Differences Between Wi-Fi HaLow and Wi-Fi
Traditional Wi-Fi enables users to stream movies and download files quickly using wide channels of radio frequencies in the 2.4GHz, 5GHz and even 6GHz bands in the near future. The effective distance for these connections is short and they drain batteries fast, requiring frequent charging or a power connection.
Wi-Fi 6 for example is still ideal for bandwidth intensive applications from 4K video streaming to augmented reality.
Wi-Fi HaLow builds on the robust security and spectral efficient OFDM foundations, while utilizing narrower channels of radio frequencies under 1 GHz to better penetrate through materials, allowing connections reaching up to 10 times farther, 100 times the area and 1000 times the volume of traditional Wi-Fi. Wi-Fi HaLow is perfect for IoT devices as it allows over 8,000 robust connections to a single access point, and can take advantage of new sleep modes that save power.
Wi-Fi HaLow enables a new class of products that can run off batteries for years, and still offers many Mbps of data throughput.
The network congestion, distance limitations and higher power usage of conventional Wi-Fi, along with the limited number of devices that can be connected to a single wireless access point, are no longer viable in a connected world of smart devices.
Such limitations impede new IoT-centric business models that are emerging across industries, which require greater capacity, range and battery operation while minimizing deployment costs and timelines — all of which are highly desirable attributes.
What is Wi-Fi HaLow?
Where Wi-Fi HaLow fits in the Wi-Fi spectrum.
The IEEE 802.11ah Wi-Fi HaLow standard defines a sub-1-GHz implementation of Wi-Fi that provides longer operating range while sacrificing throughput.
The idea is to provide connectivity on par with low-power wireless solutions but within the Wi-Fi framework. The top data rate for a single stream is 32.5 Mb/s, whereas top-end Wi-Fi standards using multiple antennas and the 2.4-, 5-, and 6-GHz bands can deliver multi-gigabit throughput that can stream 4K video and more. The main difference is that these high-bandwidth solutions require a lot more power.
Wi-Fi HaLow has 1-, 2-, 4-, and 8-MHz channel bandwidth. It uses the 900-MHz license-exempt bands utilized by other low-power devices from phones to sensor systems. It competes with low-power wireless solutions like Bluetooth, LoRaWAN, and Zigbee. Wi-Fi HaLow utilizes 26 channels at 100 kb/s. Maximum range is on the order of one kilometer.
The maximum throughput of 347 Mb/s is achieved using four 16-MHz channels. At the low end is a single, 1-MHz channel using BPSK modulation. At the high end, the modulation is 256QAM.
The wireless communication supports WPA3 security utilized on other Wi-Fi protocols.
Wi-Fi HaLow addresses a range of applications from IoT sensors and control to intelligent-grid and smart-metering applications. It could even be used in drone applications.
The chips utilize bands between 850 and 950 MHz, allowing them to be employed worldwide, where available unlicensed bands may be different.
There's a similar standard called 802.11af that uses licensed bands under 1 GHz, between 54 and 790 MHz .
