What Exactly Is Wi-Fi 7 and Why It Matters

You may have just recently upgraded your home network to Wi-Fi 6, or you may still even be using an 802.11ac router from a few years back. Heck, maybe you’re still perfectly happy with your trusty old Wi-Fi 5 setup. I don’t blame you – Wi-Fi technology has always evolved at a blazing fast pace, making it hard to keep up.

But another massive leap is already in the works that promises to transform wireless connectivity as we know it – introducing Wi-Fi 7!

In this in-depth look at next generation Wi-Fi, I’ll cover everything you need to know about Wi-Fi 7 including:

• How new 802.11be standard builds on past Wi-Fi gens
• Exciting new features like 40Gbps speeds and ultra low latency
• When Wi-Fi 7 devices will hit the market
• The real-world benefits you can expect to gain

By the end, you’ll understand exactly what Wi-Fi 7 brings to the table and more importantly, why it matters for the future of wireless connectivity both at home and in business. Let’s get started!

The Continual Evolution of Wi-Fi Standards

To fully appreciate the improvements Wi-Fi 7 delivers, it helps to first understand the continual evolution of Wi-Fi standards over the years. Let’s quickly recap:

With every iteration, new technologies were introduced to boost things like peak data rates, spectrum efficiency, capacity and reliability.

For example, 802.11n was the first to incorporate MIMO antenna technology all the way back in 2009. Fast forward ten years later to the Wi-Fi 5 standard (802.11ac) in 2019, and peak speeds jumped from 600 Mbps all the way up to an incredible 9.6 Gbps!

The just recently released Wi-Fi 6 builds on 802.11ac, keeping max speeds the same but adding optimizations like OFDMA that help better manage dense, high-capacity environments with many connected devices.

And now we look ahead to 2024 and the next evolution – Wi-Fi 7. This brings us more than just another incremental upgrade. Wi-Fi 7 represents a true revolution in wireless performance – one that requires an entirely new standard (802.11be) to support the advanced capabilities being introduced.

Introducing 802.11be – The Wi-Fi 7 Standard

So what exactly is 802.11be and what does it promise to bring to the table?

As defined by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), 802.11be focuses on Extremely High Throughput (up to 40+ Gbps!), lower latency, and better support for high-density environments with many connected devices.

The new standard builds upon the existing 802.11ax protocol behind Wi-Fi 6/6E, but incorporates many all-new technologies to unlock amazing new wireless capabilities:

Some of these major feature additions in Wi-Fi 7 include:

• Super fast 320 MHz channels
• 4K QAM modulation
• Multi-link operation support
• Enhanced multi-AP coordination
• Non-contiguous channel usage

Let’s break down what each of those mean in simple terms and why they matter…

Blazing Fast Speeds Up to 40 Gbps

The headline feature of Wi-Fi 7 is undoubtedly the blazing fast wireless speeds it will enable. We’re talking over 40 Gbps fast!

For some context, that’s:

• Over 4X faster than the 9.6 Gbps peaks of Wi-Fi 6
• Nearly 6X faster than most Wi-Fi 5 routers

So how does Wi-Fi 7 pull this off?

Several optimizations work together to make these ludicrous wireless speeds possible:

320 MHz Channels

Wi-Fi 7 implements much wider 320 MHz channels compared to 160 MHz channels used in Wi-Fi 6. This expanded channel width doubles the bandwidth available per transmission, allowing more data packed in at once.

4K QAM Modulation

Upgrading from 1024 QAM to 4096 QAM modulation boosts the number of bits encoded in each transfer by over 4X. More bits = more data!

When you combine these upgrades with multi-link operation (explained shortly), the huge 40+ Gbps figures suddenly don‘t seem so crazy!

While the average household won’t need wireless transfers that fast today (or downloads from their ISP nearly that quick), this sets up Wi-Fi 7 for the future needs of bandwidth-hungry use cases like AR/VR collaboration, 8K video streaming, gaming, videoconferencing and more.

Lower Latency for Time-Sensitive Apps

In addition to raw speed, Wi-Fi 7 also aims to significantly reduce latency for much more responsive wireless experiences. We’re talking sub-10 millisecond latency here!

Optimizations that touch the MAC layer and Physical layer work together to enable consistent low-single digit millisecond latency operation:

For context, that enables Wi-Fi connectivity to support even the most latency-sensitive use cases like:

• Cloud gaming
• Interactive AR/VR apps
• Autonomous robots
• Self-driving vehicles

So while you may not notice the difference in general web browsing, this unlocks entirely new categories of wireless experiences not possible before.

When Will Wi-Fi 7 Become Available?

Now that you understand the tremendous improvements Wi-Fi 7 will unlock, you’re probably wondering – when can I get my hands on these lightning fast, low latency connections?

Here’s a quick breakdown of the Wi-Fi 7 rollout timeline:

2024 – The IEEE 802.11be standard is expected to be officially ratified after years of development work to finalize the technical specifications. This provides the necessary foundation for vendors to build compliant devices.

2023 – In advance of final standard approval, chipmakers like Qualcomm and Broadcom have already unveiled Wi-Fi 7 silicon coming to market in 2023. This will enable networking vendors to ship the first Wi-Fi 7 compatible routers, mesh systems and enterprise access points this year. Expect premium pricing though!

Late 2024 – With the specification complete and chipsets now available, 2024 is when we’ll see Wi-Fi 7 make its way into shipping consumer electronics like phones, PCs, TVs, printers and more. As production scales, Wi-Fi 7 devices should become moderately more affordable through 2025 and beyond.

So in summary – bleeding edge consumers can expect the first Wi-Fi 7 routers as early as 2023. But mainstream adoption of client devices like smartphones supporting these lightning fast wireless speeds likely won’t hit until 2024 at the earliest.

Early adopters can pay the premium and upgrade their networks this year. But for most home users, 2024 seems the sweet spot when faster, cheaper Wi-Fi 7 devices proliferate.

What Does This Mean for You?

Alright, ready for some real talk about what Wi-Fi 7 means for you and me?

The new capabilities are undoubtedly drool-worthy. I mean c’mon, 40 Gbps peak speeds? Sign me up! Not to mention slashed latency and support for more devices than ever.

But let’s peel things back a layer – what do these bleeding edge features actually translate to in terms of real-world user benefits for typical home & office use cases?

Here’s my take on the meaningful gains you’ll actually experience with Wi-Fi 7:

• Faster file transfers and downloads – We’re still a long way from needing 40 Gbps connections today. But compared to Wi-Fi 5/Wi-Fi 6 speeds, you’ll definitely notice snappier file transfers, software downloads and web browsing.

• More concurrently connected devices – With improved spectrum efficiency and capacity, Wi-Fi 7 will provide a better experience even for crammed wireless environments like large households, busy offices and public hotspots.

• Lower latency boosts responsiveness – While not every use case needs single digit millisecond latency, the overall reduction will make general screen mirroring, video calls, gaming and most tasks feel more responsive.

• Expanded future-proofing – While expensive now, upgrading to Wi-Fi 7 future-proofs your network for the next generation of bandwidth-hungry apps. It may feel overkill today, but you’ll grow into the capability over years of use instead of needing another router upgrade soon.

For technical enthusiasts, small offices and smart homes running 50+ devices, Wi-Fi 7 does feel almost revolutionary compared to the modest generational gains before it. But only you can decide when to make the sizable financial investment based on if and how the above benefits improve your wireless experience.

Conclusion – A Beacon for the Future of Wireless Connectivity

We covered a ton of ground looking at next generation Wi-Fi 7 – where the new standard came from, the bleeding edge capabilities being introduced, when you can get your hands on devices and most importantly, why it matters.

With headline features like 40 Gbps peak wireless speeds and sub-10 millisecond latency now possible thanks to the new 802.11be specification, it’s clear Wi-Fi 7 represents a watershed moment for wireless connectivity.

While it will take a few years still for affordable mainstream adoption, Wi-Fi 7 sets an exciting vision for improvements across speed, latency, capacity and efficiency.

This leaves plenty of headroom for evolving use cases over the years like augmented reality collaboration, cloud gaming, enterprise mobility needs and beyond. It helps cement Wi-Fi’s role as the definitive wireless access medium both at home and work for the foreseeable future.

So while you decide if now is the right time for you to upgrade, at least you can rest assured – the future of Wi-Fi connectivity remains blazingly bright!

Hope you found this guide helpful. Let me know if have any other Wi-Fi 7 questions!