Wifi Standerd
Versions
There are many different versions of Wi-Fi: 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n (Wi-Fi 4[40]), 802.11h, 802.11i, 802.11-2007, 802.11-2012, 802.11ac (Wi-Fi 5[40]), 802.11ad, 802.11af, 802.11-2016, 802.11ah, 802.11ai, 802.11aj, 802.11aq, 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6[40]), 802.11ay.
| Generation | IEEE Standard | Maximum Linkrate |
|---|---|---|
| Wi‑Fi 6 | 802.11ax | 600–9608 Mbit/s |
| Wi‑Fi 5 | 802.11ac | 433–6933 Mbit/s |
| Wi‑Fi 4 | 802.11n | 72–600 Mbit/s |
Equipment frequently support multiple versions of Wi-Fi. To communicate, devices must use a common Wi-Fi version. The versions differ between the radio wavebands they operate on, the radio bandwidth they occupy, the maximum data rates they can support and other details. In general, lower frequencies have better range but have less capacity. Some versions permit the use of multiple antennas, which permits greater speeds as well as reduced interference.
Historically, equipment has simply listed the versions of Wi-Fi using the name of the IEEE standard that it supports. The Wi-Fi alliance has standardised generational numbering so that equipment can indicate that it supports Wi-Fi 4 (if the equipment supports 802.11n), Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac) and Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax). These generations have a high degree of backward compatibility with previous versions. The alliance have stated that the generational level 4, 5, or 6 can be indicated in the user interface when connected, along with the signal strength.[40]
