Wi-Fi 7 is coming to bring next-generation wireless connectivity speeds to your devices – as we explain in T3's Wi-Fi 7 Everything You Need to Know feature. MediaTek, however, is ahead of the game when it comes to such next-gen speeds, having announced its Wi-Fi 7-capable Filogic 380 chip.
Speaking directly with T3 ahead of its chipset reveal, MediaTek representatives commented that Wi-Fi 7 speeds will be here sooner than many think – meaning before 2022 is out – thanks to the development of chipsets such as Filogic 380.
However, the chip-maker was not suggesting that true Wi-Fi 7 will arrive before it is ready. That's not going to be possible until the Wi-Fi Alliance certifies Wi-Fi 7 as an official standard (IEEE 802.11be).
'Wi-Fi 7 ready'
So while we'll have products with MediaTek Fliogic 380 inside, running Wi-Fi 7 capable speeds of up to 36Gbps, the company claims, we'll have to look at it as a 'Wi-Fi 7 ready' sort of situation. It's a chicken before the egg scenario.
But this isn't a bad thing, ultimately, because if devices – including phones, tablets and smart TVs – feature chipsets like Filogic 380 (or, indeed, Qualcomm's Wi-Fi 7 Networking Pro Series, as announced earlier in May) then we all benefit: it's just future-proofing, delivering devices that can form that Wi-Fi 7 chain as and when it's ready and got the Alliance stamp of approval.
So should you be excited about Wi-Fi 7? Well, that'll depend on just how much of a computing geek you are. But it'll bring clear benefits, such as multi-link operation (like multi-band aggregation across its frequency bands) for more consistent and faster speeds. And that, in an increasingly connected world, can only be a better thing for everyone. Looks like MediaTek is very much a big player in that future world in the making.
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Mike is T3's Tech Editor. He's been writing about consumer technology for 15 years and his beat covers phones – of which he's seen hundreds of handsets over the years – laptops, gaming, TV & audio, and more. There's little consumer tech he's not had a hand at trying, and with extensive commissioning and editing experience, he knows the industry inside out. As the former Reviews Editor at Pocket-lint for 10 years where he furthered his knowledge and expertise, whilst writing about literally thousands of products, he's also provided work for publications such as Wired, The Guardian, Metro, and more.
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