Hi there! With the rising popularity of bandwidth-hungry apps and an increasing number of connected smart home devices, more and more people like yourself feel the need for faster Wi-Fi speeds. The latest Wi-Fi 6 standard promises improved performance – but is it better than Wi-Fi 5 you may already have?
Let me walk you through the key differences between these two standards to help decide if upgrading makes sense for your needs!
How Wi-Fi Standards Evolve for Growing Demands
First, it‘s helpful to understand how Wi-Fi standards come to be. They represent wireless local area network (WLAN) communication protocols defined by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).
As technology improves over time and user demands increase, IEEE introduces newer WLAN versions under the simple "Wi-Fi" branding. Each one brings more advanced capabilities – Wi-Fi 4 gave us faster speeds compared to Wi-Fi 3 and so on.
The latest Wi-Fi 6 supersedes the previous Wi-Fi 5 standard from 2014. It‘s been designed from ground-up to support many connected devices simultaneously – like dozens of smart home gadgets! – while delivering enough speed for 4K video streaming and gaming.
Now let‘s look at exactly what changed technically:
Wi-Fi 5 vs Wi-Fi 6 – Key Specifications Compared
| Parameter | Wi-Fi 5 | Wi-Fi 6 |
|---|---|---|
| Maximum Speed | 6.9 Gbps | 9.6 Gbps |
| Frequency Bands | 5 GHz only | 2.4 GHz + 5 GHz |
| Access Technology | OFDM | OFDMA + MU-MIMO |
| Max Connected Devices | Older Standards | Up to 9x more! |
| Security Protocol | WPA2 | WPA2 + WPA3 |
Some complex networking lingo there! Let me break down the key differences and what they mean for your day-to-day usage:
Faster Top Speeds – Up to 40% Faster!
That nearly 10 Gbps theoretical maximum of Wi-Fi 6 translates to real-world speed improvements – think quicker 4K movie streaming, lag-free video calls and buffered-free song downloads! All those little lags go away.
Wi-Fi 6 enhanced with advanced 1024-QAM modulation packs more data per transmission. Combined with bigger channel sizes, higher throughput across devices is possible.
Expanded Network Capacity
Wi-Fi 6 lets over 250 devices connect per network simultaneously without speed drops! This is perfect if you plan to add more smart home gadgets.
It utilizes MU-MIMO (multi-user multiple-input multiple-output) allowing simultaneous data sending to multiple devices, unlike Wi-Fi 5.
Lower Congestion in Dense Areas
You know how speeds slow down when too many people are on Wi-Fi? Sports stadiums, airports see that issue.
Wi-Fi 6 has BSS Color and OFDMA technologies that coordinate spectrum usage across many routers, maintaining performance in crowded environments.
Enhanced Security
Wi-Fi 6 offers the latest WPA3 encryption protocol for better protection against hackers. So your data remains safe even with more smart home and personal devices connected.
It also has individualized data encryption – video from your security camera won‘t be accessible by other devices.
Which Devices Support Wi-Fi 6?
To enjoy the benefits above, both your Wi-Fi router and connected devices need updated hardware compatible with Wi-Fi 6. Confirm this before upgrading your network.
Here are some of the latest gadgets supporting the new standard:
- Samsung Galaxy S10 & Flagship phones thereafter
- iPhone 11 Series
- Microsoft Surface Laptop 3
- Sony PS5 and Microsoft Xbox X/S
Without compatibility, you may only notice minor improvements.
I hope demystifying the key differences between Wi-Fi 5 and 6 can help determine whether now is the right time for you to upgrade! Let me know if you have any other questions.
