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MediaTek unveiled two chipsets for wifi 7. The Filogic 880 is suitable for access points, routers and gateways. The Filogic 380 supports clients.

The chipsets are designed to support wifi 7 in access points (Filogic 880) and clients (Filogic 380), including smartphones and laptops. The release date is unknown. wifi 7 is both faster and more efficient than wifi 6 and 6E.

MediaTek shared the news at Computex 2022 in Tapei, Taiwan. The conference hosts the world’s largest device and chip manufacturers. Hence, MediaTek is on site. The chip manufacturer develops chipsets for devices such as smartphones, laptops and routers. Among its customers are Samsung, Xiaomi, D-Link and TP-Link. The upcoming wifi 7 chips are aimed at them.

From wifi 6 to wifi 7

MediaTek works under constant pressure. Its offering must keep up with the latest developments. Suppose a researcher discovers a more efficient way of exchanging data. Device manufacturers will want to offer the technology in their products as quickly as possible. Since the processor is the engine of most devices, it’s up to chip manufacturers to incorporate new technologies.

Wifi is the most important technology for wireless network equipment. That’s why it’s essential for MediaTek to support wifi developments in its chipsets.

The latest development is wifi 7. The standard was proposed by The Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE) in 2020. In a nutshell, wifi standards are rules about how devices should communicate with each other. The rules of wifi 7 provide faster and more efficient communication than wifi 6 and wifi 6E.

Some time away

It’ll be some time until the new rules are processed in devices. Manufacturers will only use a new standard once it has been certified by the Wi-Fi Alliance. The latter is an interest group composed of the world’s largest network manufacturers. Together, they determine whether the IEEE’s proposed rules are practical on a large scale. If so, the rules are established. In this way, manufacturers have a guarantee that their devices can communicate with others.

Wifi 7 has not yet been certified by the Wi-Fi Alliance. Nevertheless, all signs indicate that the proposal will eventually be greenlit. Most of the new rules are set in stone, which allows MediaTek to support the standard in its chipsets at an early stage. MediaTek is not the only one making preparations. Qualcomm and Broadcom recently introduced chipsets for wifi 7 as well.