Apple iPhone 14, Mixed Reality Headset Set To Come With Wi-Fi 6E

Last Updated on November 21, 2021 by Asif Iqbal Shaik

The recently launched iPhone 13 were rumoured to feature Wi-Fi 6E, similar to rival flagship smartphones like the ASUS ROG 5s Pro, Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra, and the Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra. However, that didn’t happen. Now, there are rumours that next year’s iPhone lineup and Apple’s upcoming MR (Mixed-Reality) headset are set to come with Wi-Fi 6E. The news was broken by Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst at TF International Securities (Asia-Pacific). He gains information from his contacts in Apple’s supply chain in Asia, thus considered as a trustworthy source in the industry.

Going forward, the Wi-Fi 6E standard is expected to be a key feature for high-speed wireless transmission in mobile devices. Last year, the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) adopted certain rules to allow the 1,200MHz spectrum for use in the 6GHz band in the US. As a result, we could see more OEM manufacturers jumping on the Wi-Fi 6E bandwagon soon. Meta (Facebook’s and Instagram’s parent firm) is also working on AR (Augmented Reality) and VR (Virtual Reality) head-mounted displays with Wi-Fi 6E. According to Ming-Chi Kuo, head-mounted display devices in 2022, 2023, and 2024 will offer Wi-Fi 6/6E, Wi-Fi 6E/7, and Wi-Fi 7, respectively.

The Wi-Fi 6E standard works on the same 6GHz band and promises low latency, less interference, and wider channels. It was announced by the Wi-Fi Alliance in 2020, and once it becomes mainstream in 2022, may help users to avoid network congestion in areas with a lot of Wi-Fi networks around. For using the devices with the Wi-Fi 6E, users will need a Wi-Fi 6E certified router installed. Apart from the 6GHz networks, these routers will also run on 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands. If you want to be future proof, there are a couple of Wi-Fi 6E routers from ASUS, Linksys, Netgear, and others, ready to be purchased.