iPhone 11 might not have 5G, but could get a massive Wi-Fi boost
We’re still a full nine months away from their arrival, but today has been a particularly busy day for iPhone 2019 rumours.
Firstly, a Wall Street Journal report claimed the iPhone XR will get a second bite of the cherry, despite disappointing sales, and a flagship device with three rear cameras will headline the 2019 range.
Now, an analyst’s report has suggested the next-gen iPhone handsets will benefit from a new Wi-Fi technology that promises better performance at home and in densely populated areas.
In a CES wrap-up report, Barclays analyst Blaine Curtis (via 9to5Mac) said the iPhone 2019 will benefit from the latest Wi-Fi 802.11 ax standard, more commonly known as Wi-Fi 6. This will replace the existing Wi-Fi 5 (or 802.11ac), which was released way back in 2014.
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So why does that matter? Well, the Wi-Fi Alliance believes the new standard will offer 4x better performance in congested areas such as sports stadiums or concert venues, which often struggle to provide reliable connectivity under the strain.
It’s also tipped to offer 40% higher data speeds through efficient data encoding, better network efficiency and improved device battery life. The latter is achieved by putting the Wi-Fi radio in sleep mode when not in use by a network.
The Wi-Fi alliance says: “Wi-Fi 6 promises faster speeds (of course), greater range, increased capacity, reduced latency, higher security and faster initial connection to a network.”
By the time the iPhone 2019 range arrives, Wi-Fi 6-enabled modems and routers should be available. Although some examples were demonstrated at CES 2019, the standard is still to be finalised and no devices are commercially available.
The Wi-Fi 6 tech would also go towards making up for the lack of a 5G modem in this year’s iPhone handsets. Apple is widely expected to hold off until the 2020 models to jump on board with 5G.
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