Wi-Fi Standards and Technology
Run a Speed TestEvery Wi-Fi standard from 802.11b to Wi-Fi 7, every frequency band from 2.4 GHz to 6 GHz, and every technology from MIMO to OFDMA — explained clearly so you can make sense of your router, your devices, and your wireless performance.
Wi-Fi Standards
Wi-Fi Standards History
From 802.11b in 1999 to Wi-Fi 7 in 2024 — how each generation raised the speed ceiling.
What Is Wi-Fi 6?
802.11ax brings OFDMA, 1024-QAM, and Target Wake Time — and why it matters even at home.
What Is Wi-Fi 6E?
Wi-Fi 6 extended to the 6 GHz band — a clean spectrum with no legacy devices and no DFS channels.
What Is Wi-Fi 7?
802.11be introduces Multi-Link Operation, 320 MHz channels, and 4K-QAM for multi-gigabit wireless.
Wi-Fi 4 vs Wi-Fi 5 vs Wi-Fi 6
How 802.11n, 802.11ac, and 802.11ax compare on speed, streams, and key technologies.
Frequency Bands
2.4 GHz vs 5 GHz Wi-Fi
Range vs speed — when to use each band and why your router broadcasts both simultaneously.
What Is 6 GHz Wi-Fi?
The newest Wi-Fi band available only to Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7 devices — why it is fast and interference-free.
What Is a DFS Channel?
Dynamic Frequency Selection channels on 5 GHz — more spectrum with a radar-avoidance tradeoff.
What Is 5G Home Internet?
Fixed wireless broadband over cellular networks — how it works, why speeds vary, and when it can replace cable or DSL.
Antenna and MIMO Technology
What Is MIMO?
Multiple Input Multiple Output — how using multiple antennas multiplies Wi-Fi throughput simultaneously.
What Is MU-MIMO?
Multi-User MIMO lets a router serve multiple devices simultaneously instead of taking turns.
What Is OFDMA?
The Wi-Fi 6 technology that subdivides a channel to serve many small devices at once — from IoT to smartphones.
What Is Beamforming?
How routers focus the Wi-Fi signal toward a specific device instead of broadcasting equally in all directions.
Channels and Configuration
Wi-Fi Channel Selection
Channels 1, 6, and 11 on 2.4 GHz; 36–165 on 5 GHz — how to pick the least congested one.
What Is Channel Width?
20, 40, 80, and 160 MHz channels — wider means faster but noisier, and why auto is usually safest.
What Is Band Steering?
How a router automatically moves devices to the best available band — and when it causes problems.
Security and Connectivity
What Is WPA3?
The current Wi-Fi security standard — what Simultaneous Authentication of Equals fixes over WPA2.
What Is 802.11r Fast Roaming?
How 802.11r, 802.11k, and 802.11v work together to let devices switch access points without dropping the connection.
Wi-Fi vs Ethernet
The speed, latency, and reliability tradeoffs between wireless and wired connections — and when each is the right choice.