60GHz WiFi: Advantages and Disadvantages

This page covers the advantages and disadvantages of 60GHz WiFi. It mentions the benefits and drawbacks of 60GHz WiFi.

What is 60GHz WiFi?

Introduction: WiFi is widely used for indoor and outdoor wireless internet connectivity over shorter distances. Its popularity stems from its use of unlicensed spectrum in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz frequency ranges. Multiple devices can connect to a single WiFi router in homes and offices. IEEE has developed various WLAN standards such as 802.11a, 11b, 11g, 11n, 11ac, 11ad, and 11ax. IEEE 802.11ay defines the 60 GHz version of WiFi. 60 GHz falls within the millimeter wave (mmWave) band.

The 60GHz WiFi utilizes massive MIMO technologies to deliver higher data rates. It offers a reliable and secure connection using various encryption algorithms such as WPA2 and WPA3.

Qualcomm has recently launched 60GHz WiFi chipsets. The QCA64x8 series is used for infrastructure and fixed access applications, while the QCA64x1 series is used for mobile access applications.

Benefits or Advantages of 60GHz WiFi

The following are the benefits of 60GHz WiFi:

• It offers speeds (or data rates) in the 10 Gbps range. Hence, it can be used to create multiple backbone networks using multiple LOS (Line of Sight) Access Points in a mesh topology.
• The 60GHz WiFi signal is not affected by light or other networking devices like mobile phones or tablets.
• 60GHz WiFi offers low interference.
• 60GHz WiFi offers bandwidth-rich spectrum which is used to provide higher capacity.
• 60GHz WiFi offers ultra-low latency.

Drawbacks or Disadvantages of 60GHz WiFi

The following are the drawbacks of 60GHz WiFi:

• This frequency gets attenuated very quickly over distance (i.e., path loss is higher for higher distances). This is due to its easy absorption in the atmosphere. Hence, it’s used for short-distance communication.
• It cannot penetrate through walls.