![](/content/dam/hpe/shared-publishing/images-norend/bkg-wrappers/257301038-Altered-A-TOP-BW-1920x1120.jpg)
Wi‑Fi 6 What is Wi‑Fi 6 (802.11ax)?
Wi‑Fi 6 is the name given to the IEEE 802.11ax standard by the Wi‑Fi Alliance, an industry organization that provides thought leadership, spectrum advocacy, and industry collaboration. The new numbering makes it easier to distinguish between the different Wi‑Fi generations. Wi‑Fi 6 is designed to improve efficiency with up to 4x faster speeds and more capacity than Wi‑Fi 5 (802.11ac). It also offers stronger guest and password security.
![Two people of agricultural scientist. Two people of agricultural scientist.](/content/dam/hpe/shared-publishing/images-norend/0xx/02/02203847-4-3.jpg)
- Wi‑Fi 6 explained
- Why Wi‑Fi 6 (802.11ax)?
- Wi‑Fi 6 benefits
- Wi‑Fi 6 features
- Wi‑Fi 6 APs
- How do I choose a Wi‑Fi 6 vendor?
Wi‑Fi 6 explained
Wi‑Fi 6, also known as 802.11ax, expands on the 802.11ac standard. Wi‑Fi 6 provides increased speed, flexibility, and scalability to support growth in the number of IoT and client devices, increased use of cloud, and digital transformation initiatives. It enables IT to keep pace with increased demand for Wi‑Fi leveraging the same 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands as Wi‑Fi 5.
Wi‑Fi 5 vs Wi‑Fi 6
| Wi‑Fi 5 (802.11n/ac) | Wi‑Fi 6 (802.11ax) |
---|---|---|
Channels available | 20/40/80/160 MHz | 20/40/80/160 MHz |
Bands used | 2.4 and 5 GHz | 2.4 and 5 GHz |
Maximum # Spatial Streams (SS) to increase peak data rates | 4×4 | 8×8 |
Highest order of modulation to increase bits/symbol and decrease error margin | 256-QAM | 1024-QAM |
Multi-user MIMO to increase efficiency by providing concurrent user uploads | downlink only | uplink and downlink |
OFDMA to increase efficiency by combining short packets | No | Yes |
IoT Target Wake Time to conserve battery life | No | Yes |
BSS Coloring to increase capacity and channel reuse | No | Yes |
Enhanced Open to provide encryption on open, non-password protected networks | No | Yes |
WPA3 for more robust authentication | No | Yes |