This week saw the formal launch of the new Wi-Fi 7 standard by the global Wi-Fi Alliance collaboration. The upcoming Wi-Fi generation is ideal for 8K streaming and mixed reality devices since it has substantially reduced latency and faster transfer rates. Continue reading to learn about the updates in Wi-Fi 7 and how they will affect next Apple products.
What is different between WiFi 6E and WiFi 7?
Wi-Fi 7 offers more substantial enhancements than Wi-Fi 6E, which is basically Wi-Fi 6 with compatibility for the 6GHz band. Wi-Fi 7 can transfer data at up to 46 Gbps, while Wi-Fi 6E can only do so at a maximum of about 9 Gbps. Compared to the current generation of Wi-Fi, this is five times faster.
Wi-Fi 7 isn’t only quicker, though. 320 MHz channels, which are far wider than those utilized by earlier Wi-Fi standard generations, are employed for its operation. This leads to significantly reduced interference and signal congestion when used with the 6 GHz frequency.
Devices using Wi-Fi 7 can simultaneously send and receive data over a number of links at various frequencies, which contributes to faster transfer rates and lower latency. Additionally, more data can be delivered simultaneously with 4K QAM technology. What does this actually mean for users, though, especially in light of upcoming devices?
In essence, Wi-Fi 7 capable devices can send a lot more information in a shorter amount of time, which is necessary for live streaming at resolutions greater than 4K. Online games and AR/VR devices with 3D content, which often need a lot more bandwidth than conventional content, will also benefit from the upgrades.
What about Apple products?
Wi-Fi 7 won’t be widely adopted for some time because the first routers that support the new standard were just released. On the other hand, it is reported that Apple is preparing to enable Wi-Fi 7 on a few of its products in the near future, beginning with the iPhone 16 Pro.
The iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max will be the first Apple smartphones to enable Wi-Fi 7 later this year, according to analyst Jeff Pu’s report from a few months ago. It is likely that the iPad and Mac will eventually receive the same technology. However, with all that Wi-Fi 7 offers, it’s hard not to believe that it will be ideal for an Apple Vision Pro of the upcoming generation.