802.11ac Wave 1

The 802.11ac Wave-1 WiFi Standard is a wireless networking protocol adopted in mid-2013 that offered significant improvements over previous standards. It operates exclusively on the 5 GHz band, reducing interference and allowing for faster data transmission rates. With the potential to deliver speeds up to 1.3 Gbps, this standard significantly outperforms its predecessor, the 802.11n802.11n: The 802.11n WiFi standard was adopted in 2008 and was considered a significant upgrade from the previous 802.11g standard. This standard provides a higher throughput and improved range, making it a more reliable and efficient wireless connection. Operating on both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz frequency… standard. The 802.11ac Wave-1 standard also utilises wider channels (up to 80 MHz) compared to the 40 MHz channels used by the 802.11n standard. This allows for more data to be transferred at once, improving overall network efficiency. This standard supports up to three spatial streams (3x3 MIMO3x3 MIMO: Refers to a wireless communication configuration that uses three antennas, each capable of both transmission (the multiple inputs) and reception (the multiple outputs). This arrangement allows the simultaneous transmission and reception of up to three independent data streams over the same…), with each stream capable of delivering its own data payload.

The "Wave 1" moniker was used to differentiate products built with the first 802.11ac release from those built under the full 802.11ac standard released in 2016, which were called "Wave 2". Wave 2 products were capable of supporting 4x4 MIMO4x4 MIMO: A wireless communication configuration that uses four antennas, each capable of both transmission (the multiple inputs) and reception (the multiple outputs). This arrangement facilitates the simultaneous transmission and reception of up to four independent data streams over the same frequency band,…, MU-MIMO, and channel widths up to 160 MHz, among other minor advancements.