The arrival of Wi-Fi 6 later this year promises an increase in wireless speeds, along with better reliability. This ebook explains the new technology and outlines its availability and potential use cases for consumers and business professionals.

From the ebook:

What’s the difference between Wi-Fi 6 and 5G wireless?
With two next-generation wireless technologies coming in 2019, it’s understandable if you’re a bit confused. Are Wi-Fi 6 and 5G mobile networks related? If so, why are they both coming out now? How, if in any way, are they similar?

5G and Wi-Fi 6 both promise faster speeds, less latency, and more capacity, and there’s even some overlap in the technology they use, like MU-MIMO and beamforming. But those similarities aside, 5G and Wi-Fi 6 differ in two major ways: use cases and scope of operation.

Wi-Fi 6 is a wireless local area network (WLAN) technology that is meant to operate in an office, a home, or a conference center or some other crowded public space. 5G is a wide-area network (WAN) technology that is designed for cellular data, edge computing, IoT applications, and other non-interior connections.

Another important distinction is the difference in Wi-Fi 6 and 5G’s definitions of “generation.” Wi-Fi generational changes are additive—the older technology that made Wi-Fi 4 and Wi-Fi 5 possible still exists in Wi-Fi 6 routers, which means older devices that aren’t Wi-Fi 6 compatible will still be able to use Wi-Fi 6 APs, albeit at lower Wi-Fi 5 or Wi-Fi 4 speeds.

5G is a completely new technology that isn’t backward compatible, so new hardware will be needed to broadcast and receive 5G signals. Existing non-5G devices won’t be able to connect to 5G networks, even at lower speeds.