WiFi 7 routers (including WiFi 7 routers without 6GHz band support)

[xiaofan]

Independent link speeds

6GHz


5GHz


2.4GHz


MLO definitely has a problem. It cannot show the 2.4/5GHz. At one time it can show 2.4 and 6GHz but the test terminates halfway. 5GHz not showing in MLO

1. Link speed is pretty good, 6G Link speed is even better than previously posted.

1) 6GHz link speed is superb.
TX --> 5764 Mbps --> 2x2 BE 320MHz, 4906 QAM, this is the max link speed
RX --> 5187 Mbps --> 2x2 BE 320MHz, 4096 QAM max link speed is 5764 Mbps. This is close.

2) 5GHz link speed is on the low side but still decent. Maybe the 6GHz link affects the 5GHz link (not so sure)
TX --> 1200 Mbps --> 2x2 BE 80 MHz, 1024 QAM. This is below the 2882MBps theoretical max (2x2 BE 160MHz, 4096 QAM). The router even supports HE240 but no so sure if any WiFi 7 clients supports that as of now (except 5GHz-1 and 5GHz-2 MLO operation).

RX --> 648 Mbps --> this is even lower than TX.

3) 2.4GHz link is normal
2.4GHz is just too congested for typical Singapore households.

2. Theoretical max for the EB810v router and typical 2 x 2 BE client

1) EB810v BE22000 Tri-Band Wi-Fi --> router is 4 x 4

• 6 GHz: 11520 Mbps (802.11be, 4x4 BE 320MHz, 4096 QAM)
• 5 GHz: 8640 Mbps (802.11be, 4x4 BE 240MHz, 4096 QAM)
• 2.4 GHz: 1376 Mbps (802.11be, 4x4 BE)

2) 2x2 BE client (without considering MLO) like flagship Android phones

• 6 GHz: 5764 Mbps (802.11be, 2x2 BE 320MHz, 4096 QAM)
• 5 GHz: 2882 Mbps (802.11be, 2x2 BE 160MHz, 4096 QAM)
• 2.4 GHz: 688 Mbps (802.11be, 2x2 BE)

 

[xiaofan]

New wireless test -- local (not internet) wireless speedtest using iperf3, so that the speed is not limited by my Singtel 1Gbps plan.

Wireless router: ZTE BE7200 Pro+ (China version WiFi 7 router, no 6GHz band, with MLO support)
ZTE BE7200 Pro+ (中兴问天BE7200Pro+). initial launching price is only at RMB 599. This is a good buy if you do not like the form factor of XIaomi BE7000. Dual 2.5G ports, 1GB RAM, USB 3.0 port

iperf3 server -- Proxmox PVE 8.0 LxC container
iperf3 client -- Acer Windows 11 laptop with Intel AX201 WiFi 6 adapter (2x2 AX 160MHz 1024 QAM, max PHY speed 2402Mbps).

Results: close range at 1.5m away, pretty good for a RMB 599 router. But I do not have a WiFi 7 client to test the full potential of this router (may not get much though with MLO with this dual band router, since 2.4GHz is not that useful to boost the speed at close range).
Wireless download speed at 1.70Gbps
Wireless upload speed at 1.50Gbps

PS C:\work\speedtest\iperf-3.15-win64> .\iperf3.exe -c 192.168.38.6 -R
Connecting to host 192.168.38.6, port 5201
Reverse mode, remote host 192.168.38.6 is sending
[  5] local 192.168.38.120 port 12582 connected to 192.168.38.6 port 5201
[ ID] Interval           Transfer     Bitrate
[  5]   0.00-1.00   sec   200 MBytes  1.68 Gbits/sec
[  5]   1.00-2.00   sec   189 MBytes  1.58 Gbits/sec
[  5]   2.00-3.00   sec   200 MBytes  1.67 Gbits/sec
[  5]   3.00-4.00   sec   200 MBytes  1.68 Gbits/sec
[  5]   4.00-5.00   sec   206 MBytes  1.73 Gbits/sec
[  5]   5.00-6.00   sec   204 MBytes  1.71 Gbits/sec
[  5]   6.00-7.00   sec   207 MBytes  1.73 Gbits/sec
[  5]   7.00-8.00   sec   206 MBytes  1.72 Gbits/sec
[  5]   8.00-9.00   sec   205 MBytes  1.72 Gbits/sec
[  5]   9.00-10.00  sec   208 MBytes  1.74 Gbits/sec
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[ ID] Interval           Transfer     Bitrate         Retr
[  5]   0.00-10.00  sec  1.98 GBytes  1.70 Gbits/sec    0             sender
[  5]   0.00-10.00  sec  1.98 GBytes  1.70 Gbits/sec                  receiver

iperf Done.

PS C:\work\speedtest\iperf-3.15-win64> .\iperf3.exe -c 192.168.38.6
Connecting to host 192.168.38.6, port 5201
[  5] local 192.168.38.120 port 12574 connected to 192.168.38.6 port 5201
[ ID] Interval           Transfer     Bitrate
[  5]   0.00-1.00   sec   179 MBytes  1.50 Gbits/sec
[  5]   1.00-2.00   sec   193 MBytes  1.62 Gbits/sec
[  5]   2.00-3.00   sec   189 MBytes  1.59 Gbits/sec
[  5]   3.00-4.00   sec   180 MBytes  1.51 Gbits/sec
[  5]   4.00-5.00   sec   174 MBytes  1.46 Gbits/sec
[  5]   5.00-6.00   sec   172 MBytes  1.44 Gbits/sec
[  5]   6.00-7.00   sec   171 MBytes  1.43 Gbits/sec
[  5]   7.00-8.00   sec   171 MBytes  1.43 Gbits/sec
[  5]   8.00-9.00   sec   186 MBytes  1.57 Gbits/sec
[  5]   9.00-10.01  sec   176 MBytes  1.47 Gbits/sec
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
[ ID] Interval           Transfer     Bitrate
[  5]   0.00-10.01  sec  1.75 GBytes  1.50 Gbits/sec                  sender
[  5]   0.00-10.01  sec  1.75 GBytes  1.50 Gbits/sec                  receiver

iperf Done.

 

[xiaofan]

Starhub sponsored article.
Interesting that they mentioned 4.8 time faster for WiFi 7.

Typical 2*2 AX 160MHz 1024 QAM vs 2*2 BE 320MHz 4096 QAM → 2.4 times speed.

https://www.hardwarezone.com.sg/tec...ience-home-wi-fi-7-ultraspeed-network-starhub

4.8 times faster: Boost your online experience at home with StarHub's Wi-Fi 7 plans
A StarHub Special - on 20 Mar 2024, 12:30pm

Unlike earlier versions of Wi-Fi that are limited to 2.4GHz or 5GHz bands, Wi-Fi 7 can fully tap into the 6GHz band. This means fewer interruptions and a much more stable connection. Additionally, its increased bandwidth allows for faster data transfers and smoother streaming. Wi-Fi 7 has a wireless pipe that is twice as large, allowing data bits to be delivered at twice the speed to Wi-Fi 7-supported devices – Wi-Fi 7 can provide speeds of up to 4.8 times faster than Wi-Fi 6.

Designed to work with more devices simultaneously, Wi-Fi 7 ensures that every smart device and family member stays fully connected without compromising performance or reliability. Under the hood, advanced Multi-Link Operations (MLO) in Wi-Fi 7 allows MLO-enabled client devices to leverage multiple channels and bands at the same time. This means your latest gadgets or computers that support Wi-Fi 7 will perform even better, making it a worthwhile upgrade to future-proof your network.

 

[xiaofan]

Starhub sponsored article.
Interesting that they mentioned 4.8 time faster for WiFi 7.

Typical 2*2 AX 160MHz 1024 QAM vs 2*2 BE 320MHz 4096 QAM → 2.4 times speed.

https://www.hardwarezone.com.sg/tec...ience-home-wi-fi-7-ultraspeed-network-starhub

4.8 times faster: Boost your online experience at home with StarHub's Wi-Fi 7 plans
A StarHub Special - on 20 Mar 2024, 12:30pm

Unlike earlier versions of Wi-Fi that are limited to 2.4GHz or 5GHz bands, Wi-Fi 7 can fully tap into the 6GHz band. This means fewer interruptions and a much more stable connection. Additionally, its increased bandwidth allows for faster data transfers and smoother streaming. Wi-Fi 7 has a wireless pipe that is twice as large, allowing data bits to be delivered at twice the speed to Wi-Fi 7-supported devices – Wi-Fi 7 can provide speeds of up to 4.8 times faster than Wi-Fi 6.

Designed to work with more devices simultaneously, Wi-Fi 7 ensures that every smart device and family member stays fully connected without compromising performance or reliability. Under the hood, advanced Multi-Link Operations (MLO) in Wi-Fi 7 allows MLO-enabled client devices to leverage multiple channels and bands at the same time. This means your latest gadgets or computers that support Wi-Fi 7 will perform even better, making it a worthwhile upgrade to future-proof your network.

Okay.
Same configuration -- WiFi 7 is 2.4x speed compared to WiFi 6/6E.
Max configuration -- WiFi 7 is 4.8x speed compared to WiFi 6/6E.

Reference:
https://www.netgear.com/hub/technology/wifi-7-vs-wifi-6/

What’s new in the WiFI 7 Standard?
46Gbps – 4.8X FASTER SPEED
Up to 2.4x Faster for the same WiFi configuration
320MHz – 2X BANDWIDTH
4096 QAM – X DATA DENSITY

 

[trenzterra]

A bit of a challenge to get Wifi7 client devices at the moment though except for select Android phones. I see many of this year's laptops still launching with Wifi6E plus nowadays got the CNVi ******** so cannot replace the wifi card also.

And Intel BE200 apparently doesn't work well with AMD...

 

[koreanlover]

A bit of a challenge to get Wifi7 client devices at the moment though except for select Android phones. I see many of this year's laptops still launching with Wifi6E plus nowadays got the CNVi ******** so cannot replace the wifi card also.

And Intel BE200 apparently doesn't work well with AMD...

I upgraded from AX201 to BE200 on my Intel 10th gen laptop. Still waiting for the price of WiFi 7 routers to drop before buying.

 

[Apparatus]

I upgraded from AX201 to BE200 on my Intel 10th gen laptop. Still waiting for the price of WiFi 7 routers to drop before buying.

10th gen comes with dual band antenna

You changed the antenna from dual band to tri band?

 

[koreanlover]

10th gen comes with dual band antenna

You changed the antenna from dual band to tri band?

Not yet. Probably will do that if the speed is not good enough after I buy a WiFi 7 router.

 

[trenzterra]

10th gen comes with dual band antenna

You changed the antenna from dual band to tri band?

I got Ax210 to work fine over 6ghz on my X13 1st gen which came with ax200

 

[Apparatus]

I managed to capture a MLO screenshot with the S24U. Too bad no 5GHz. After this the test terminates itself without continuing signifying something is wrong somewhere

If with the 5GHz in there'll be 3 separate graphs

 

[xiaofan]

I got Ax210 to work fine over 6ghz on my X13 1st gen which came with ax200

From what I read, the so-called dual band antenna designed for WiFi 6 (2.4GHz and 5GHz) will usually work for the 6GHz band for WiFi 6E and WiFi 7, probably not the best but it will work.

There seems to be no "triband antenna" for the typical laptop WiFi adapters. Rather it will be dual band antenna which work across 2.4GHz and 5GHz/6GHz. The upper 5GHz frequency band is anyway close to 6GHz band.

Info from Intel.
https://www.intel.com/content/dam/s...less/intel-wifi-adapter-information-guide.pdf
Antenna Type and Gains
Only antennas of the same type and with equal or less gains as 3dBi for the 2.4GHz band and 5dBi for the 5GHz and 6-7GHz bands shall be used with the Intel® wireless adapters. Other types of antennas and/or higher gain antennas may require additional authorization for operation.

 

[Apparatus]

From what I read, the so-called dual band antenna designed for WiFi 6 (2.4GHz and 5GHz) will usually work for the 6GHz band for WiFi 6E and WiFi 7, probably not the best but it will work.

There seems to be no "triband antenna" for the typical laptop WiFi adapters. Rather it will be dual band antenna which work across 2.4GHz and 5GHz/6GHz. The upper 5GHz frequency band is anyway close to 6GHz band.

Info from Intel.
https://www.intel.com/content/dam/s...less/intel-wifi-adapter-information-guide.pdf
Antenna Type and Gains
Only antennas of the same type and with equal or less gains as 3dBi for the 2.4GHz band and 5dBi for the 5GHz and 6-7GHz bands shall be used with the Intel® wireless adapters. Other types of antennas and/or higher gain antennas may require additional authorization for operation.

I think there's one here

https://www.digikey.com/en/products...4L/776-EMF2471A3S-10MH4L-ND/13910448?curr=usd

Quote

From what I read, the so-called dual band antenna designed for WiFi 6 (2.4GHz and 5GHz) will usually work for the 6GHz band for WiFi 6E and WiFi 7, probably not the best but it will work.

Unquote

Wifi 6 devices will work with WiFi 6E/7 but cannot detect 6GHz. Even my WiFi 7 ASUS Zenfone 10 don't detect 6GHz and I believe it only has 2.4/5GHz bands. Tested with my previous WiFi 6E and now WiFi 7 routers. MLO works since there's 2.4/5GHz bands

Quote

Only antennas of the same type and with equal or less gains as 3dBi for the 2.4GHz band and 5dBi for the 5GHz and 6-7GHz bands shall be used with the Intel® wireless adapters. Other types of antennas and/or higher gain antennas may require additional authorization for operation.

Unquote

IMO, this paragraph implies the applicability of the different bands' suitability to use with Intel wireless adapters

Wifi 6E antenna can work for WiFi 7 but it'll lose out the other features of WiFi 7. The Intel’s Wi-Fi 7 product 'Intel Wi-Fi 7 BE200' will support Wi-Fi 6E + 320 MHz/4K QAM (known as EHT - Extremely High Throughput) by default when connecting to a Wi-Fi 7 wireless router/AP...".

The Wi-Fi 7 features are not currently available because of pending OS (Windows 11) support. As a result, after installing the drivers, the Intel Wi-Fi 7 products function with Wi-Fi 6E capabilities on Windows 11.

 

[xiaofan]

I think there's one here

https://www.digikey.com/en/products...4L/776-EMF2471A3S-10MH4L-ND/13910448?curr=usd

Quote

From what I read, the so-called dual band antenna designed for WiFi 6 (2.4GHz and 5GHz) will usually work for the 6GHz band for WiFi 6E and WiFi 7, probably not the best but it will work.

Unquote

Wifi 6 devices will work with WiFi 7 but cannot detect 6GHz. Even my WiFi 7 ASUS Zenfone 10 don't detect 6GHz and I believe it only has 2.4/5GHz bands. Tested with my previous WiFi 6E and now WiFi 7 routers. MLO works since there's 2.4/5GHz bands

Quote

Only antennas of the same type and with equal or less gains as 3dBi for the 2.4GHz band and 5dBi for the 5GHz and 6-7GHz bands shall be used with the Intel® wireless adapters. Other types of antennas and/or higher gain antennas may require additional authorization for operation.

Unquote

IMO, this paragraph implies the applicability of the different bands' suitability to use with Intel wireless adapters

Wifi 6E antenna can work for WiFi 7 but it'll lose out the other features of WiFi 7. The Intel’s Wi-Fi 7 product 'Intel Wi-Fi 7 BE200' will support Wi-Fi 6E + 320 MHz/4K QAM (known as EHT - Extremely High Throughput) by default when connecting to a Wi-Fi 7 wireless router/AP...".

The Wi-Fi 7 features are not currently available because of pending OS (Windows 11) support. As a result, after installing the drivers, the Intel Wi-Fi 7 products function with Wi-Fi 6E capabilities on Windows 11.

I think you mixed WiFi antenna with the WiFi adapter itself. Antenna is a passive component.

There is no such thing as WiFi 7 antenna or WiFi 6E antenna -- they are the same -- 6GHz band antenna.

A wideband antenna tuned for 5GH to 7GHz will be the best for WiFi 6/6E/7 usage (5GHz and 6GHz bands), but an attenna designed for 5GHz band will usually work also for 6GHz band but may not be the best for the 6GHz band.

The linked product you show is not really designed for laptop WiFi adapters.

 

[Apparatus]

I think you mixed WiFi antenna with the WiFi adapter itself. Antenna is a passive component.

There is no such thing as WiFi 7 antenna or WiFi 6E antenna -- they are the same -- 6GHz band antenna.

A wideband antenna tune for 5GH to 7GHz will be the best for WiFi 6/6E/7 usage (5GHz and 6GHz bands), but an attenna designed for 5GHz band will usually work also but may not be the best for the 6GHz band.

I am talking of dual band and tri band antennas not the quantity of physical antennas. There is some antenna(s) running behind the back of the laptop screen. How many I don't know because I have not strip one laptop to see.

If you have an old laptop supporting only 2.4/5GHz and now you upgrade to WiFi 6E/7 adapter do you not change the antenna(s) as well? Or use back the same antenna(s) with only change in the adapter?

 

[xiaofan]

I am talking of dual band and tri band antennas not the quantity of physical antennas. There is some antenna(s) running behind the back of the screen. How many I don't know because I have not strip one laptop to see.

If you have an old laptop supporting only 2.4/5GHz and now you upgrade to WiFi 6E/7 adapter do you not change the antenna(s) as well? Or use back the same antenna(s) with only change in the adapter?

Use back the same antenna -- not the best but it will work.

Unfortunatly my current main laptop has Intel AX201 WiFi 6 adapter, which uses the M.2: CNVio2 system interface and not easily replaced with a new WiFi 7 adapter.
https://ark.intel.com/content/www/us/en/ark/compare.html?productIds=189347,130293

It should be able to be upgraded to Intel AX211 adapter with CNVio2 sysem interface.
https://ark.intel.com/content/www/us/en/ark/compare.html?productIds=204836,204837

 

[xiaofan]

There seems to be no "triband antenna" for the typical laptop WiFi adapters. Rather it will be dual band antenna which work across 2.4GHz and 5GHz/6GHz. The upper 5GHz frequency band is anyway close to 6GHz band.

This may not be correct. Probably a dual band antenna designed for 2.4GHz and 5GHz/6GHz band antenna will be the so-called "triband antenna".

Not an expert in antenna so the naming may not be correct.

 

[Apparatus]

This may not be correct. Probably a dual band antenna designed for 2.4GHz and 5GHz/6GHz band antenna will be the so-called "triband antenna".

Not an expert in antenna so the naming may not be correct.

I think of it this way. Can a simple thin old copper wire antenna which handles the 2 different bands of yesteryear can handle the 3 bands today? Or need to redesign new antenna(s) to handle the 3 bands?

I'm no antenna expert either

 

[Apparatus]

I think you mixed WiFi antenna with the WiFi adapter itself. Antenna is a passive component.

There is no such thing as WiFi 7 antenna or WiFi 6E antenna -- they are the same -- 6GHz band antenna.

A wideband antenna tuned for 5GH to 7GHz will be the best for WiFi 6/6E/7 usage (5GHz and 6GHz bands), but an attenna designed for 5GHz band will usually work also for 6GHz band but may not be the best for the 6GHz band.

The linked product you show is not really designed for laptop WiFi adapters.

Description in the datasheet of the attached link

Quote

The Laird Connectivity Wi-Fi 6E Mini NanoBlade Flex 6 GHz is a flexible PCB antenna that supports 3 bands of WLAN applications, including the 6 to 7.125 GHz band enabling Wi-Fi 6E. These small flexible printed circuit antennas can be embedded in space-sensitive applications. They offer excellent efficiency over all 3 Wi-Fi bands. The antennas are specifically designed to be embedded inside various IoT devices for aesthetically pleasing integration.

Unquote

This antenna is designed for 3 WiFi bands. If laptop got space maybe can use.

 

[xiaofan]

I think of it this way. Can a simple thin old copper wire antenna which handles the 2 different bands of yesteryear can handle the 3 bands today? Or need to redesign new antenna(s) to handle the 3 bands?

I'm no antenna expert either

5GHz band --> 5150 MHz to 5895 MHz (Singapore only from 5150 MHz to 5835 MHz)
6GHz-1 band --> 5925 MHz to 6425 MHz (Singapore only has 6GHz-1 band)
6GHz-2 band --> 6425 MHz to 7125 MHz (not approved in Singapre for WiFi use).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_WLAN_channels

You can check out the following reference, the older laptop antenna designed for 2.4GHz/5GHz will usually work for 2.4GHz/5GHz/6GHz, even though it may not be the most optimal. I think the reason is that the 5GHz band is very close to the 6GHz band. This is especially trun for Singapore where only the lower portion of 6GHz band is approved.

Reference.


In most cases a 5Ghz antnena will work for a 6Ghz antennas, the patterns and gain values migh change a bit, but it would likely 'work', just not maybe as max performance.

 

[Apparatus]

You can check out the following articles, the older laptop antenna designed for 2.4GHz/5GHz will work for 2.4GHz/5GHz/6GHz, even though it may not be the most optimal.

Just a reference.


In most cases a 5Ghz antnena will work for a 6Ghz antennas, the patterns and gain values migh change a bit, but it would likely 'work', just not maybe as max performance.

You should not left the below out ah

Quote

It's a risk for sure, though I guess you have to decide for yourself it laptop antennas are 'quality enough'......

Unquote

Choosing antenna which explicitly support 3 WiFi bands is definitely an assurance