IEEE 802.11be: Wi-Fi 7 Strikes Back

TL;DR

Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) introduces significant enhancements like multi-AP coordination and coordinated beamforming, promising major improvements in latency and performance for wireless connectivity.

Contribution

This paper provides an updated overview of 802.11be features and demonstrates through simulations that coordinated beamforming can drastically reduce delays.

Findings

Near-tenfold reduction in worst-case delays with coordinated beamforming

Multi-AP coordination is essential for latency-sensitive applications

Standard-compliant simulations validate performance improvements

Abstract

As hordes of data-hungry devices challenge its current capabilities, Wi-Fi strikes back with 802.11be, alias Wi-Fi 7. This brand-new amendment promises a (r)evolution of unlicensed wireless connectivity as we know it. With its standardisation process being consolidated, we provide an updated digest of 802.11be essential features, vouching for multi-AP coordination as a must-have for critical and latency-sensitive applications. We then get down to the nitty-gritty of one of its most enticing implementations-coordinated beamforming-, for which our standard-compliant simulations confirm near-tenfold reductions in worst-case delays.