First (1G), second (2G), third (3G) and fourth (4G) generations of mobile technology are not new to us, however, 5G WiFi is, something that we got to hear in 2012-13.
Now the Question is What is 5G exactly?
5G WiFi refers to 802.11ac, the latest version of WiFi technology. 802.11 is a set of IEEE standards that govern wireless networking transmission methods. They are commonly used today in 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, and 802.11n versions.
It is also termed as Gigabit WiFi since it is the first WiFi technology that is capable of offering peak data rates of 1 Gbps or more, even up to 3.6 Gbps, compared to the 600 Mbps peak data rate possible with 802.11n, aka N or Wireless-N, 11ac’s predecessor. Now, why it is called the 5G WiFi is because it is the fifth generation of the technology after 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, and 802.11n.
The first generation of WiFi 802.11a with 3Mbps speed was used during 1997-1998 period, the second generation, 802.11b, with 11 Mbps was used during 1999-2001, the third, 802.11g, with 54 Mbps was used from 2002 to 2006 and the fourth 802.11n with 600 Mbps was used from 2007 till 2011. Development of 802.11n began in 2002, but it took seven years for the finalization of this standard.
It was Broadcom who first started using the term 5G WiFi when it launched its 802.11ac chips, early this year and also has a website http://www.5gwifi.org dedicated for this.
Now the Question is What is 5G exactly?
5G WiFi refers to 802.11ac, the latest version of WiFi technology. 802.11 is a set of IEEE standards that govern wireless networking transmission methods. They are commonly used today in 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, and 802.11n versions.
It is also termed as Gigabit WiFi since it is the first WiFi technology that is capable of offering peak data rates of 1 Gbps or more, even up to 3.6 Gbps, compared to the 600 Mbps peak data rate possible with 802.11n, aka N or Wireless-N, 11ac’s predecessor. Now, why it is called the 5G WiFi is because it is the fifth generation of the technology after 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, and 802.11n.
The first generation of WiFi 802.11a with 3Mbps speed was used during 1997-1998 period, the second generation, 802.11b, with 11 Mbps was used during 1999-2001, the third, 802.11g, with 54 Mbps was used from 2002 to 2006 and the fourth 802.11n with 600 Mbps was used from 2007 till 2011. Development of 802.11n began in 2002, but it took seven years for the finalization of this standard.
It was Broadcom who first started using the term 5G WiFi when it launched its 802.11ac chips, early this year and also has a website http://www.5gwifi.org dedicated for this.
