Wikipedia

Wi-Fi 7

Not to be confused with IEEE 802.11b.

IEEE 802.11be, dubbed Extremely High Throughput (EHT), is a wireless networking standard in the IEEE 802.11 set of protocols[6][7] which is designated Wi-Fi 7 by the Wi-Fi Alliance.[8][9][10] It has built upon 802.11ax, focusing on WLAN indoor and outdoor operation with stationary and pedestrian speeds in the 2.4, 5, and 6 GHz frequency bands.[11]

Logo used by the Wi-Fi Alliance for Wi-Fi 7
Wi-Fi generations
Generation Visual IEEE
standard 		Adopted Maximum
link rate
(Mbit/s) 		Radio
frequency
(GHz)
— — 802.11 1997 1–2 2.4
— — 802.11b 1999 1–11 2.4
— — 802.11a 1999 6–54 5
— — 802.11g 2003 2.4
Wi-Fi 4 802.11n 2009 6.5–600 2.4, 5
Wi-Fi 5 802.11ac 2013 6.5–6933 5[a]
Wi-Fi 6[1] 802.11ax 2021 0.4–9608 2.4, 5
Wi-Fi 6E 6[b]
Wi-Fi 7[2] 802.11be 2024[c] 0.4–23,059 2.4, 5, 6
Wi-Fi 8[3][4][5] — 802.11bn 2028 100,000 2.4, 5, 6

Throughput is believed to reach a theoretical maximum of 46 Gbit/s, although actual results are much lower.

Development of the 802.11be amendment began with an initial draft in March 2021 with a final version expected by the end of 2024.[9][12][13] Despite this, numerous products were announced in 2022 based on draft standards, with retail availability in early 2023. On 8 January 2024, the Wi-Fi Alliance introduced its Wi-Fi Certified 7 program to certify Wi-Fi 7 devices. While final ratification wasn't expected until the end of 2024, the technical requirements were essentially complete.[14][15][16]

Core features

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The following are core features that have been approved as of Draft 3.0:

  • 4096-QAM (4K-QAM) enables each symbol to carry 12 bits rather than 10 bits, resulting in 20% higher theoretical transmission rates than WiFi 6's 1024-QAM.[citation needed]
  • Contiguous and non-contiguous 320/160+160 MHz and 240/160+80 MHz bandwidth.[citation needed]
  • Multi-Link Operation (MLO), a feature that increases capacity by simultaneously sending and receiving data across different frequency bands and channels. (2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, 6 GHz)
  • 16 spatial streams and Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) protocol enhancements.
  • Flexible Channel Utilization – Interference currently can negate an entire Wi-Fi channel. With preamble puncturing, a portion of the channel that is affected by interference can be blocked off while continuing to use the rest of the channel.

Candidate features

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The main candidate features mentioned in the 802.11be Project Authorization Request (PAR) are:[17]

  • Multi-Access Point (AP) Coordination (e.g. coordinated and joint transmission),
  • Enhanced link adaptation and retransmission protocol (e.g. Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ)).
  • If needed, adaptation to regulatory rules specific to 6 GHz spectrum.[needs update]
  • Integrating Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN) IEEE 802.1Q extensions for low-latency real-time traffic:[18][19][20]
    • IEEE 802.1AS timing and synchronization
    • IEEE 802.11aa MAC Enhancements for Robust Audio Video Streaming (Stream Reservation Protocol over IEEE 802.11)
    • IEEE 802.11ak Enhancements for Transit Links Within Bridged Networks (802.11 links in 802.1Q networks)
    • Bounded latency: credit-based (IEEE 802.1Qav) and cyclic/time-aware traffic shaping (IEEE 802.1Qch/Qbv), asynchronous traffic scheduling (IEEE 802.1Qcr-2020)
    • IEEE 802.11ax Scheduled Operation extensions for reduced jitter/latency

Additional features

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Apart from the features mentioned in the PAR, there are newly introduced features:[21]

  • Frame formats with improved forward-compatibility.
  • Enhanced resource allocation in OFDMA.
  • Implicit channel sounding, optimized to require less airtime.
  • Support for direct links, managed by an access point.[clarification needed]

Rate set

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Modulation and coding schemes
MCS index[i] Modulation type Coding rate Data rate (Mbit/s)[ii]
20 MHz channels 40 MHz channels 80 MHz channels 160 MHz channels 320 MHz channels
3200 ns GI[iii] 1600 ns GI 800 ns GI 3200 ns GI 1600 ns GI 800 ns GI 3200 ns GI 1600 ns GI 800 ns GI 3200 ns GI 1600 ns GI 800 ns GI 3200 ns GI 1600 ns GI 800 ns GI
0 BPSK 1/2 7 8 9 15 16 17 31 34 36 61 68 72 123 136 144
1 QPSK 1/2 15 16 17 29 33 34 61 68 72 122 136 144 245 272 288
2 QPSK 3/4 22 24 26 44 49 52 92 102 108 184 204 216 368 408 432
3 16-QAM 1/2 29 33 34 59 65 69 123 136 144 245 272 282 490 544 577
4 16-QAM 3/4 44 49 52 88 98 103 184 204 216 368 408 432 735 817 865
5 64-QAM 2/3 59 65 69 117 130 138 245 272 288 490 544 576 980 1089 1153
6 64-QAM 3/4 66 73 77 132 146 155 276 306 324 551 613 649 1103 1225 1297
7 64-QAM 5/6 73 81 86 146 163 172 306 340 360 613 681 721 1225 1361 1441
8 256-QAM 3/4 88 98 103 176 195 207 368 408 432 735 817 865 1470 1633 1729
9 256-QAM 5/6 98 108 115 195 217 229 408 453 480 817 907 961 1633 1815 1922
10 1024-QAM 3/4 110 122 129 219 244 258 459 510 540 919 1021 1081 1838 2042 2162
11 1024-QAM 5/6 122 135 143 244 271 287 510 567 600 1021 1134 1201 2042 2269 2402
12 4096-QAM 3/4 131 146 155 263 293 310 551 613 649 1103 1225 1297 2205 2450 2594
13 4096-QAM 5/6 146 163 172 293 325 344 613 681 721 1225 1361 1441 2450 2722 2882
14 BPSK-DCM-DUP 1/2 7 8 9 15 17 18 31 34 36
15 BPSK-DCM 1/2 4 4 4 7 8 9 15 17 18 31 34 36 61 68 72

Comparison

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802.11 network standards
Frequency
range,
or type 		PHY Protocol Release
date[22] 		Freq­uency Bandwidth Stream
data rate[23] 		Max.
MIMO streams 		Modulation Approx. range
In­door Out­door
(GHz) (MHz) (Mbit/s)
1–7 GHz DSSS[24], FHSS[A] 802.11-1997 June 1997 2.4 22 1, 2 — DSSS, FHSS[A] 20 m (66 ft) 100 m (330 ft)
HR/DSSS[24] 802.11b September 1999 2.4 22 1, 2, 5.5, 11 — CCK, DSSS 35 m (115 ft) 140 m (460 ft)
OFDM 802.11a September 1999 5 5, 10, 20 6, 9, 12, 18, 24, 36, 48, 54
(for 20 MHz bandwidth,
divide by 2 and 4 for 10 and 5 MHz) 		— OFDM 35 m (115 ft) 120 m (390 ft)
802.11j November 2004 4.9, 5.0
[B][25] 		? ?
802.11y November 2008 3.7[C] ? 5,000 m (16,000 ft)[C]
802.11p July 2010 5.9 200 m 1,000 m (3,300 ft)[26]
802.11bd December 2022 5.9, 60 500 m 1,000 m (3,300 ft)
ERP-OFDM[27] 802.11g June 2003 2.4 38 m (125 ft) 140 m (460 ft)
HT-OFDM[28] 802.11n
(Wi-Fi 4) 		October 2009 2.4, 5 20 Up to 288.8[D] 4 MIMO-OFDM
(64-QAM) 		70 m (230 ft) 250 m (820 ft)[29]
40 Up to 600[D]
VHT-OFDM[28] 802.11ac
(Wi-Fi 5) 		December 2013 5 20 Up to 693[D] 8 DL
MU-MIMO OFDM
(256-QAM) 		35 m (115 ft)[30] ?
40 Up to 1600[D]
80 Up to 3467[D]
160 Up to 6933[D]
HE-OFDMA 802.11ax
(Wi-Fi 6,
Wi-Fi 6E) 		May 2021 2.4, 5, 6 20 Up to 1147[E] 8 UL/DL
MU-MIMO OFDMA
(1024-QAM) 		30 m (98 ft) 120 m (390 ft)[F]
40 Up to 2294[E]
80 Up to 5.5 Gbit/s[E]
80+80 Up to 11.0 Gbit/s[E]
EHT-OFDMA 802.11be
(Wi-Fi 7) 		Sep 2024
(est.) 		2.4, 5, 6 80 Up to 11.5 Gbit/s[E] 16 UL/DL
MU-MIMO OFDMA
(4096-QAM) 		30 m (98 ft) 120 m (390 ft)[F]
160
(80+80) 		Up to 23 Gbit/s[E]
240
(160+80) 		Up to 35 Gbit/s[E]
320
(160+160) 		Up to 46.1 Gbit/s[E]
UHR 802.11bn
(Wi-Fi 8) 		May 2028
(est.) 		2.4, 5, 6,
42, 60, 71 		320 Up to
100000
(100 Gbit/s) 		16 Multi-link
MU-MIMO OFDM
(8192-QAM) 		? ?
WUR[G] 802.11ba October 2021 2.4, 5 4, 20 0.0625, 0.25
(62.5 kbit/s, 250 kbit/s) 		— OOK (multi-carrier OOK) ? ?
mmWave
(WiGig) 		DMG[31] 802.11ad December 2012 60 2160
(2.16 GHz) 		Up to 8085[32]
(8 Gbit/s) 		— OFDM,[A] single carrier, low-power single carrier[A] 3.3 m (11 ft)[33] ?
802.11aj April 2018 60[H] 1080[34] Up to 3754
(3.75 Gbit/s) 		— single carrier, low-power single carrier[A] ? ?
CMMG 802.11aj April 2018 45[H] 540,
1080 		Up to 15015[35]
(15 Gbit/s) 		4[36] OFDM, single carrier ? ?
EDMG[37] 802.11ay July 2021 60 Up to 8640
(8.64 GHz) 		Up to 303336[38]
(303 Gbit/s) 		8 OFDM, single carrier 10 m (33 ft) 100 m (328 ft)
Sub 1 GHz (IoT) TVHT[39] 802.11af February 2014 0.054–
0.79 		6, 7, 8 Up to 568.9[40] 4 MIMO-OFDM ? ?
S1G[39] 802.11ah May 2017 0.7, 0.8,
0.9 		1–16 Up to 8.67[41]
(@2 MHz) 		4 ? ?
Light
(Li-Fi) 		LC
(VLC/OWC) 		802.11bb December 2023
(est.) 		800–1000 nm 20 Up to 9.6 Gbit/s — O-OFDM ? ?
IR[A]
(IrDA) 		802.11-1997 June 1997 850–900 nm ? 1, 2 — PPM[A] ? ?
802.11 Standard rollups
  802.11-2007 (802.11ma) March 2007 2.4, 5 Up to 54 DSSS, OFDM
802.11-2012 (802.11mb) March 2012 2.4, 5 Up to 150[D] DSSS, OFDM
802.11-2016 (802.11mc) December 2016 2.4, 5, 60 Up to 866.7 or 6757[D] DSSS, OFDM
802.11-2020 (802.11md) December 2020 2.4, 5, 60 Up to 866.7 or 6757[D] DSSS, OFDM
802.11me September 2024
(est.) 		2.4, 5, 6, 60 Up to 9608 or 303336 DSSS, OFDM
  1. ^ a b c d e f g This is obsolete, and support for this might be subject to removal in a future revision of the standard
  2. ^ For Japanese regulation.
  3. ^ a b IEEE 802.11y-2008 extended operation of 802.11a to the licensed 3.7 GHz band. Increased power limits allow a range up to 5,000 m. As of 2009, it is only being licensed in the United States by the FCC.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Based on short guard interval; standard guard interval is ~10% slower. Rates vary widely based on distance, obstructions, and interference.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h For single-user cases only, based on default guard interval which is 0.8 microseconds. Since multi-user via OFDMA has become available for 802.11ax, these may decrease. Also, these theoretical values depend on the link distance, whether the link is line-of-sight or not, interferences and the multi-path components in the environment.
  6. ^ a b The default guard interval is 0.8 microseconds. However, 802.11ax extended the maximum available guard interval to 3.2 microseconds, in order to support Outdoor communications, where the maximum possible propagation delay is larger compared to Indoor environments.
  7. ^ Wake-up Radio (WUR) Operation.
  8. ^ a b For Chinese regulation.

802.11be Task Group

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The 802.11be Task Group is led by individuals affiliated with Qualcomm, Intel, and Broadcom. Those affiliated with Huawei, Maxlinear, NXP, and Apple also have senior positions.[13]

Commercial availability

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Hardware

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The Wi-Fi Alliance maintains a list of Wi-Fi 7 certified devices.[42]

Software

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Android 13 and higher provide support for Wi-Fi 7.[43]

The Linux 6.2 kernel provides support for Wi-Fi 7 devices. The 6.4 kernel added Wi-Fi 7 mesh support.[44] Linux 6.5 included significant driver support by Intel engineers, particularly support for MLO.[45]

Support for Wi-Fi 7 was added to Windows 11, as of build 26063.1.[46][47]

Notes

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  1. ^ MCS 9 is not applicable to all combinations of channel width and spatial stream count.
  2. ^ Per spatial stream
  3. ^ GI stands for guard interval.
  1. ^ 802.11ac only specifies operation in the 5 GHz band. Operation in the 2.4 GHz band is specified by 802.11n.
  2. ^ Wi-Fi 6E is the industry name that identifies Wi-Fi devices that operate in 6 GHz. Wi-Fi 6E offers the features and capabilities of Wi-Fi 6 extended into the 6 GHz band.
  3. ^ The Wi-Fi Alliance began certifying Wi-Fi 7 devices in 2024, but as of January 2025 the IEEE standard 802.11be is yet to be ratified.

References

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  1. ^ "MCS table (updated with 80211ax data rates)". semfionetworks.com.
  2. ^ "Understanding Wi-Fi 4/5/6/6E/7". wiisfi.com.
  3. ^ Reshef, Ehud; Cordeiro, Carlos (2023). "Future Directions for Wi-Fi 8 and Beyond". IEEE Communications Magazine. 60 (10). IEEE. doi:10.1109/MCOM.003.2200037. Retrieved 21 May 2024.
  4. ^ "What is Wi-Fi 8?". everythingrf.com. 25 March 2023. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
  5. ^ Giordano, Lorenzo; Geraci, Giovanni; Carrascosa, Marc; Bellalta, Boris (21 November 2023). "What Will Wi-Fi 8 Be? A Primer on IEEE 802.11bn Ultra High Reliability". arXiv:2303.10442.
  6. ^ "Wi-Fi 7". Wi-Fi Alliance. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  7. ^ Jackson, Mark (8 January 2024). "Wi-Fi Alliance Officially Certifies Kit for New Wi-Fi 7 Standard". ISPreview UK. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
  8. ^ Shankland, Stephen (3 September 2019). "Wi-Fi 6 is barely here, but Wi-Fi 7 is already on the way – With improvements to Wi-Fi 6 and its successor, Qualcomm is working to boost speeds and overcome congestion on wireless networks". CNET. Retrieved 20 August 2020.
  9. ^ a b Khorov, Evgeny (8 May 2020). "Current Status and Directions of IEEE 802.11be, the Future Wi-Fi 7". IEEE. 8: 88664–88688. Bibcode:2020IEEEA...888664K. doi:10.1109/ACCESS.2020.2993448. S2CID 218834597.
  10. ^ "Wi-Fi Generations". Wi-Fi Alliance. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  11. ^ López-Pérez, David (12 February 2019). "IEEE 802.11be – Extremely High Throughput: The Next Generation of Wi-Fi Technology Beyond 802.11ax". arXiv:1902.04320 [cs.IT].
  12. ^ "IEEE 802.11, The Working Group Setting the Standards for Wireless LANs". www.ieee802.org. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  13. ^ a b "IEEE P802.11 – TASK GROUP BE (EHT) – GROUP INFORMATION UPDATE". www.ieee802.org. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  14. ^ "The Next Generation of Wi-Fi Is Officially Here. But You Don't Need It (Yet)". The New York Times. 16 February 2024. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
  15. ^ Boever, Nick (17 January 2024). "The First Wi-Fi 7 Certified Devices Have Begun to Hit the Market". CEPRO. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
  16. ^ "Intel® Wi-Fi 7 Series Products and Solutions with Intel® Wi-Fi 7..." Intel. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
  17. ^ "802.11be Project Authorization Request (PAR)". Retrieved 12 March 2024.
  18. ^ Dave Cavalcanti; Jerome Henry; Ganesh Venkatesan (November 2003). "IEEE 802.11 features towards RAW". IETF.
  19. ^ Wi-Fi TSN Capabilities datatracker.ietf.org
  20. ^ 802.1 TSN over 802.11 with updates from developments in 802.11be ieee802.org
  21. ^ E. Khorov; I. Levitsky; I. F. Akyildiz (2020). "Current Status and Directions of IEEE 802.11be, the Future Wi-Fi 7". IEEE Access. 8 (in press). IEEE: 88664–88688. Bibcode:2020IEEEA...888664K. doi:10.1109/ACCESS.2020.2993448.
  22. ^ "Official IEEE 802.11 working group project timelines". 26 January 2017. Retrieved 12 February 2017.
  23. ^ "Wi-Fi CERTIFIED n: Longer-Range, Faster-Throughput, Multimedia-Grade Wi-Fi Networks" (PDF). Wi-Fi Alliance. September 2009.
  24. ^ a b Banerji, Sourangsu; Chowdhury, Rahul Singha. "On IEEE 802.11: Wireless LAN Technology". arXiv:1307.2661.
  25. ^ "The complete family of wireless LAN standards: 802.11 a, b, g, j, n" (PDF).
  26. ^ The Physical Layer of the IEEE 802.11p WAVE Communication Standard: The Specifications and Challenges (PDF). World Congress on Engineering and Computer Science. 2014.
  27. ^ IEEE Standard for Information Technology- Telecommunications and Information Exchange Between Systems- Local and Metropolitan Area Networks- Specific Requirements Part Ii: Wireless LAN Medium Access Control (MAC) and Physical Layer (PHY) Specifications. (n.d.). doi:10.1109/ieeestd.2003.94282
  28. ^ a b "Wi-Fi Capacity Analysis for 802.11ac and 802.11n: Theory & Practice" (PDF).
  29. ^ Belanger, Phil; Biba, Ken (31 May 2007). "802.11n Delivers Better Range". Wi-Fi Planet. Archived from the original on 24 November 2008.
  30. ^ "IEEE 802.11ac: What Does it Mean for Test?" (PDF). LitePoint. October 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 August 2014.
  31. ^ "IEEE Standard for Information Technology". IEEE Std 802.11aj-2018. April 2018. doi:10.1109/IEEESTD.2018.8345727.
  32. ^ "802.11ad – WLAN at 60 GHz: A Technology Introduction" (PDF). Rohde & Schwarz GmbH. 21 November 2013. p. 14.
  33. ^ "Connect802 – 802.11ac Discussion". www.connect802.com.
  34. ^ "Understanding IEEE 802.11ad Physical Layer and Measurement Challenges" (PDF).
  35. ^ "802.11aj Press Release".
  36. ^ "An Overview of China Millimeter-Wave Multiple Gigabit Wireless Local Area Network System". IEICE Transactions on Communications. E101.B (2): 262–276. 2018. doi:10.1587/transcom.2017ISI0004.
  37. ^ "IEEE 802.11ay: 1st real standard for Broadband Wireless Access (BWA) via mmWave – Technology Blog". techblog.comsoc.org.
  38. ^ "P802.11 Wireless LANs". IEEE. pp. 2, 3. Archived from the original on 6 December 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2017.
  39. ^ a b "802.11 Alternate PHYs A whitepaper by Ayman Mukaddam" (PDF).
  40. ^ "TGaf PHY proposal". IEEE P802.11. 10 July 2012. Retrieved 29 December 2013.
  41. ^ "IEEE 802.11ah: A Long Range 802.11 WLAN at Sub 1 GHz" (PDF). Journal of ICT Standardization. 1 (1): 83–108. July 2013. doi:10.13052/jicts2245-800X.115.
  42. ^ "Product Finder Results | Wi-Fi Alliance". www.wi-fi.org.
  43. ^ "Android 13 review". 20 October 2022.
  44. ^ "Linux 6.4 Has Many Networking Changes from a New Performance Tunable to More WiFi 7".
  45. ^ "Linux 6.5 Continues Making Preparations for WiFi 7, Enabling New Hardware".
  46. ^ Blog, Windows Insider (22 February 2024). "Announcing Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 26063 (Canary Channel)". Windows Insider Blog. Retrieved 23 February 2024.
  47. ^ Carrasqueira, João (22 February 2024). "Windows 11 preview adds support for Wi-Fi 7". XDA Developers. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
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