Razer typically shows up to trade shows with a bunch of announcements to make, and it turns out CES 2020 was no different in that regard. Razer made a handful of announcements about upcoming products and concepts during the show today. The products it revealed include a new controller for mobile gaming, a compact desktop, and a new 5G router.
TP-Link just announced a handful of new networking products designed to accommodate the increasing number of devices in our homes that connect to the Internet. Not just the usual culprits like computers and smartphones but now TVs, ovens, and even refrigerators want to access the Internet. That, unfortunately, also means that there are now more points of entry into your home network, which is why TP-Link has partnered with security software company Avira to put shields around the hub of all that Internet activity: your TP-Link router.
5G might be the one making headlines in the mobile industry but when it comes to computing at large, Wi-Fi 6 is the name of the game. Grabbing the chance to make waves in that market, TP-Link is putting out router after router to enable computer users of all kinds to experience blazing-fast Wi-Fi 6 speeds. Presuming, of course, they have devices capable of handling all that bandwidth.
When it comes to wireless networks, 5G has had the lion's share of attention in the past months. It isn't, however, the only big change that's happening in that space. The Wi-Fi 6 evolution is also underway but it has mostly been under the purview of routers rather than phones. At CES this year, network equipment makers are grabbing the chance to display their Wi-Fi 6 wares and TP-Link is leading the march with its latest generation of Deco Mesh Whole Home Wi-Fi routers.
Today the official Wi-Fi Alliance introduced the term Wi-Fi 6E as a differentiator from the original Wi-Fi 6. With Wi-Fi 6E, users will know that a device will have access to 6Ghz wi-fi spectrum. Devices out right now with Wi-Fi 6 have access to 5Ghz operation. In the near future, some new devices will be capable of Wi-Fi 6 and beyond - into 6Ghz - so the Wi-Fi Alliance created a slightly more elite term, Wi-Fi 6E.
Wi-Fi 6E has access to all the benefits given to devices with the Wi-Fi 6 designation. Wi-Fi 6E ALSO has access to 6Ghz operation, or what the Wi-Fi Alliance defines as "an important portion of unlicensed spectrum that may soon by made available by regulators around the world."
Wi-Fi 5 was another name for the 802.11ac parameter, while Wi-Fi 6 is aka 802.11ax. Wi-Fi 5 had access to 5Ghz Frequency, while Wi-Fi 6 has access to 2.5 and 5Ghz frequency. The max data rate of Wi-Fi 5 is 3.5 Gb/s, and Wi-Fi 6 goes up to 9.6Gb/s. Wi-Fi 6E is the same as Wi-Fi 6, except that it ALSO has access to 6Ghz spectrum frequency.
This is sort of separate from 5G, but it compliments the near future of the internet data market. Once 5G gets rolling across the world, we'll see apps and networks that depend on 5G-speed data. To make sure Wi-Fi is ready to meed that demand, 6Ghz spectrum and all the benefits of Wi-Fi 6 (and 6E) are defined by the Wi-Fi Alliance.
If you're reading this in early 2020, you probably don't need to care about Wi-Fi 6E at all. If the marketplace evolves at an immense speed, we might see 6Ghz released for use by governments around the world for use by everyday average citizens.
"6 GHz will help address the growing need for Wi-Fi spectrum capacity to ensure Wi-Fi users continue to receive the same great user experience with their devices," said Edgar Figueroa, president and CEO, Wi-Fi Alliance. "Wi-Fi Alliance is introducing Wi-Fi 6E now to ensure the industry aligns on common terminology, allowing Wi-Fi users to identify devices that support 6 GHz operation as the spectrum becomes available."
The Wi-Fi Alliance wants to get out ahead of the industry here with a term they can all use. If they were late on this particular point, we'd see a variety of terms used for Wi-Fi 6 (plus 6Ghz!) and so forth - and that's just messy.
Once 6GHz spectrum is made available by regulators, you'll likely see "Wi-Fi 6E" appear on promotions for new routers and smartphones in short order. The difference between Wi-Fi 6 devices and Wi-Fi 6E devices won't be massive right out the gate. Unless you depend on the absolute cutting-edge speeds and lack of latency and so forth, you can probably just choose Wi-Fi 6 devices if you have the choice between 6 and 6E, unless the prices between those two devices are quite similar.
The overarching story here has us all benefit from the opening up of 6Ghz spectrum because we'll all have more mobile data elbow room, so to speak - and faster data, and and lower latency.
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D-Link revealed a new collection of routers and router-adjacent products today with the newest Wi-Fi 6 technology right out the gate. They've brought a new set of products to the market at CES 2020 with a mix of future-ready tech and super simple setup. "Most people don't want to fuss with their Wi-Fi," said Rayan Fakhro, product line manager, consumer solutions, D-Link Systems. "They want to grab a router, set it up, and go."
5G may be the battle cry of network operators and device makers in the mobile industry but it isn't the only revolutionary change as far as wireless connectivity goes. Wi-Fi 6 is slowly but surely making its way to mainstream markets but it is hampered by the lack of products for consumers. That's where Ubiquity's new AmpliFi Alien router comes in, promising to deliver 8x8 MIMO Wi-Fi 6 Internet in blazing Gigabit speeds wherever you are in the house or even in the building.
Google's Nest Wifi arrives as mesh networking is firmly embedding itself in the mainstream. Three years ago, Google Wifi surfed into homes at the bleeding edge of mesh, promising whole-home coverage with multiple interconnected routers filling in any dead spots. Now, Nest Wifi promises the same, only with fewer units and the addition of Google Assistant smart speaker functionality.
Linksys is onboard the WiFi 6 train, with the new Velop WiFi 6 system arriving to deliver the latest wireless standard in mesh form. Joining the Velop range, the new routers promise WiFi 802.11ax at up to four times the speed of the last-generation models, along with a boost in range.
Google has offered a mesh router called Google WiFi since 2016, but today we're seeing the successor to that system. During its Pixel 4 event today, Google got up on stage and announced Nest WiFi, a new mesh router that improves on the Google WiFi formula. For starters, Google says that Nest WiFi is more capable than Google WiFi, boasting as much as twice the speed and 25% better coverage.
With WiFi 6 certification landing last month, it was only a matter of time before we saw manufacturers begin to roll out compatible routers at a faster pace. Many of the WiFi 6 routers released thus far have been pretty expensive devices, but today, TP-Link announced two new WiFi 6 routers that attempt to move in the other direction.
The folks at Amazon launched a new Eero mesh router system today for approximately $99 USD. This device will launch with dual-band radio system support and support for the Eero Secure and Eero Secure Plus subscription systems. This is the first product launched by Amazon with Eero since Amazon acquired Eero in March of 2019.