. This standard also known as “802.11ax” and faster than 802.11ac (WiFi5) standard ( Take a look at WiFi Standards Brief Explanation ). More than speed, it will provide better performance in congested areas, like stadiums. WiFi 6 was originally built in response to the growing number of devices in the world. Read the wifi6 technical specs briefly at this post.
Technically, WiFi 6 is the successor to the WiFi5 (802.11ac) standard and operates in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz spectrums. This standard enables devices ( WiFi Routers / Clients ) to send more data in one transmission stream, resulting in speed improvements of up to 20% to 40% with higher modulation rate (1024-QAM). Higher modulation increases the efficiency and speed of data transmission on your network.
The 2.4Ghz band is available in WiFi6 standard, while the industry has shifted to 5Ghz WiFi for less interference. 2.4Ghz is still better at penetrating solid objects. And there shouldn’t be as much interference for 2.4Ghz as old wireless (non-WiFi but 2.4Ghz) equipment like cordless telephones and wireless baby monitors are retired.
If you’re using a WiFi 6 Router (Modem) with a single client, maximum potential speeds should be up to 40% higher compared to WiFi 5 router. 802.11ax technology accomplishes this through improving :
There is one Spatial Stream for each WiFi Router ‘s antenna, if your Access point has 4 antennas , you have 4 spatial streams . Technically, the spatial streams can be used to increase the throughput or to increase the quality.
802.11 Standard | Maximum Number of Spatial Streams |
802.11n | 4 |
802.11ac | 8 |
802.11ax | 8 |
Symbols:
Before 802.11ac | 802.11ax |
3.2 us | 12.8 us |
Guard Interval (GI):
Before 802.11ac | 802.11ax |
0.8 us 0.4 us (Short GI) |
0.8 us 1.6us (2*GI) 3.2 us (4*GI) |
The encoding scheme is the modulation technology, Means the number of bits that can be carried in a symbol.
802.11 Standard | Higher-Order Modulation | Number of Bits in a Symbol |
802.11n | 64-QAM | 6 |
802.11ac | 256-QAM | 8 |
802.11ax | 1024-QAM | 10 |
Carriers are similar to symbols but in the frequency domain. One subcarrier carries one symbol, and the number of subcarriers varies according to the modulation mode and frequency bandwidth.
Number of Subcarriers in each channel width and standard :
Channel Width | 802.11n | 802.11ac | 802.11ax |
20Mhz | 52 | 234 | 242 |
40Mhz | 108 | 468 | 484 |
80Mhz | 234 | 980 | 996 |
160Mhz | 2 x 234 | 2 x 980 | 2 x 996 |
In conclusion , maximum data rate of 802.11ac standard is 433Mbps and maximum data rate of 802.11ax is 600Mbps, with 1 Spatial Stream at HT80.
Read More : Where to Place WiFi Router? and What is WiFi Channel and Channel-Width?