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This article originally appeared in Spiceworks on September 20, 2023.

Wi-Fi® – particularly Wi-Fi 6E – plays a critical role in transforming enterprise connectivity. As the first choice for wireless indoor connectivity for a growing number of users and increasingly complex business applications, Wi-Fi is also a complementary technology that supports the performance of 5G applications. The convergence of the two technologies allows for seamless connectivity as users move from place to place throughout the day, providing coverage from the conference room to the parking lot and everywhere in between.

Wi-Fi 6E in enterprise settings

Wi-Fi is responsible for carrying most internet traffic generated by both businesses and consumers, according to a 2021 report from Analysis Mason. As the latest Wi-Fi standard, Wi-Fi 6E unlocks the unlicensed 6 GHz spectrum band to deliver the capabilities needed to support the high-bandwidth applications enterprises around the world depend on every day, including cloud computing, telepresence, and the sophisticated Internet of Things (IoT) devices and sensors that power daily operations like factory and inventory monitoring. With the lower latency and higher throughput the 6 GHz band provides, Wi-Fi 6E is poised to keep up with the rate of information exchange and virtual collaboration of today’s workplace – and innovation is only expected to accelerate. According to IDC’s latest enterprise WLAN market report, Wi-Fi 6E revenue increased by 14.1% from the fourth quarter of 2022 to the first quarter of 2023, constituting 10.4% of dependent access point revenues in the enterprise market. Currently, there are more than 980 devices certified for Wi-Fi 6E, and an estimated 473 million Wi-Fi 6E devices are expected to ship in 2023.

Part of Wi-Fi’s success is attributed to its affordable and sustainable nature. Wi-Fi connectivity requires minimal external infrastructure, making Wi-Fi implementation cost-effective and less invasive to the surrounding environment compared to the installation and maintenance of cellular towers. As a low-power technology, Wi-Fi does not require the heightened power levels of 5G and other cellular solutions in order to penetrate heavy, insulated exterior walls. Still, some emerging enterprise applications require the support of both cellular and Wi-Fi connectivity to deliver seamless broadband coverage.

Utilizing Wi-Fi with private 5G 

Beginning with a strong foundation of Wi-Fi connectivity supports enterprises’ continuously evolving digital needs, many of which occur indoors. While 5G is often implemented to facilitate outdoor connectivity, Wi-Fi 6E and 5G may be paired together in enterprise settings to ensure seamless, cost-effective coverage for critical applications such as chemical leak detection and factory management.

Implementing Wi-Fi and 5G together enables optimized connectivity even when users are transitioning between indoor and outdoor locations, which is especially useful in large industrial campuses. In an interview for The Signal, Kelly Burroughs, Solutions Director for Enterprise at iBwave, shared that network designers should utilize data to better understand their connectivity needs and determine where private 5G might best support various use cases, “turning the technology into more of a roadmap.”

Layering 5G into existing Wi-Fi networks is a key component to building highly efficient networks that support smart cities, allowing for increased reliability in outdoor applications. Smart city devices like water level monitors used to prevent flooding, traffic monitoring hardware, and smart street lighting rely on a private 5G network or carrier-grade Wi-Fi to report data back to city planners. Meanwhile, smartphone users and low-power IoT devices are best suited to remain on a reliable Wi-Fi network.

The future of enterprise connectivity

Internet connectivity is an essential socioeconomic function, and the capabilities of Wi-Fi 6E through the 6 GHz band offer increased capacity, faster speeds, and decreased latency. As enterprises and the technologies that empower them continue to advance, it is up to IT and network leaders to design and implement networks that provide reliable, secure, and efficient connectivity for users. With the ​​standard for enterprise connectivity rapidly evolving, it is vital for businesses to prepare future-forward networks that will further equip their companies for rapid growth and expansion, and this starts with a collaboration between Wi-Fi 6E and 5G.

The statements and opinions by each Wi-Fi Alliance member and those providing comments are theirs alone, and do not reflect the opinions or views of Wi-Fi Alliance or any other member. Wi-Fi Alliance is not responsible for the accuracy of any of the information provided by any member in posting to or commenting on this blog. Concerns should be directed to info@wi-fi.org.

NRC7394, the Next-Generation Wi-Fi HaLow SoC Providing a Low-Power, Small Footprint, and Lower Costs, is Now Available for Purchase and Evaluation

Transforming IoT Applications with Low-cost & Energy-conserving Wi-Fi HaLow

IPress Release (NRC7394)

RVINE, Calif., November 1, 2023 (Newswire.com) – Designed to be low-cost, energy-efficient, and small in size, NEWRACOM announces the commercial availability of the new Wi-Fi HaLow System on a Chip (SoC) to the market. The new Wi-Fi HaLow SoC, named NRC7394, represents innovative improvements in power consumption, size, and costs from our early experience and consequently is more competitive against existing Wi-Fi HaLow SoCs in the market. Wi-Fi HaLow is a long-range implementation of Wi-Fi technology based in the 750-950 MHz spectrum designed for a variety of IoT industries including building automation, smart homes, industrial IoT, smart cities, and wearables.

NRC7394 is a highly integrated SoC incorporating baseband (MAC & PHY), Sub 1 GHz radio transceiver, and ADC/DAC in a small 6mm x 6mm 48-QFN package. It is fully compliant with the IEEE 802.11ah standard which is the long-range and low-power version of the Wi-Fi standard. It supports 1/2/4 MHz channel bandwidth which yields 150 Kbps to 15 Mbps PHY rate that can handle low-rate sensors to high-rate surveillance camera applications.

An embedded Cortex-M3 ARM® processor in the NRC7394 offers enough processing power to accommodate the Wi-Fi subsystem and user applications in a single Wi-Fi SoC. NRC7394 includes two host interfaces, HSPI and UART, and rich peripherals such as general SPI, I2C, UART, PWM, auxiliary ADC, and GPIOs. The low-leakage retention memory inside NRC7394 can store code and data necessary for fast wake-up from deep-sleep mode.

The NRC7394 features a fully integrated Power Amplifier capable of +17dBm TX output and offers the capability to support various commercial external FEM (front-end module) devices for applications requiring higher transmission power.

The NRC7394 is capable of operating as an Access Point or Station device and supports additional network architectures including 802.11s mesh. The SoC can operate alongside an external processor in Hosted and “AT Command” modes or leverage on-chip processing and IO for low-power Standalone operation.

More information about the NRC7394 can be found on the NRC7394 Product Page. SDK and software documentation are available on our GitHub page at https://github.com/newracom.

If you are interested in purchasing an evaluation kit for the NRC7394 and getting silicon in hand, contact us at sales@newracom.com or at our contact page.

About NEWRACOM, Inc.

NEWRACOM, Inc., in Irvine, California, U.S., has rapidly become a leading developer and supplier of IoT-enabled wireless connectivity chipsets. We specialize in providing a broad range of Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11ah and IEEE 802.11b/g/n/ac/ax) that covers various connectivity needs in our lives. With our extensive and diverse Wi-Fi solutions, NEWRACOM provides customers with a “one-stop-shop,” offering a comprehensive solution that can serve multiple IoT applications including Smart Grid, Wearables, Smart Home and Office, Healthcare, and Industrial Automation. For more information, please visit online at http://www.newracom.com.

Heightened performance for complex applications

A person and a child using a computer Description automatically generated

Wi-Fi® is foundational connectivity for countless complex use cases. High capacity applications that enable immersive user experiences such as augmented, virtual, and extended reality (AR/VR/XR) and social gaming, as well as industrial applications that require real-time capabilities like factory monitoring and automotive use cases all rely on Wi-Fi to deliver high data throughputs and low latency. As use cases that provide immersive experiences, collaboration, and superior reliability quickly become mainstays in home and enterprise environments, Wi-Fi 7’s sophisticated feature set will bring the required level of advanced performance these applications demand.

Wi-Fi 6E unlocked the unlicensed 6 GHz band for Wi-Fi, and Wi-Fi 7 will heighten its potential. Based on IEEE 802.11be technology, Wi-Fi 7’s unique features offer extremely high throughputs, low latency and jitter, and increased reliability to support media-rich, immersive experiences. Wi-Fi 7 will deliver more advancements in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz frequency bands, and countries that make the entire 6 GHz band available to Wi-Fi will be able to experience its maximum potential – even in congested environments.

Wi-Fi Alliance® published a podcast series that highlighted key features and benefits of Wi-Fi 7 from companies including BroadcomIntel, and Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. Read on for their key takeaways.

The unique features of Wi-Fi 7 as heard from our members:

  • 320 MHz channels: The 6 GHz band provides massive throughput gains with twice the Wi-Fi channel bandwidth as Wi-Fi 6. In an episode of The Signal, Eric McLaughlin, VP and GM of Wireless Solutions at Intel, explained this increase in magnitude. “You go from the capacity of about 160 MHz channels in Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 6E to 320 MHz channels in Wi-Fi 7,” said McLaughlin. “So, you effectively double the size of the channel, which doubles your throughput, so you get faster speeds.”
  • 4K QAM: McLaughlin noted that the increase from 1K QAM to 4K QAM enables a higher density per signal for a 20% improvement in some aspects of performance. “If you’re on a PC device and you’ve got a two-antenna solution, your theoretical data rate moves from a max of 2.4 gigabits per second, with 1K QAM, to 5.8 gigabits per second with 4K QAM.” This upgrade allows for flawless streaming of 4K and 8K video, social cloud-based gaming without lag, and video conferencing with impeccable audio-visual quality.  
  • Multi-Link Operation (MLO): MLO technology is “a pillar by itself” according to Rahul Patel, senior vice president and general manager, Connectivity, Broadband and Networking, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., as it allows devices to combine different channels across frequency bands together for simultaneous transmission and reception of data over multiple links. “Where congestion and spectrum are not available,” said Patel, “and where wider channels are not easily available, Multi-Link Operation makes your link a lot more robust and helps you on the dimensions of speeds and feeds.” In an episode of The Signal, Vijay Nagarajan, VP, Wireless Connectivity Division at Broadcom noted MLO’s immense impact on latency, “If I’m able to shift to a 6 GHz channel, which is lighter in terms of load, then that worst case latency drops tremendously. We’ve seen latencies drop from a second all the way down to 10, 20 milliseconds by the use of MLO.”

An ideal match for multigigabit broadband

As demand grows for multigigabit connectivity, broadband service providers are increasingly offering faster broadband to residential and business subscribers. In North America, for example, operators are offering broadband subscriptions for 8 gigabit broadband. Wi-Fi 7 is built to deliver on this capacity wirelessly. “Triband Wi-Fi 7 access points with 320 MHz channels, multilink operations, and 4K QAM collectively provide sufficient capacity to match even a 10 gigabit broadband connection,” said Nagarajan.

Wi-Fi 7: Unleashing Wi-Fi innovation

Wi-Fi 7 is fueling the evolution of wireless connectivity and will play a critical role across various industries, ranging from education to enterprise and even critical mission sectors. As Patel noted, “Applications like security, or managing logistics in warehouses, have more robust coverage across the entire warehouse because robotics are playing a big role in that equation. You want a certain level of manageability, a certain level of quality of service deployed. I think Wi-Fi 7 plays a huge role there.

By enabling higher capacity, increased power efficiency, and greater quality performance, Wi-Fi 7’s unique feature set will support interactive and complex use cases like AR/VR/XR, immersive 3D training, and high-definition video streaming. Wi-Fi 7 is expected to see increased adoption with Wi-Fi Alliance® certification availability coming in Q1 2024, which typically serves as an inflection point in the industry. With an estimated 84 million Wi-Fi 7 devices that will ship in 2024,1 Wi-Fi 7 will soon usher in the next generation of Wi-Fi.

The statements and opinions by each Wi-Fi Alliance member and those providing comments are theirs alone, and do not reflect the opinions or views of Wi-Fi Alliance or any other member. Wi-Fi Alliance is not responsible for the accuracy of any of the information provided by any member in posting to or commenting on this blog. Concerns should be directed to info@wi-fi.org.

Waterloo, Canada & Jonkoping, Sweden – Mercku, a smart home solutions provider, and Junet are partnering to offer Mercku’s intelligent connectivity suite to enhance Junet’s clientele experience. Junet has been providing internet solutions all over Sweden for over 19 years, and to expand its Wi-Fi solutions portfolio, it will provide direct access to a full range of Mercku’s operator-oriented networking suite. Mercku’s networking suite encompasses mesh Wi-Fi connectivity and wireless sensing solutions for operators, service providers, MSPs, and small-medium businesses in Sweden.

Junet started as an ISP (Internet Service Provider) in 2005 with a mission to provide the best fiber internet to Swedes in Jonkoping. Over the years, it expanded its footprint across the Swedish region and is now one of the best fiber providers in the country. To enhance the Wi-Fi experience of its clientele, Junet will expand its connectivity boundaries with Mercku on board and officially supply a wide range of high-performance networking technology solutions. Junet will offer Mercku’s robust intelligent Mesh Wi-Fi systems, promising unparalleled connectivity, and seamless performance.

Mercku, a Canadian connectivity company, designs and builds networking and smart home solutions for service providers worldwide. Designed by Mercku’s Red Dot award-winning product team, the M6 Wi-Fi 6 mesh series is designed to provide a future-proof platform for deploying advanced services and applications in the industry. With proprietary technology developed by their founders’ decades of expertise in RF (Radio Frequencies) technologies, Mercku’s mesh routers aim to be the intelligent center of home networks, providing reliable connectivity and security. In addition, Mercku is providing the world’s first long-term remote monitoring solution by enabling real-time, accurate, and non-invasive biodata monitoring. The latest introduction to Mercku’s portfolio is the 5G-enabled customer-premises equipment solution, featuring network fail-over capabilities to ensure minimal downtime. Mercku is focused on providing ISP, MSPs, and home users with fast and reliable connectivity.

About Junet: 

Junet started as an ISP (Internet Service Provider) in 2005 with a mission to deliver broadband services to student apartments in Jonkoping. Proving to be one of the best fibre providers, Junet expanded all over Sweden and now offers various services complementing its initial broadband services, such as Telephone services, TV & streaming services, Internet security, and even data storage offerings. In addition, Junet provides customized Wi-Fi solutions to cater to the needs of its individual and business clientele.

To learn more, visit their website at: https://www.junet.se/

For Press information, contact:  martin.palsson@junet.se

About Mercku Connectivity:    

Founded in 2017 in Waterloo, Canada, Mercku is transforming how businesses offer their users smart home devices and services. Built on decades of design and engineering expertise, Mercku’s founders have over 450 patents in wireless technology and bring proprietary innovation to the world of connectivity. Mercku’s relentless innovation and thought leadership transforms the Wi-Fi and smart home space with their latest connectivity-as-a-service suite of hardware, software, and premium features.

To learn more, visit their website at www.mercku.com

For Press information, contact: contact@mercku.com

Austin, TX and Washington, D.C. – October 19, 2023 – Wi-Fi Alliance® commends the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) on the significant step to expand regulatory framework for the rapidly growing 6 GHz unlicensed device ecosystem. This order enables a new era of Wi-Fi®, and through the leadership of Chairwoman Rosenworcel and the FCC Commissioners – together with strong support from FCC engineers –  a new generation of Wi-Fi connected devices will emerge. The Wi-Fi industry is eager to leverage this decision to realize benefits for American consumers and enterprises.

About Wi-Fi Alliance® | www.wi-fi.org
Wi-Fi Alliance® is the worldwide network of companies that brings you Wi-Fi®. Members of our collaboration forum come together from across the Wi-Fi ecosystem with the shared vision to connect everyone and everything, everywhere, while providing the best possible user experience. Since 2000, Wi-Fi Alliance has completed more than 80,000 Wi-Fi certifications. The Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ seal of approval designates products with proven interoperability, backward compatibility, and the highest industry-standard security protections in place. Today, Wi-Fi carries more than half of the internet’s traffic in an ever-expanding variety of applications. Wi-Fi Alliance continues to drive the adoption and evolution of Wi-Fi, which billions of people rely on every day.

The whitepaper “Cognitive Systems Confidential: How WiFi Motion Can Play With Other Security Solutions” explores the integration of Cognitive Systems’ Wi-Fi Sensing solution, WiFi Motion, into the realm of home security.

As the demand for reliable and comprehensive security solutions grows, security providers are strategically adopting WiFi Motion to enhance their offerings. WiFi Motion seamlessly transforms existing routers and devices into a comprehensive motion sensing network, enabling over-the-air upgrades and adapting to evolving security needs.

The whitepaper outlines four key strategies for service providers looking to incorporate WiFi Motion into their offerings: upselling to premium security, monetizing DIY security with added features, streamlining existing services, and integrating new context into professional security.

By leveraging WiFi Motion’s innovative capabilities, security providers can enhance user experiences, reduce costs, increase customer satisfaction, and ultimately drive revenue growth. WiFi Motion holds significant potential to revolutionize the home security landscape and urges security providers to embrace its capabilities for successful differentiation and innovation in a dynamic market.

To learn more about Cognitive Systems, click here to visit their website.

  • Newracom, AHPC, ALFA Network, ASKEY, AzureWave, and others come together to promote the adoption of Wi-Fi HaLow at the Expo.
  • Wi-Fi HaLow consortium declares that Wi-Fi HaLow is in full swing in IoT markets through various showcases.

IMG_0115

Irvine, CA, October 24th, 2023 – Newracom is set to participate in AIoT Taiwan Expo hosted by CIoud Computing and IoT Association in Taiwan (CIAT), taking place at the Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center from October 25 to 27, 2023. This will mark the inaugural appearance of Wi-Fi HaLow at the CIAT IoT Pavilion. Newracom is collaborating with industry leaders such as AHPC, ASKEY, ALFA Network, AzureWave, NTT, and Furuno to advance the prominence of Wi-Fi HaLow technology as a standard for IoT connectivity. Their collective objective is to propel the widespread adoption of Wi-Fi HaLow for various IoT devices and to highlight the early commercialization successes of this technology.

During AIoT Expo, the consortium of Wi-Fi HaLow solution providers will showcase a range of innovations. Askey will announce the industry’s first FCC and TELEC certified Wi-Fi HaLow IP camera, a small form factor NRC7394 Wi-Fi HaLow module, and a Tri-band WiFi+11ah AP router, available for the Japan and US market initially. Other key highlights include the industry’s smallest Wi-Fi HaLow System on Module (SoM) from AzureWave, a comprehensive Japan-certified sensor and imaging solution demonstration by AHPC, and Newracom’s next-generation Wi-Fi HaLow SoC named NRC7394.

Tadao Kobayashi, Chairman of the AHPC (802.11AH Promotional Council) in Japan, comments, “Since the inception of AHPC, Newracom has been actively engaged in field experiments related to 802.11ah conducted by AHPC. They have consistently enhanced the hardware and software of 802.11ah chips to align with Japanese regulations. Newracom has played a pivotal role in making 802.11ah available in Japan. At the Expo, Newracom – a chip vendor, ASKEY – a product manufacturer, and AHPC – a consortium of 150 companies and organizations, will showcase their latest 802.11ah devices, products, and services. We aim to forge a new alliance that promotes Taiwanese IT entrepreneurship and the expansion of 802.11ah business.”

Patrick Lin, Vice President of Product Development at AzureWave, remarks, “Newracom’s remarkable accomplishments in the Wi-Fi HaLow product domain underscore their unwavering dedication to innovation and excellence. Their seamless collaboration with AzureWave has not only raised connectivity standards but also transformed the market landscape. Together, they have set a new benchmark for reliable, high-performance wireless solutions, showcasing the power of synergy and expertise in driving technological progress, which we will exhibit at the Expo.”

“Through cooperation with world-class chip developers – Newracom, ALFA Network Inc will continue to provide innovative products and strive to become a leading promoter of the smart world of the Internet of Things” commented Johnson Wang, General Manager of ALFA Network.

Tommy Lin, Research and Development AVP at ASKEY, said “With the growing popularity of IoT devices, the demand for low-power, long-distance communication is also rising. The Wi-Fi HaLow’s low power consumption and long-range may make it a particularly suitable solution for many IoT applications. Askey Computer has always been committed to promoting innovation in technology. Through cooperation with Newracom, we look forward to deploying Wi-Fi HaLow products more widely and jointly promoting the rapid growth of this market in various industries and regions.”

James Lee, Senior Director at ASKEY, followed with, “We are proud to have successfully developed the world’s first Wi-Fi HaLow camera. The launch of this product means that we have a technological leadership position in the field of Internet of Things. The ability to transmit long-distance wireless images is a goal that everyone is looking forward to, and Askey Computer has realized this dream for this industry with the Newracom chip. We look forward to it providing broader development prospects for global IoT applications.”

Frank Lin, Vice President of Global Marketing and Sales at Newracom, adds, “The Wi-Fi HaLow community has united to demonstrate the readiness of this connectivity standard for global implementation. AHPC, ASKEY, AzureWave, ALFA Network, and many other industry leaders are advancing Wi-Fi HaLow’s capabilities, ushering in a new era of linking IoT devices with fast, long-range, low-power connectivity.”

About NEWRACOM, Inc.

NEWRACOM, Inc., located in Irvine, California, U.S., has rapidly become a leading developer and supplier of IoT-enabled wireless connectivity chipsets. We specialize in providing a broad range of Wi-Fi (IEEE 802.11ah and IEEE 802.11b/g/n/ac/ax) that covers various connectivity needs in our lives. With our extensive and diverse Wi-Fi solutions, NEWRACOM enables customers with a “one-stop shop,” offering a comprehensive solution that can serve multiple IoT applications including Smart Grid, Wearables, Smart Home and Office, Healthcare, and Industrial Automation. For more information, please visit online at http://www.newracom.com.

About AHPC

The AHPC is committed to implementing the IEEE standard 802.11ah, known as Wi-Fi HaLow, in Japan, offering more features than the existing LPWA for IoT wireless systems. Established in November 2018, the organization gained significance with the revision of the Wireless Equipment Regulations by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications in September 2022, which permitted the use of IEEE 802.11ah in the domestic 920MHz band. The AHPC is made up of over 150 members including NTT, KDDI, Softbank and others, their full member list is available at www.11ahpc.org/memberlist/index.html. For more information, please visit www.11ahpc.org.

Bangalore, October 18, 2023. Aprecomm, a pioneering network intelligence provider for broadband infrastructure, has announced its global collaboration for powering Mercku’s WiFi mesh devices.

The partnership will enhance Mercku’s innovative WiFi connectivity solutions with Aprecomm’s AI-enabled analytics platform.

Mercku equipment will now have out-of-the-box support for Aprecomm’s network intelligence cloud, which helps optimize connectivity experience for homes and small businesses. Communication service providers using Mercku WiFi equipment will now have complete visibility to the network and can resolve customer equipment inquiries in minutes, leveraging the fully automated root-cause analysis.

Speaking about this partnership, Pramod Gummaraj, CEO, Aprecomm said, “Aprecomm’s strategic partnership with Mercku will transform WiFi experience management for ISPs in Mercku’s markets. We will empower ISPs to improve broadband rollout efficiency with our unique technology, propelling us to unparalleled success.”.

“At Mercku, we pride ourselves on marrying art with technology, turning into solutions which both users and operators love.” says Shi Ge, Co-Founder and CEO, Mercku. “With Aprecomm Wi-Fi Intelligence integration, Mercku’s ISP partners can further reduce operating costs, while providing more reliable connectivity experience to the end-user.”

Guharajan Sivakumar, CTO, Aprecomm spoke about the partnership and said, “Our artificial intelligence-based solution boosts WiFi performance, giving Mercku users a flawless internet experience and Service Providers cutting-edge technology to understand subscriber experience.”

About Aprecomm
Aprecomm provides Artificial Intelligence (AI) enabled Software Stack to measure WiFi Experience for broadband and enterprise users. Aprecomm’s patented WiFi intelligence solutions help improve subscriber’s quality-of-experience by proactively identifying and troubleshooting WiFi issues. This helps ISPs and Enterprises improve support efficiency, reduce downtime, and bring down operating costs. Aprecomm solutions currently manage more than five million WiFi equipment and have proven positive ROI for communication service providers across the world.

About Mercku.
Founded in 2017 in Waterloo, Canada, Mercku is transforming how businesses offer their users smart home devices and services. Built on decades of design and engineering expertise, Mercku’s founders have over 450 patents in wireless technology and bring proprietary innovation to the world of connectivity. Mercku’s relentless innovation and thought leadership transforms the Wi-Fi and smart home space with their latest connectivity-as-a-service suite of hardware, software, and premium features.

OCTOBOX testbed enables developers to ensure exacting high-performance requirements of the next generation of wireless devices

FREDERICK, MD – October 16, 2023 – Spirent Communications plc (LSE: SPT), the leading provider of test and assurance solutions for next-generation devices and networks, today announced that Spirent OCTOBOX is ready for testing the demanding requirements of Wi-Fi 7 (IEEE 802.11be). Spirent’s market-leading automated modular test platform for Wi-Fi devices now boasts the capabilities to emulate the unique demands of Wi-Fi’s latest generation, promising faster speeds, greater traffic capacity, and lower latency.Wi-Fi has become mission-critical for productivity, information, and entertainment with vastly increased applications in the home and industry. To support its ever-broadening use, Wi-Fi 7 brings new functionality and features, such as lower latency and faster throughput, but has added new testing challenges with the addition of restricted service periods, multi-link operation, and other technology advancements.“Wi-Fi 7 is a very challenging technology to test due to the many complex nascent technologies it incorporates,” said James Kimery, Vice President of Product Management with Spirent’s Lifecycle Service Assurance business. “To meet these challenges in the evolution of Wi-Fi, Spirent has advanced the OCTOBOX testbeds to evaluate the breadth of these new requirements and include upgrade paths for existing customers. This allows them to maintain their investments as they look to ensure the latest Wi-Fi 7 devices and products meet the exacting new standards and performance needs.”As a significant evolution, Wi-Fi 7 requires new testing approaches for communication service providers, network equipment manufacturers, internet service providers, and enterprises alike, to ensure their customers can take advantage of Wi-Fi 7 performance improvements. Dramatically increased traffic capacity, significantly lower latency, less congestion, and greater reliability are ways in which Wi-Fi 7 will deliver the performance demanded by the applications of the future, such as 8K video streaming, cloud gaming, and augmented and virtual reality (AR and VR).

OCTOBOX is the only platform that can comprehensively test stringent Wi-Fi 7 standards by characterizing the unique capabilities of Wi-Fi 7 now and in the future as the requirements and related test cases evolve. With a modular design for easy upgrades, OCTOBOX provides a controlled environment to emulate real-world conditions in a repeatable manner, combining high performance instrumentation and analysis capabilities with the most sophisticated automation software. OCTOBOX simplifies Wi-Fi 7 test set-up, reduces testing duration, and enhances repeatability, resulting in actionable business outcomes.

“Spirent OCTOBOX is ready to test the rigorous requirements of Wi-Fi 7 with a robust, fully automated market-leading test platform. Our solution provides realistic deployment of varied environments, traffic, and interferer conditions to test real-world conditions in the lab, mimicking conditions found in a home, office, or stadium,” says Kimery. “As Wi-Fi 7 momentum builds, OCTOBOX is tailored to these new enhancements with detailed analysis, easy-to-understand results, and rich troubleshooting to help ensure that routers and devices are ready for deployment.”

Latest capabilities include:

  • Isolated feature-by-feature testing
  • High modulation rates
  • Detailed, dynamic characterization of the delay performance of the device
  • Day zero continuous testing with automation test packages
  • Multi-location, multi-channel, multi-band sniffing

OCTOBOX with Wi-Fi 7 will be shown for the first time at SCTE Cable-Tec Expo 2023 in Colorado (October 16 – 19), booth #842, or for more information visit https://www.spirent.com/wifi.

Austin, Texas and Prague, Czech Republic  – October 17, 2023 – Wi-Fi Alliance® has surpassed 80,000 certified products, bringing a momentous number of high-quality, Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ devices to users worldwide.

80K

Wi-Fi CERTIFIED helps ensure products meet high standards for interoperability and security. Achieving this milestone comes at a time of incredible momentum for the Wi-Fi® industry, including the addition of new Wi-Fi CERTIFIED 6® testing to support authorization of 6 GHz standard power devices and Wi-Fi 7 certification coming in the first quarter of 2024. Wi-Fi products can be certified for core functionality like the various Wi-Fi generations, and different applications such as multiple access point Wi-Fi systems and seamless connectivity experiences while mobile. Certifying a product through Wi-Fi Alliance demonstrates a company is committed to providing the highest quality devices and bringing the best experience for their customers.

Wi-Fi CERTIFIED products offer benefits across the Wi-Fi ecosystem. Certified interoperability supports lower return rates, reduced support costs, higher customer satisfaction, and increased sales volumes. Retailers and service providers request Wi-Fi CERTIFIED products to offer customers high quality, secure devices that deliver good user experiences.

Learn more about the value of Wi-Fi CERTIFIED in our video or visit www.wi-fi.org/certification for more information.

About Wi-Fi Alliance® | www.wi-fi.org
Wi-Fi Alliance® is the worldwide network of companies that brings you Wi-Fi®. Members of our collaboration forum come together from across the Wi-Fi ecosystem with the shared vision to connect everyone and everything, everywhere, while providing the best possible user experience. Since 2000, Wi-Fi Alliance has completed more than 80,000 Wi-Fi certifications. The Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ seal of approval designates products with proven interoperability, backward compatibility, and the highest industry-standard security protections in place. Today, Wi-Fi carries more than half of the internet’s traffic in an ever-expanding variety of applications. Wi-Fi Alliance continues to drive the adoption and evolution of Wi-Fi, which billions of people rely on every day.