Apple MacBooks now support WiFi 6. Here’s what you need to know.

 

Apple MacBooks now support WiFi 6. Here’s what you need to know.


The sequel to WiFi is here.

We've all spent most of the last decade relying on something called WiFi 5, but that's all in the past now. Don't worry about that. It's time for the future. And the future is WiFi 6 ... which just so happens to be supported by all the latest Mac computers

But what does that actually mean for you, the consumer? In short, it means home WiFi is about to theoretically get more reliable, but only so long as you own WiFi 6-ready equipment. 

Before you take the plunge on a new laptop and WiFi 6 router, here's what you need to know.

How much faster is WiFi 6?

First, let's pump the brakes a little bit on any lofty expectations you may have for WiFi 6 based on those opening paragraphs. Settle down. Take deep breaths. As usual, these things are somewhat complicated.

The WiFi standard you likely use right now has a maximum transmission speed of around 3 Gigabits per second (or Gbps for short), per our friends at PCMag. That said, home internet in the United States sorta blows and you can't really get a signal that fast anywhere. Not even close. Anyway, WiFi 6 expands that maximum threshold to nearly 10Gbps, roughly tripling what a WiFi 6 router can do when pushed to its limits.

Even if no router on Earth is ever pushed to that limit, the main benefit here is less about making your laptop faster and more about giving your WiFi connection extra juice to feed your multitude of hungry connected devices all at once. Even still, PCMag's testing showed signal strength increases of anywhere from about 30 to 60 percent on compatible devices in the same room as a WiFi 6 router.

In short, WiFi 6 can give you a noticeable (if not especially breathtaking) speed boost if you're close to the router and, more importantly, take pressure off your router when multiple people are trying to stream HD movies, play video games, make Zoom calls, or wirelessly stream VR at the same time. The nice thing is we're still in the early days of WiFi 6 adoption, so it should only get better from here.

What other devices support WiFi 6?

One argument for getting a WiFi 6 router now is that you might already own some devices that can take advantage of it. Again, it's still mostly tech for early adopters, but maybe that describes some of you! 

Here are just a handful of devices that currently support WiFi 6:

  • Samsung 8K TVs like the Q900 
  • PlayStation 5

As you can imagine, that list is sure to grow over time. If you already own (or plan on owning) any of those products, it might be smart to get a WiFi 6 router. Speaking of which...

Good WiFi 6 routers you can buy

There are a number of solid WiFi 6 routers out there from big, trusted brands like Netgear and Linksys, which is nice. What's less nice is that they're naturally a little more pricey than you might expect. That's technology for you. Luckily, the wizards over at PCMag diligently test routers and have a handy roundup of some good ones for different purposes.

The ASUS RT-AX88U comes with eight Ethernet ports, which will only make things easier on your WiFi connection if you use them properly. Aside from that, PCMag recommended it due to its quality performance and ease of use. It can be had for $300 on Amazon at the time of writing. If Ethernet ports really matter to you, the TP-Link AX6000 has your back.

This $400 Netgear Nighthawk router may be more pricey, but it also promises superior performance if lots of people are using WiFi on it at once. In general, it seems like you're going to have to pay at least $250 or so for a decent WiFi 6 router.

We understand if that's too much, but the good news is you don't have to do it right now.The WiFi you've been using this whole time isn't going away. Just understand that you'll probably have to buy a new router if you want to get the most out of your new MacBook.

Mashable

Comments

  1. Doesn’t mean anything if you don’t get a new router.

    ReplyDelete
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    ReplyDelete
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    ReplyDelete
  4. It's a useful article but "wanna"? Seriously? It's not all about games and videos. Many who produce Design Visualisation professionally and those who create hefty graphics files will be interested too. You know, mature, professional people for whom "wanna" does not appeal.

    ReplyDelete
  5. We are at 5 currently with most new devices

    ReplyDelete
  6. As most folks use their devices indoors, and connect it to their wifi network, this will be a big thing. Especially if they have too many devises to list eating up their bandwidth. I can't wait for an affordable mesh network to pop up so I can in on it.

    ReplyDelete
  7. faster -> swiftlier, swifter
    Nothing goes fast: free:fast::swift:slow::quick:qualm::speedy:idle::hasty:laggy::fleet:laden.
    will -> shall

    ReplyDelete
  8. One correction: John Wayne Airport is actually in Orange County. Its code is SNA, which stands for Santa Ana, which is the county seat. Interestingly, the airport is not in the actual city of Santa Ana. As per Wikipedia:

    "The airport is located in an unincorporated area of Orange County surrounded by the cities of Irvine, Newport Beach, and Costa Mesa, and is owned and operated by the county. Originally named Orange County Airport, the Orange County Board of Supervisors renamed the airport in 1979 in honor of actor John Wayne, who lived in neighboring Newport Beach and died that year. A statue of John Wayne was installed at the airline terminal in 1982."

    I highly recommend this 30-second discussion of the airport, its namesake, and their psycho-social impact by the world's first analrapist (analyst / therapist), as shown on the early 2000s documentary "Arrested Development":

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ObG_H2OtvRI

    ReplyDelete
  9. Whoops, I blue it! :)

    Good catch, fixed now. I'm particularly ashamed of this one as I actually spent about five years living in LA.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That's OK... I think we've all done that to ourselves at some point (perhaps even repeatedly).

      Delete
  10. Does the new base iPhone 11 model support LTE-Advanced, LTE+, MIMO, 256 QAM or whatever a carrier calls their advanced cellular networking? The iPhone XR did not, while the iPhone XS models did. This was an egregious crippling of the XR model in my opinion, so I would like to know if Apple added support for these advanced LTE networks in the new model iPhone before making my buying decision.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. calls !-> their; 1 != 2, dolt

      Delete
    2. it does. 9to5Mac was able to confirm that the LTE-A specs are clocking in higher this year and is finally available on the entry-level variant (iPhone 11). "Faster Gigabit LTE" is now a standard feature

      https://9to5mac.com/2019/09/11/iphone-11-pro-lte-speed-boost/

      Delete
    3. Excellent, thanks very much for the information. Because of this I will be getting the new iPhone 11. I am on the upgrade program and currently have an iPhone XS, which has this capability from last year. I am switching to the lower-priced model this year so I can save some significant money on my monthly bill. The new Pro models are all about professional photography, which I don't care about. This is great!

      Delete
    4. I don't think CNET is letting me attach the link to their article. But just Google: iPhone 11 LTE

      Delete
  11. Hello: I have a 2018 MacBook Pro and a 2017 iMac. From what I've read about wifi 6, neither of these devices will be able to take advantage of this new speed. Is that correct? Will Apple be able to provide some means to take advantage of wifi 6? I know that the MacBook Pro does NOT have 6 capability.

    ReplyDelete

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