OK, so the all-singing and tap-dancing WiFi 6 does things a bit different to achieve a potentially higher wifi speed for suitably compatible devices.

I've been toying (nj) with a problem, or puzzle really, but there doesn't seem to be much information online, so I wondered whether teh minds of teh can assist.

Somewhat disingenuously, manufacturers have taken to describing the speed of routers as the highest theoretically possible were you able to make use of both the 2.4 and 5.0GHz bands, so an AC1750 would be 1300 Mbps (5.0GHz) and 450 Mbps (2.4GHz). 

Similarly, an 802.11AX router, say AX5400, would be 4800 Mbps (5.0GHz) and 600 Mbps (2.4GHz).

I thought my question was simple, but apparently not. Presumably the speeds quoted for 802.11AX apply to devices (phones, PCs, tablets etc) that support 802.11AX. It's a backwardly compatible protocol, so when talking to a device that supports 802.11AC, it will use appropriate 802.11AC techy-stuff. BUT, what speeds are offered? (yes, I know it's all theoretical and also depends on stuff like component quality. build quality, implementation of clever things like beam-forming etc). Or will an AX5400 router simply offer 4800 and 600 megabits to an 802.11AC client and say 'use what you can', just like an AC5400 router would (in theory)?

Well, I have a sort of answer. The TP-link Archer C& (AC1750) I've been using as a hotspot in the sitting room and extension is faulty. Amazon had a deal of sorts so I went for a TP-link AX5400 which is supposed to be quite good. So how good is it? My guess, based on using 802.11AC clients is that it's roughly equivalent to a rather nice TP-link AC1900 hotspot (RE550) that we have upstairs. 

This is interesting: https://www.duckware.com/tech/wifi-in-the-us.html 


 

Oh, OK, I'm a child, swayed by all the latest toys. I simply couldn't resist getting a cheapo WiFi 6 network card for my laptop.