It is faster and has better efficiency than our current Wi-Fi. Source: Somag News
It is faster and has better efficiency than our current Wi-Fi. Source: Somag News

In recent years, we have started to buy and own multiple devices. Whether small or large, simple or complex, these devices have become an integral part of our lives and they are all connected to one thing – Wi-Fi. It’s hard to imagine life without a wireless internet connection. 

However, even though wireless internet technology has grown and evolved massively in recent years, it’s still not enough. This is why the network becomes too slow when we connect too many devices to one single Wi-Fi network. 

It doesn’t matter how fast your router is. The moment you connect more and more devices, it will feel the strain. This limitation has remained the single biggest challenge with wireless internet connections. But things are about to change.

Wi-Fi 6 routers and devices should get more affordable this year. Source: Wonderful Engineering
Wi-Fi 6 routers and devices should get more affordable this year. Source: Wonderful Engineering

Wi-Fi 6 is meant to solve this by offering efficient data delivery and better speed even when there are multiple devices connected to the network. We have been talking about Wi-Fi 6 quite a lot in recent years and finally, it’s becoming a reality. 

At this year’s CES conference, we got to see plenty of Wi-Fi 6 routers and devices. But there was one stark difference. Unlike in last year’s CES event where the routers on display were too expensive for the average person, these ones were cheaper. 

In essence, it is increasingly possible that Wi-Fi 6 routers will hit the market at very affordable prices, making them easily accessible for all people who use wireless internet. We also believe that future wireless devices will be built with Wi-Fi 6 capabilities. 

Wi-Fi 6 is the future of wireless Internet and all devices will need to leverage on such speeds to offer users the best possible experience. But despite the relatively affordable asking price, Wi-Fi 6 routers are still not that cheap.

The adoption of the technology will depend largely on its price. Source: Broadcom
The adoption of the technology will depend largely on its price. Source: Broadcom

In fact, many analysts argue that the adoption of this technology will largely depend on whether manufacturers will be able to get them to the lower end price point. There are many people who use wireless internet at home, but it’s not a huge necessity. 

A majority of people wouldn’t pay double to get faster speeds. Even though Wi-Fi 6 is promising a lot in data efficiency and speed, if it’s not at the right price point, then people would rather continue using their normal wireless internet. 

A typical low-end TP-Link router costs around $70. In last year’s CES event, all the Wi-Fi 6 routers we saw were selling for more than $200. In this year’s event, manufacturers seem to have addressed the price issue with some routers costing between $100 and $200.

Analysts argue that if manufacturers can find a way to reduce that price to less than $100, then there is every chance that we will see mass adoption of the technology all over the world. Future devices may also have a role to play in driving the adoption of Wi-Fi 6. Right now, we believe that most devices will come with built-in Wi-Fi 6 capabilities and this may just encourage people to upgrade their connections.