The Wi-Fi Mobility Symposium panelists discussed the possibilities for gigabit Wi-Fi, including practical applications and questions about the relevance of technologies like 802.11ac and 802.11ad. This session was introduced by Marcus Burton and moderated by Marcus and Andrew von Nagy. It features the following panelists (L-R):
- Devin Akin, Aerohive Networks
- Peter Thornycroft, Aruba Networks
- Paul Congdon, HP Labs
- GT Hill, Ruckus Wireless
Speed is king. The desire for in-home video and multimedia distribution is growing as consumers increasingly adopt more dynamic time-shifted and location-shifted media consumption behaviors. Wireless networking is the preferred method due to its ease-of-use, ubiquity, and low-cost compared to wired network installation. Two separate standards are being developed to enable higher capacity and support for multiple high-def video streams: 802.11ac provides gigabit speeds for multi-room access and ensures backward compatibility with existing Wi-Fi equipment in the 5GHz frequency band, while 802.11ad provides multi-gigabit speeds at much shorter ranges but does not provide compatibility due to operation in the much higher 60GHz frequency range. Symposium panelists will present the benefits and development progress for both standards, and discuss use-cases within the home as well as enterprise environments.