Thursday, April 23rd 2020

FCC Votes to Open 6 GHz Spectrum for WiFi 6E

The Federal Communications Commission today adopted rules that make 1,200 megahertz of spectrum in the 6 GHz band (5.925-7.125 GHz) available
for unlicensed use.These new rules will usher in Wi-Fi 6, the next generation of Wi-Fi, and play a major role in the growth of the Internet of Things. Wi-Fi 6 will be over two-and-a-half times faster than the current standard and will offer better performance for American consumers. Opening the 6 GHz band for unlicensed use will also increase the amount of spectrum available for Wi-Fi by nearly a factor of five and help improve rural connectivity.

The 6 GHz band is currently populated by, among others, microwave services that are used to support utilities, public safety, and wireless backhaul. Unlicensed devices will share this spectrum with incumbent licensed services under rules crafted to protect those licensed services and enable both unlicensed and licensed operations to thrive throughout the band.
The Report and Order authorizes indoor low-power operations over the full 1,200 megahertz and standard-power devices in 850 megahertz in the 6 GHz band. An automated frequency coordination system will prevent standard power access points from operating where they could cause interference to incumbent services.

The Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeks comment on a proposal to permit very lowpower devices to operate across the 6 GHz band to support high data rate applications including high-performance, wearable, augmented-reality and virtual-reality devices. The notice also seeks comment on increasing the power at which low-power indoor access points may operate.

Unlicensed devices that employ Wi-Fi and other unlicensed standards have become indispensable for providing low-cost wireless connectivity in countless products used by American consumers. In making broad swaths of the 6 GHz spectrum available for unlicensed use, the FCC envisions new innovative technologies and services that will deliver new devices and applications to American consumers and advance the Commission's goal of making broadband connectivity available to all Americans, especially those in rural and underserved areas.
Source: FCC News
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12 Comments on FCC Votes to Open 6 GHz Spectrum for WiFi 6E

#1
Chane
shouldn't they be calling this WiFi 7? it's not like our 802.11ax equipment is going to get a free upgrade to support 6ghz, so they might as well just call this WiFi 7.
Posted on Reply
#2
TheLostSwede
News Editor
Chaneshouldn't they be calling this WiFi 7? it's not like our 802.11ax equipment is going to get a free upgrade to support 6ghz, so they might as well just call this WiFi 7.
No, it's simply an extension of the frequency range that 802.11ax can operate within, there are no other changes. Some equipment as you call, already supports it, but if you have very early hardware, then no.
This is why you don't want to be an early adopter when it comes to Wi-Fi.
Also, keep in mind, that so far, this is for the US only. No other countries have agreed to offer the frequency extension.
Posted on Reply
#3
Prince Valiant
and advance the Commission's goal of making broadband connectivity available to all Americans, especially those in rural and underserved areas.
Forcing ISPs to compete with each other and requiring them to fulfill their claims would make that happen a lot sooner.
Posted on Reply
#4
Berfs1
Not sure if this is a good idea to share a band used by microwaves... Maybe I misinterpreted it
Posted on Reply
#5
R-T-B
Berfs1Not sure if this is a good idea to share a band used by microwaves... Maybe I misinterpreted it
Almost all consumer radio bands are microwave based. 2.4Ghz is actually generated by microwave ovens.
Posted on Reply
#6
ARF
Let it stay only in the US.
R-T-BAlmost all consumer radio bands are microwave based. 2.4Ghz is actually generated by microwave ovens.
I think the best for us is to use the visible light spectrum of frequencies. Optical fibres work based on this or close to it principle.
Infrared waves carry a lot of heat. Ultraviolet burn the skin very fast.

The radio and micro waves carry enough energy to force the polar molecules to vibrate and the tissues to heat up.
Posted on Reply
#7
R-T-B
ARFI think the best for us is to use the visible light spectrum of frequencies.
Impractical and pointless. You can't even crimp optic cables.
The radio and micro waves carry enough energy to force the polar molecules to vibrate and the tissues to heat up.
No, they don't, or not anymore than sunlight at the rates we're talking about. Unless your talking about a microwave oven, and you do know how close you have to be right? Even with their high wattage output, if you put your dinner off center, it's cold.
Posted on Reply
#8
moproblems99
ARFthink the best for us is to use the visible light spectrum of frequencies. Optical fibres work based on this or close to it principle.
Optical spectrum works great when you don't have to deal with light pollution. Or walls.
Posted on Reply
#9
R-T-B
moproblems99Optical spectrum works great when you don't have to deal with light pollution. Or walls.
Maybe we should just live in glass houses. And turn off the sun.
Posted on Reply
#10
ARF
R-T-BNo, they don't, or not anymore than sunlight at the rates we're talking about. Unless your talking about a microwave oven, and you do know how close you have to be right? Even with their high wattage output, if you put your dinner off center, it's cold.
I have measured with a RF meter just outside of a microwave oven and there is always small leakage. The closer to the door, the stronger the leakage is.
That's between 600-watt and 1000-watt and beyond, it's no joke.

Everything inside gets cooked, slowly or faster, but always.
Posted on Reply
#11
RoutedScripter
There's a lot of non-techy media people totally mixing the network protocol and fequency range monikers, so the fact that average folk doesn't understand it is kinda not surprising.

You can run 5G or Wifi1-2-3-4-5 on any frequency. 88 MHz if you want.
Berfs1Not sure if this is a good idea to share a band used by microwaves... Maybe I misinterpreted it
You are correct, infact it's 2.4 GHz, and it's because of the resonance of water at that frequency.
Human body is made out of ... mostly water .... ooops.

Resonance is an extremely powerful physical phenomena, playing with it on your own body is a bad bad bad idea. But our loving corporations obviously care more about the profits, because that's just the great business spirit right !!!

The various tech-nedrs and radio-amaterus who bathe in wireless signals all day will get extremely furious if you mention that anything could be bad from all the radiation, they have to to protect their little hobby bubble. I've done some radio stuff as a personal electronics interest but that doesn't mean I have to be ignorant of the dangers. When someone is living in a happy fantasy bubble for 20 years it is really hard to admit they've been duped. Now radio amateur frequencies are usually less dangerous but still they use a lot more powerful transmitters, and they usualy have directional antennas on the rooftop or even on a tower so perhaps they're somewhat distanced away, but they probably also use 3 routers and all the other gadgetry without being careful.

The basic mistake is having a wireless router on the computer desk when you sit for hours. The second one is going to sleep without turning off the wireless router. The biggest exposure could be avoided with CHILDISHLY simple and FREE measures that anyone could get used on to for nothing. The biggest problem is in multi-apartment buildings where your neighbour has a wireless transmitter on the other side of the wall 20 cenitmeters from your head when you sleep in your bed, which you can't just shut off unless you spend 3 years explaining why he should turn it off or worse.
ARFI have measured with a RF meter just outside of a microwave oven and there is always small leakage. The closer to the door, the stronger the leakage is.
That's between 600-watt and 1000-watt and beyond, it's no joke.

Everything inside gets cooked, slowly or faster, but always.
Yeah they basically get tricked on the idea that up to some "safe level" ... it doesn't work like that, like nutrition, you need to have your vitamins and minerals in proper ratios and ranges, but when it comes to poisons there is no safety level of any kind, any amount will do damage, the question is how much damage, setting some stupid safe levels there is ridicolous because then it feels and this is also purposelly presentes as if it does NO damage below that level, which is superbly false, it's like saying if I throw 1 stone at your face nothing will happen, but if I throw 2 stones both of them will do their own damage. Ofcourse in the documents they don't say that, it's explained in text but the average folks understand it like this, and this helps the corporations because if people believe they're 100% safe then that increases profits, ah nothign to worry about, you can gobble gallons and gallons of that favourite soda, all the additives are inside their "safety levels".

Then there's the time exposure ... the whole thing they totally overlook is accumulation, ... in Sunlight it's understood, you need UVB for Vitamin D3 activation, but too long it'll burn your skin and do DNA damage from UVA (which is silent, it's the UVB that burns) ... When you eat a soda or chocolate you eat 1 portion of those safetly levels, ... with wireless tech gadgetry you're exposed to constant 24/7 safe level ... but they forgot to tell you, IT ALSO ACCUMULATES !!!
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