6GHz Wi-Fi is Coming, Named as Wi-Fi 6E

Jacob Kastrenakes has a lovely article up on The Verge explaining the new 6GHz Wi-Fi and what is means to consumers. If you remember, 6GHz Wi-Fi was supposed to be named Wi-Fi 6, but as it turns out, sensible naming for technology is a very rare trait.

Devices are expected to start supporting 6GHz Wi-Fi by the end of 2020, so its implementation isn’t far away. When it arrives, expect to see it branded under the name “Wi-Fi 6E.”

Realistically speaking, Wi-Fi 6 devices won’t be common till 2022 at least.

But what exactly is Wi-Fi 6E? Jacob explains:

To get a little more specific, the FCC is opening up 1,200MHz of spectrum in the 6GHz band. For the past two decades, Wi-Fi has been operating with roughly 400MHz of spectrum, and all available channels had to be split up within that limited space. Channels on the 6GHz band are expected to be 160MHz each in size. Only two channels at that size could fit inside the currently available airspace.

This sounds exciting. As someone who lives in an over-populated vertical city like Mumbai, I’m stoked. I currently use 3 Netgear Orbi devices in my house, and will happily switch to whatever reasonable 6E range Netgear releases in India.

April 24, 2020 ✚ Permalink

Amazon to Acquire eero

Amazon Press Release:

Amazon […] and eero today announced that they have entered into a definitive merger agreement under which Amazon will acquire eero. eero’s home mesh WiFi systems set up in minutes and blanket every room of a customer’s home in high-performing, reliable WiFi. eero is already delighting Amazon customers with its products and services, as indicated by eero’s 4.6-star product rating on Amazon.com.

eero makes one of the best mesh networking products available in the market today, so there’s no doubt that this is a killer acquisition for Amazon. But it begs the question, “What the fuck is Apple up to”?

Eero was started by ex-Apple employees, and their product language screams the Apple design language and experience. I just cannot fathom how Apple chose to exit this market right as it was heating up, and for a company that screams that privacy is a right, not having a product that handles the home network is a real shame.

February 12, 2019 ✚ Permalink

The Original LIFX Smart Bulb Gets a Price Cut to $60

LIFX Smart Bulb

LIFX is a family of LED Smart Bulbs. These bulbs connect to your router over Wi-Fi and can be controlled using an app on your smartphone or tablet. Because these bulbs are always connected to the internet, you can use the power of IFTTT recipes to customize their behavior and mould them to your liking. These bulbs also do not require any ‘Hub’ and work independently.

Currently there are 3 products in the LIFX family:

  1. The Original — 16 Million Colors and 1000 lumens
  2. White 800 — 1000 shades of white and 890 lumens
  3. Color 650 — Full Color Downlight and 650 lumens

I presently have two LIFX Original bulbs in my house, with a third one on its way. I purchased the first one 18 months ago and I love everything about it.

Today, the company has just announced that The Original LIFX bulb has received a price cut from retailing at $99.99 to just $59.99 now. If you’ve been on the fence about smart bulbs, now’s a good chance to grab one.

You can order The Original LIFX Smart Bulb from Amazon or directly from their website, with both offering you Free Shipping in the US.

October 8, 2015 ✚ Permalink