WiFi 6 gives wireless the big upgrade it really needs

Wi-Fi is about to become much easier to understand, with the Wi-Fi Alliance announcing WiFi 6, its newly renamed push to reduce wireless confusion. WiFi 6 is not a new technology in itself. Instead, it will be the consumer's name for 802.11ax, the next generation of WiFi that should not appear in devices until 2019 at the earliest.

Like previous versions, 802.11ax will improve range and speed, allow more devices to coexist in the same area, and generally extend support for, for example, high-resolution video. It will also have more applications in the Internet of Things, where factors such as energy consumption may be more important.

However, "802.11ax" is not a particularly friendly name, although the technologies it will offer should make the wireless connection more enjoyable. This is something that has also been criticized in previous years, with a clumsy denomination attributed to the growing consumer confusion about which WiFi is "the best" among other problems. This has only been compounded by attempts to customize brands by router and device manufacturers.

The answer is WiFi 6. Product suppliers, operating system vendors and service providers will use it: if you see WiFi 6, you know the hardware and infrastructure supporting the 802.11ax standard. The new branding of the Wi-Fi Alliance is also retroactive.

Thus, 802.11ac, the fastest Wi-Fi version of the moment, will now be called WiFi 5. For 802.11n, the previous version will be WiFi 4. This will not be done only on boxes and in stores. What you see on your device is also likely to change.

The Wi-Fi Alliance offers a new set of graphical interface examples, which should replace the current WiFi logos that you see in the status bar of your smartphone or laptop. These would include not only an indicator of the signal strength, but also the type of network to which you are connected. Thus, if you use an 802.11ax connection, you will get both the strength bars and a small "6" graph.

Of course, the Wi-Fi Alliance can not force WiFi providers to adopt new terminology or user interface ideas. That said, it is said that "it is expected to be widely adopted by the Wi-Fi ecosystem" as device manufacturers and that more of them are looking for better – and less complicated – to differentiate between new and old products, and to encourage upgrades.