Wi-Fi 7 speeds are almost as fast as Thunderbolt 3

patchythepirate

dewme said:

m0dest said:

320 MHz-wide channels are not good news.  The biggest win in 6 GHz (Wi-Fi 6e) is the fact that we get 14 non-overlapping 80 MHz channels capable of 1.2 Gbit/sec (for typical phones/laptops that support 2 spatial streams).  In 5 GHz, there were only 4 of those non-overlapping 80 MHz channels, creating huge interference problems in dense residential/commercial areas. With Wi-Fi 6e, everyone can finally have their gigabit.

We simply don't have enough 6 GHz spectrum for people to be hogging 320 MHz with each Wi-Fi access point  It's rude.

...

I doubt most WiFi users even know what channels, channels bandwidths, and RF power levels their router/APs are using. They are either using the default out-of-box settings for their equipment or the settings established by the installer of their equipment, i.e., the cable guy or a dude that just bought a new router/AP at Best Buy.
...

That's me lol. Every once in a while my shitty comcast connection will slow way down, and I call them, and they just tell me to get a new modem. I feel like they're bullshitting me, because I don't change a thing and it magically 'fixes' itself after a week or so.

I'm waiting to get wifi 6 mesh routers that support homekit/matter, then switching to ATT, my only other internet option, which should be marginally better.

mplsp

Here’s what I don’t understand - Cat5e can carry 1 Gbps. Cat6 10 Gbps. Unless your home is wired with fiber or you have no wires at all the Wi-Fi connection will be throttled by the LAN cabling so what’s the point?

xed

MplsP said:

Here’s what I don’t understand - Cat5e can carry 1 Gbps. Cat6 10 Gbps. Unless your home is wired with fiber or you have no wires at all the Wi-Fi connection will be throttled by the LAN cabling so what’s the point?

Ethernet link aggregation options are plentiful and will become even more common by the time WiFi 7 is deployed, but let's keep in mind that max theoretical throughput degrades quickly with distance, obstacles and interference with wireless, so having a higher theoretical speed is good for getting a higher real world throughput for a given spectrum when comparing different 802.11 IEEE standards with variable QAM (modulation type) options between nodes

Also, 25 and 40 gibibit twisted pair over Cat8 Ethernet cables are a thing.

https://community.fs.com/blog/cat8-cable-for-25gbase-t-and-40gbase-t.html

I doubt we'll see that for the home use by the time the WiFi 7 gets deployed but it also doesn't have to (as stated above). Even 2.5 gibibit, 3.5 gibibit (aggregate of 2.5+1 GigE), and 10 GigE (sometimes as a built-in Ethernet but more often as an option with an SFP+ interface) are still rare for modems and routers.

This guy is the only one that seems to be a doing a thorough review of the multi-gig router options so hats off to him...

https://dongknows.com/multi-gigabit-wi-fi-6-routers-to-bring-home-today/

edited January 2022

dewme

MplsP said:

Here’s what I don’t understand - Cat5e can carry 1 Gbps. Cat6 10 Gbps. Unless your home is wired with fiber or you have no wires at all the Wi-Fi connection will be throttled by the LAN cabling so what’s the point?

Correctly installed, properly terminated, and uncongested (low collision rates) wired LANs will typically achieve throughputs that are closer to their theoretical maximum data rates than wireless networks will, at least with current technologies. 

I don’t know offhand what the expected ratios are, but if your wired network is performing significantly below expectations you probably have issues that need to be resolved and can be resolved. 

With wireless the actual throughput can vary with many more factors, like distance, physical obstructions, interference from neighbors, interference from other sources like appliances or industrial systems, etc., some of which are out of your control. 

The good news is that with each new WiFi standard the situation with WiFi only gets cheaper and better. Wired network costs only go up.

mplsp

Xed said:

MplsP said:

Here’s what I don’t understand - Cat5e can carry 1 Gbps. Cat6 10 Gbps. Unless your home is wired with fiber or you have no wires at all the Wi-Fi connection will be throttled by the LAN cabling so what’s the point?

Ethernet link aggregation options are plentiful and will become even more common by the time WiFi 7 is deployed, but let's keep in mind that max theoretical throughput degrades quickly with distance, obstacles and interference with wireless, so having a higher theoretical speed is good for getting a higher real world throughput for a given spectrum when comparing different 802.11 IEEE standards with variable QAM (modulation type) options between nodes

Also, 25 and 40 gibibit twisted pair over Cat8 Ethernet cables are a thing.

https://community.fs.com/blog/cat8-cable-for-25gbase-t-and-40gbase-t.html

I doubt we'll see that for the home use by the time the WiFi 7 gets deployed but it also doesn't have to (as stated above). Even 2.5 gibibit, 3.5 gibibit (aggregate of 2.5+1 GigE), and 10 GigE (sometimes as a built-in Ethernet but more often as an option with an SFP+ interface) are still rare for modems and routers.

This guy is the only one that seems to be a doing a thorough review of the multi-gig router options so hats off to him...

https://dongknows.com/multi-gigabit-wi-fi-6-routers-to-bring-home-today/

But how many people have those? Our house is relatively new (10 years old) and was wired with Cat 5e. The cable comes in through the basement so we’d have to pull new or additional wires to even hope to achieve something close to what they’re promising.