As we depend on it more and more, Wi-Fi continues to evolve. The latest iteration, Wi-Fi 7, is no exception. With ultra-low latency and speeds that are up to 4.8x faster than its predecessor, Wi-Fi 7 is a must-have for anyone wanting to maximise their gaming experience. The wide range of improvements over Wi-Fi 6 will bring your gaming performance to new heights, with smoother gameplay, increased stability, and much more.
What is Wi-Fi 7?
Wi-Fi 7 (IEEE 802.11be) is the successor to Wi-Fi 6E. Essentially, it’s the newest version of Wi-Fi; as the name suggests, it’s the seventh generation. As with older generations, Wi-Fi 7 is backward compatible, meaning you can use it with older devices made for previous generations of Wi-Fi. However, to unlock Wi-Fi 7’s full potential, you’ll want to upgrade your devices to Wi-Fi 7-compatible variants. ASUS are a market leader in routers, especially those geared towards gaming with their ‘ROG’ line. We’ve linked a top gaming Wi-Fi 7 router from ASUS below, or feel free to check out the range of ASUS Wi-Fi 7 routers available at PB Tech.
Wi-Fi 7 brings several key improvements to the table, some of these are:
- Higher speeds: Wi-Fi 7 can support speeds up to 46 Gbps, which is a big jump from Wi-Fi 6’s maximum of 9.6 Gbps. Speed isn’t the only important factor in a good wireless experience, but it’s typically the one we look at first. After all, speed is fun! Wi-Fi 7’s increased capability in the speed department means downloading and uploading content will be much quicker. In an everyday context, things like watching videos, watching movies, and sending pictures are just a few examples of tasks that will become a lot faster thanks to Wi-Fi 7.
- Wider channels: Wi-Fi 7 supports 320 MHz ultrawide channels, a significant upgrade from the 160 MHz channels in Wi-Fi 6/6E. This wider bandwidth means more data can be transmitted at once. Think of a 2-lane motorway. Increasing your bandwidth is like adding more lanes. Wi-Fi 7 takes the 2-lane motorway of Wi-Fi 6E and doubles it, allowing for much higher data transmission capacity.
- Increased data rate: Wi-Fi 7 also packs 4K-QAM, a relatively unknown term that can quickly become too technical, so we’ll simplify it. The higher the ‘QAM’, the more signals you can pack per symbol. Going back to our motorway analogy, with higher 4K-QAM available now in Wi-Fi 7, each vehicle traveling on those motorway lanes can now pack more data than before. This will help to increase both download and upload rates, within the same timeframe.
- Vastly improved efficiency: Wi-Fi 7, like its predecessors, has a half-duplex protocol, meaning each client takes turns to send or receive, instead of being able to do so simultaneously. Imagine a push-to-talk radio, where only one person can talk at a time. On top of that, Wi-Fi clients are also limited to single-band connection, adding greater complexity to Wi-Fi optimization. To help with this, Wi-Fi 7 has introduced MLO (Multi-Link Operation), where devices are able to connect and communicate to the router via multiple frequency bands simultaneously. This allows for ‘seamless switching’, where your data will be allocated automatically through the most suitable band and direction. With MLO, you can say goodbye to the limited functionality of band steering, and enjoy the improved deterministic latency, throughput and reliability of your Wi-Fi connection. Alongside this, newly introduced features like Compressed Block Ack and Multiple Rus (Resource Units) to a single station, further improve transmission efficiency, making Wi-Fi 7 a must-have for mobile gamers.
- Support for more simultaneous connections: The new Wi-Fi technology supports more simultaneous streams (up to 16). The technology is called Multi-User Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MU-MIMO) and essentially enables multiple devices to be connected to the same network without a big impact on the overall Wi-Fi performance. MU-MIMO isn’t a new concept, but with Wi-Fi 7, it has been vastly improved.
- Improved flexibility across the spectrum: Wi-Fi 7 will work across the 4 GHz, 5 GHz, and the newly introduced 6 GHz bands. Different Wi-Fi bands have their own benefits. For example, 2.4 GHz can work within a much bigger range than 5GHz, though 5GHz offers much faster speeds. The 6 GHz band typically has the smallest range/coverage, though it also offers the fastest speeds.
Why is Wi-Fi 7 ideal for gaming?
Ultra-low latency for the competitive edge
Latency refers to the delay that occurs between a command being sent and the device responding. Latency is usually measured in milliseconds and is a key metric for gamers. Given the essence of playing games involves constant input from the player/s, having the lowest possible latency is crucial. If latency isn’t up to scratch, gamers will find themselves performing poorly in-game, not due to a lack of ability but because their latency just keeps letting them down. If you’re playing online or in a multiplayer format, this is even more important, with every millisecond making a difference, especially in game genres like first-person shooters. With Wi-Fi 7, gamers can experience nearly instantaneous reaction times in their favourite games.
Transfer data at lightning-quick speeds
Wi-Fi 7 supports speeds up to 46 Gbps, which is more than four times faster than Wi-Fi 6. This increase in speed is great news for gamers. You’ll be able to download games, updates, and patches faster, and high-resolution streaming will also speed right up. This is great for cloud gaming too, enabling gamers to enjoy even the most graphically intense games with levels of stability that we haven’t seen before.
More bandwidth for multiple users/devices
Every gamer’s worst nightmare - having to yell at siblings to stop using the Wi-Fi because your game won’t work. Network congestion has long been a pain point for many households, and as we rely more and more on Wi-Fi to use various devices around the house, having better bandwidth to keep up is essential. Wi-Fi 7 addresses this issue well, with support for up to 16 simultaneous streams, ensuring multiple devices can share the bandwidth without causing significant slowdowns. As a gamer, this means reduced interference and no more anger-filled meltdowns as you try to enjoy your favourite titles.
How Wi-Fi 7 benefits Cloud Gaming
Cloud gaming is growing rapidly and platforms like Xbox, PlayStation, and NVIDIA GeForce, are enabling gamers to access the best games without needing powerful hardware. The biggest threat to a seamless cloud gaming experience is an unstable internet connection. Wi-Fi 7 drastically improves this due to the many features outlined above. The new generation of Wi-Fi will no doubt entice more folks to give cloud gaming a try, with improvements in Wi-Fi speed and latency ensuring you can enjoy games just like before, except now via the convenience of the cloud. As games get better and better in terms of quality, they also become more demanding. So, an update like Wi-Fi 7 is always welcomed by gamers and those who make games alike, as it doesn’t hold you back from experiencing games at their very best.
How Wi-Fi 7 benefits Virtual and Augmented Reality (VR/AR) Gaming
Much like cloud gaming, VR/AR gaming is increasing in popularity among gamers. Most notably the ‘connected’ category of VR devices will see a big improvement with the new Wi-Fi generation. Connected VR devices work by connecting a headset to a console or PC, wirelessly. This is different from ‘tethered’ headsets which require a physical connection to a high-powered PC or console. Tethered headset users don’t get as much flexibility with their headset, due to constraints imposed by the physical connection. The other popular style of headset is ‘standalone’ which essentially works via the headset’s internal processing power. Given the size of these headsets, it’s difficult to get the same kind of performance you would if connected to a console or PC, so standalone, much like tethered, also has its compromises. With Wi-Fi 7, the connected category will be able to bring gamers the best of both worlds, via a wireless connection to a high-powered PC or console. This gives gamers the freedom to play untethered but means they don’t have to compromise on performance, as they would with a standalone unit. With the much faster speeds and ultra-low latency of Wi-Fi 7, there’s no doubt the connected category of headsets will see a big rise in popularity. The improvement in connection prevents poor performance but also helps with things like motion sickness, which is common on headsets with subpar connections.
Is Wi-Fi 7 available now?
Wi-Fi 7 is now available, and it’s been a decent amount of time since the initial release. This is great news because it means the market is already full of Wi-Fi 7 compatible devices, meaning you won’t have a Wi-Fi 7 router without the hardware to actually use its benefits. Check out the range of ASUS Wi-Fi 7 routers available at PB Tech, and don’t miss our top pick for gaming below.
Quick recap
Wi-Fi 7 is no doubt a huge leap in terms of wireless networking technology, and this is great news for gamers. With faster speeds, lower latency, and enhanced reliability, Wi-Fi 7 will bring your gaming experience to new levels. Those who want to get involved with cloud gaming or VR/AR gaming have even more reason to upgrade, with the improvements of Wi-Fi 7 promising to help both of these industries deliver a much more refined experience. So, what are you waiting for? Make the switch today and enjoy the competitive edge you get with Wi-Fi 7.
