1. Key Technology Comparison
1.1 Frequency Strategy
Wi-Fi 6/6E and 5G technologies belong to the unlicensed and licensed spectrum camps, respectively.
1.1.1 Wi-Fi 6/6E
Wi-Fi 6 primarily operates in the traditional 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz unlicensed frequency bands.
Wi-Fi 6E introduces significant changes, adding a 1200 MHz wide GHz frequency band in many regions around the world.
In general, Wi-Fi 6/6E operates in unlicensed frequency bands. Their advantage is zero spectrum licensing costs, but their disadvantage is the risk of uncontrollable interference.
1.1.25G
Operating in the sub-6GHz (such as 3.5GHz) and millimeter wave (such as 28GHz) frequency bands subject to fees.
Sub-6GHz is the foundation for wide-area coverage of 5G networks.
Millimeter wave offers extreme bandwidth (peak rates of 10Gbps+) and extremely low latency, but its coverage is extremely narrow, its penetration is poor, and it requires dense deployment.
It is relatively expensive, but it can better guarantee network quality.
1.2 Multiple Access Technology
Both utilize OFDMA as a core technology to improve efficiency and reduce latency. Both also employ multiple access technology.
In principle, the wireless channel is divided from a "large water pipe" into a large number of smaller "water pipes" (subcarriers), which are then combined into different "resource units" (RUs in Wi-Fi, RBs in 5G). In Wi-Fi 6, an AP can simultaneously transmit and receive data with multiple different devices (such as a mobile phone, a tablet, or an IoT sensor) on different RUs. This means that a small data packet (such as a sensor signal) does not need to wait for the completion of a larger data packet (such as a 4K video), significantly reducing queuing delays and improving efficiency in high-density connection scenarios.
In 5G, the principles are identical. Base stations use OFDMA to simultaneously serve multiple user equipment (UEs), achieving efficient spectrum resource utilization and supporting the company's vision of "one million connections per square kilometer."
1.3 Multi-antenna Technology
Also known as MIMO technology, both Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 6 utilize MIMO to increase capacity, but the scale and implementation methods differ.
1.3.1 Wi-Fi 6: MU-MIMO (Multi-User MIMO)
Wi-Fi 6 implements MU-MIMO for both uplink and downlink (typically an 8x8 AP). The AP's multiple antennas can form multiple independent beams, communicating with multiple devices simultaneously. This is like a router transforming from a "loudspeaker" into multiple "directional microphones/speakers," communicating with different devices simultaneously, significantly improving spatial multiplexing capabilities.
1.3.2 5G: Massive MIMO
A hallmark technology of 5G. Base stations deploy massive arrays of 64, 128, or even 256 antennas.
Using beamforming technology, it precisely focuses radio signal energy into a narrow beam, directed toward user devices, rather than scattering in all directions. This not only significantly improves signal quality and energy efficiency, but also, through spatial division multiplexing, allows dozens of users to be served using the same frequency and time resources, achieving a significant leap in network capacity. Differences: Massive MIMO is far larger and more complex than the MU-MIMO used in consumer-grade Wi-Fi APs and is the core of macrocellular networks.
1.4 Coding
Both utilize adaptive coding, adjusting the modulation scheme and coding speed based on real-time channel quality.
1.5 Low-Power Design
1.5.1 Wi-Fi 6/6E TWT Mechanism
APs can negotiate with IoT devices (such as sensors and door locks) about their wake-up schedules for sending and receiving data. Devices can completely shut down their radios during sleep periods, waking only at agreed-upon "appointments," extending battery life from hours to months or even years.
1.5.2 5G eDRX & PSM Mechanisms
eDRX: Extended Discontinuous Reception, allowing IoT devices to sleep for longer periods.
PSM: Power-Saving Mode: After a device enters sleep mode, it wakes only when it needs to send data.
In general, their design principles are similar: keeping devices in a sleep state as much as possible when not needed.
2. Collaborative Applications
At its core, convergence remains the ultimate goal, with the network automatically sensing customer needs rather than customers proactively switching.
2.1 Core Coordination Mode
2.1.1 Traffic Offloading
This is the most traditional and common form of collaboration. When a smartphone detects an available, high-quality Wi-Fi network, it automatically switches data traffic (especially large-volume video downloads and app updates) from 5G to Wi-Fi. This reduces network load for operators and provides users with a more economical and faster experience.
2.1.2 Seamless Roaming and Handover
Advanced Collaboration Forms. Through 3GPP standard frameworks such as ATSSS (Access Traffic Steering, Switching, and Splitting), the network can intelligently manage device connections between 5G and Wi-Fi.
3 Conclusion
In summary, Wi-Fi 6/6E and 5G technologies both pursue more efficient spectrum utilization, higher connection density, lower latency, and optimized energy consumption. Their differences, however, form a perfect complement to each other. 5G can be thought of as a wide-area nerve center connecting everything, providing ubiquitous, controllable, and reliable mobile connectivity.
Wi-Fi 6/6E and the future Wi-Fi 7 can be thought of as localized high-speed nerve centers distributed across various spatial nodes, handling extremely intensive, high-throughput data tasks.
They work together to ultimately present users with a unified, efficient network.