Riding the second wave

When the original high-speed wireless networking standard (802.11ac) was announced two years ago, it was enthusiastically embraced by the IT industry, which heralded the arrival of gigabit WiFi. The 802.11ac specification itself served as a performance boost over the 802.11n spec that preceded it, increasing wireless speeds by up to threefold.

Industry watchers said 802.11ac would "boost network capacities and increase reliability while meeting the diverse needs of an increasing number of users".

Now there is 802.11ac Wave2, which raises the bar yet again. Officially, 802.11ac Wave 2 is an addendum to the 802.11ac specification. It uses MU-MIMO (multi-user, multiple-input, multiple-output) technology and other significant advancements to help increase maximum wireless speeds to 3.6 Gigabits-per-second. Manufacturers are said to be developing chipsets designed to accelerate wireless data transfers even further - up to 6.93Gbps.

Technically, the signals being transmitted by the various antennae in a wireless network are multiplexed by using different spaces within the same spectral channel. These spaces are known as spatial streams.

It is expected that Wave2 implementations are likely to increase the number of spatial streams from three to four. The support of additional spatial streams allows for increased performance, delivering the highest amount of reliable bandwidth from a wireless access point.

Visualise an 802.11ac-based network as a four-lane freeway, but only one car is allowed onto it at any given point in time. Now, with a Wave2 network, three or four cars are given access simultaneously, effectively boosting the efficiency of the roadway multiple times.

In this light, Wave2 should be seen as much more than an improved wireless technology. It goes a long way towards realising the goal of 'predictive access' to devices, allowing the dependable support of new-generation, high-bandwidth - often mission-critical - services.

Previously, particularly in traditional networking architectures such as those found in the surveillance industry, cabling was the medium of choice because it enabled a predictive service for critical high-definition (HD) video cameras.

Wave2 allows for services such as HD surveillance to be addressed wirelessly. A spin-off benefit is the speed at which new access points can be rolled out, without the need for cumbersome cabling connections.

The expected uptake of Wave2 technology - which, for the first time, will give wireless access points the capability of transferring data faster than many Ethernet cables that run from a network switch - will spawn a host of new devices, changing the way many networks are designed and implemented.

For example, with multiple-Gigabit capacities on a single access point, the push to standardise 2.5 and 5 Gigabit Ethernet started last year (2014) and has resulted in the imminent availability of high-end 'multi-Gigabit' Ethernet switches, representing a new market segment.

Wave2 should be seen as much more than an improved wireless technology.

Looking ahead, the increased capacity at the edge of the network should drive the uptake of 100Gbps at the core and within the 'cloud arena'. Wave2 can thus be expected to create new opportunities for marketers while promoting the broad adoption of new supporting technologies - such as 100Gbps Ethernet - which has been limited to the larger data centres up to now.

With the IT industry's emphasis on mobility, Wave2 will also have a role to play, driving innovation in the way in which increased bandwidth and availability are harnessed. It will support the push of media-rich applications to new-generation smartphones incorporating 802.11ac Wave2 interfaces.

From a service provider's perspective, Wave2 will offer more scope when it comes to rolling out WiFi networks. It will also address many of the quality of service issues experienced by wireless network end-users. Significantly, it can be expected to stimulate demand for 3G offload, particularly in urban 'hot-zones', helping cellular operators offer faster speeds to keep up with their customers' insatiable need for data.

Because Wave2 will go a long way towards encouraging traditional mobile players to deploy WiFi, more services should become available to users, including media-rich offerings such as video-calling, which has never taken off in South Africa. There will also be cost-saving benefits as the mobile infrastructure is expensive, while WiFi is commodity-based.

Ultimately, Wave2 will help WiFi networks scale and increase capacity, effectively boosting network performance without additional cost, power or size when it comes to client devices.