Many products conform to the802.11a,802.11b/g/n, and802.11acwireless standards, collectively known as Wi-Fi technologies.
Other wireless technologies, such as Bluetooth, also exist, fulfilling specific networking functions.
For quick reference,802.11be (Wi-Fi 7), approved in 2024, is the most recent standard.
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These are routinely updated, much like how software is updated on smartphones or computers.
What Is 802.11?
In 1997, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers created the first WLAN standard.
They called it802.11after the name of the group formed to oversee its development.
Unfortunately, 802.11 only supported a maximumnetwork bandwidthof 2 Mbpstoo slow for most applications.
For this reason, ordinary 802.11 wireless products are no longer manufactured.
However, an entire family has sprung up from this initial standard.
Some building blocks are minor touch-ups, while others are quite large.
So, for example, the most recent roll-up occurred in December 2020 with 802.11-2020.
Since then, minor updates have happened, and another large roll-up will eventually encompass them.
Below is a brief look at the most recently approved iterations, outlined from newest to oldest.
Other iterations, like 802.11bn (Wi-Fi 8), are still being approved.
It’s much faster than Wi-Fi 6, reaching speeds up to 46 Gbps.
Wi-Fi 7 is designed to use power efficiently and handle crowded Wi-Fi areas better.
Wi-Fi 6E is an extension of this standard that adds the6 GHz band.
The goal is to maintain backward compatibility with 802.11ad.
It competes with Bluetooth, given its lower power needs.
802.11ad
This standard was approved in December 2012 and is freakishly fast (several Gbits/second).
However, the client machine must be within 30 feet of the access point.
Most home wireless routers are compliant with this standard.
Industry standards groups ratified 802.11n in 2009 with specifications providing up to 600 Mbps of data pipe bandwidth.
802.11g attempts to combine the best of both 802.11a and 802.11b.
802.11g supports bandwidth up to 54 Mbps and uses the 2.4 GHz frequency for greater range.
802.11g is backward compatible with 802.11b, meaning that 802.11gaccess pointswill work with 802.11b wirelessnetwork adaptersand vice versa.
However, the entire connection slows to match any 802.11b devices on the connection.
802.11g is also unofficially referred to asWi-Fi 3.
Because 802.11b gained popularity much faster than 802.11a, some folks believe that 802.11a was created after 802.11b.
In fact, 802.11a was created at the same time.
802.11a supports bandwidth up to 54 Mbps and signals in a regulated frequency spectrum around 5 GHz.
This higher frequency, compared to 802.11b, shortens the range of 802.11a networks.
The higher frequency also means 802.11a signals have more difficulty penetrating walls and other obstructions.
Because 802.11a and 802.11b use different frequencies, the two technologies are incompatible.
802.11a is also unofficially referred to asWi-Fi 2.
802.11b supports a theoretical speed of up to 11 Mbps.
A more realistic bandwidth of 2 Mbps (TCP) and 3 Mbps (UDP) should be expected.
802.11b uses the sameunregulatedradio signaling frequency (2.4GHz) as the original 802.11 standard.
Vendors often prefer using these frequencies to lower their production costs.
However, by installing 802.11b gear at a reasonable distance from other appliances, interference can easily be avoided.
802.11b is also unofficially referred to asWi-Fi 1.
What About Bluetooth and the Rest?
However, they may have been supplanted or canceled and are not relevant to the information in this article.
FAQ
The first popular consumer machine to offer Wi-Fi was the 1999 iBook (Clamshell design).
