Wi-Fi 8 is taking form, however the lack of common 6 GHz entry threatens to restrict efficiency and warp regional rollouts
In sum – what to know:
6 GHz is foundational – Huge, clear 6 GHz channels are key to Wi-Fi 8’s multi-gigabit efficiency and low latency.
Options rely upon it – Wi-Fi 8 capabilities like MAPC and uplink enhancements require contiguous 6 GHz spectrum.
Fragmentation limits influence – With out international 6 GHz entry, Wi-Fi 8 efficiency, capability, and adoption will fluctuate extensively.
To get Wi-Fi 8’s full capability and efficiency, you have to the 6 GHz band, and lots of of its superior options, together with multi-AP Coordination, uplink enhancements, and low-latency roaming, rely upon it; nevertheless, it’s not precisely a requirement for Wi-Fi 8 deployment. “The band is important to the Wi-Fi trade total, however I wouldn’t hyperlink it particularly to a model,” mentioned Dell’Oro Group’s Analysis Director Siân Morgan.
From her perspective, the true query for international locations with out 6 GHz Wi-Fi is whether or not the legacy 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands can take up future site visitors masses. “That’s the place it turns into important,” she added. If congestion grows quicker than accessible spectrum, Wi-Fi 8’s headline capabilities shall be tougher to appreciate.
That doesn’t imply, although, that there received’t be actual market impacts if 6 GHz adoption stays globally fragmented. “I wouldn’t be stunned if we see the identical factor we’re seeing with Wi-Fi 7, in that some distributors have some fashions that don’t truly help the 6 GHz band,” mentioned Morgan. One vendor method, she continued, is utilizing a software-defined radio, which lets the identical radio function in both 6 GHz or as an additional 5 GHz radio. In a tri-radio entry level, for instance, you could possibly configure it as 2.4 GHz plus two 5 GHz radios, or as 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz — all managed via software program. One other method is to supply entry factors with out 6 GHz help in any respect. That retains prices down, since every further radio provides {hardware} expense. For purchasers who don’t want, perceive, or have entry to six GHz, distributors could lead with these lower-cost SKUs to cut back the invoice of supplies.
However for enterprises and different finish customers, this would possibly imply larger prices: “The extra SKUs a vendor has to help, the costlier total it turns into, after which these prices are handed all the way down to enterprises.” One other pattern Dell’Oro is seeing with Wi-Fi 7 is that even in markets the place 6 GHz is out there, some distributors are nonetheless selling dual-radio entry factors that don’t help the band. Enterprises could not notice this — they only see “Wi-Fi 7” and assume it’s routinely higher than Wi-Fi 6. Morgan defined that in the event that they’re not aware of the significance of 6 GHz, a lower-cost entry level with out that band may appear completely tremendous, they usually could not even discover they’re lacking out on the total capabilities that 6 GHz brings. This drawback will persist within the Wi-Fi 8 adoption cycle.
Truthfully, although? Morgan mentioned it’s too early for enterprises to be enthusiastic about Wi-Fi 8 in any respect. “I imply, in 2Q25, solely, like, 1 / 4 of models shipped have been Wi-Fi 7, so there’s nonetheless a whole lot of 6E and a whole lot of Wi-Fi 6 on the market delivery … 2025 goes to be the yr the place the majority of the market strikes over to Wi-Fi 7. However we’re nonetheless in that transition now.”
Significantly in North America, exactly as a result of of 6 GHz — and by extension, Wi-Fi 6E, acted as a type of “semi-launch.” As Morgan explains, “As a result of 6E was actually focused on the areas that supported 6 GHz … these areas particularly, North America and EMEA, had a give attention to 6E [and] a whole lot of them upgraded to 6E. The distributors serving these areas have been very targeted on 6E. After which they acquired caught within the provide constraints crunch. After which they acquired caught with approach an excessive amount of stock.”
That over-investment in 6E gear compelled distributors to slow-roll their Wi-Fi 7 introductions. Within the meantime, Chinese language distributors seized the opening. “And so, the distributors in China, like Huawei and H3C, actually took a lead in introducing Wi-Fi 7 to the market. And Huawei made a whole lot of progress in delivery Wi-Fi 7 exterior North America to EMEA and Latin America, and the Asia Pacific exterior China.”
The outcome was a uncommon geographic inversion: All through 2024, Wi-Fi 7 adoption was led not by North America, however by areas throughout EMEA, LATAM, and APAC. That dynamic is now shifting rapidly. With Cisco and different main U.S. distributors lastly delivery their first Wi-Fi 7 entry factors, North America is poised to catch up quick. As Morgan notes, ramp-up is accelerating: “2025 is de facto going to be the yr that North America adopts Wi-Fi 7.”
Circling again to Wi-Fi 8, Morgan was blunt: 6 GHz isn’t elective if international locations need next-generation efficiency. “There’s little question about it,” she mentioned. With out full 6 GHz entry, networks will merely ship much less capability, extra interference, and lower-quality Wi-Fi. And as Wi-Fi 8 ramps up, these nationwide coverage gaps will translate straight into end-user expertise gaps.
