Wi-Fi 7 is expected to bring all of these improvements over Wi-Fi 6, except…

Wi-Fi 7, officially known as 802.11be, is poised to become a game-changer for wireless connectivity, offering a dramatic boost in speed, efficiency, and reliability. One of its most notable advancements is support for channels as wide as 320 MHz, effectively doubling the bandwidth possibilities seen in Wi-Fi 6E. This expansion allows for much greater data throughput, especially in the less congested 6GHz band.

One of the key advancements of Wi-Fi 7 is the introduction of Multi-Link Operation (MLO). MLO enables simultaneous connections across multiple frequency bands and channels, such as 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz. By distributing traffic intelligently, Wi-Fi 7 promises smoother connections in dense environments where interference is common.

In terms of theoretical throughput, Wi-Fi 7 dramatically outpaces its predecessors, achieving speeds of approximately 46 Gbps, nearly five times greater than Wi-Fi 6’s theoretical maximum of 9.6 Gbps. This immense leap in throughput will accommodate future data-intensive tasks, increased device densities, and provide improved connectivity for real-time applications.

However, Wi-Fi 7 does not exclusively operate on the 2.4 GHz frequency band. In fact, it continues the multi-band approach established in previous standards by utilizing the 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and the recently adopted 6 GHz bands introduced in Wi-Fi 6E. The 2.4 GHz band remains important for long-range connectivity and compatibility with legacy devices, while the 5 GHz and 6 GHz bands deliver higher throughput and lower latency due to less congestion and interference.

Beamforming technology and advanced modulation schemes, such as 4096-QAM (Quadrature Amplitude Modulation), further enhance Wi-Fi 7’s efficiency and performance. The higher modulation rate allows more data to be transmitted in each signal, enhancing speeds and network responsiveness.