The 802.11ac Wave 2 Wi-Fi standard has started to gain rapid traction, and will become the highest shipping Wi-Fi standard yet. This standard provides significant benefits to users and a better Wi-Fi user experience compared to 802.11n and 802.11ac Wave 1. Despite low initial consumer awareness and OEM concerns over client device availability, OEMs, service providers and enterprises have embraced the standard, which is now gaining rapid traction and will become the highest shipping Wi-Fi standard yet.
According to Christopher Taylor, Director of RFWC, “802.11ac Wave 2 with MU-MIMO provides significant benefits to users and a better Wi-Fi user experience compared to 802.11n and 802.11ac Wave 1, but works best when both ends of the Wi-Fi connection have Wave 2 capable radio chips. With the efforts of Qualcomm and other chip suppliers, more than 60 mobile device models with 802.11ac Wave 2 have now reached the market, and Wi-Fi equipment vendors have embraced Wave 2 for residential and enterprise Wi-Fi infrastructure applications.”
David Watkins, Director of the Strategy Analytics Connected Home Devices service, added that “Hundreds of millions of Wave 2-enabled mobile devices will ship in 2016, leading to sales of tens of millions of Wave 2 routers and related infrastructure through 2017.”
More information about this can be seen in the report - 802.11ac Wave 2 with MU-MIMO: The Next Mainstream Wi-Fi Standard, published by the Strategy Analytics RF & Wireless Component Services (RFWC).
