Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. a wholly owned subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated has announced Qualcomm® Networking Pro Series platforms, its second-generation Wi-Fi 6 networking offerings, designed to deliver the ultimate Wi-Fi 6 connectivity experience across the widest range of applications.
At Qualcomm® Wi-Fi 6 Day in San Francisco, executives are demonstrating the Qualcomm Networking Pro Series, comprised of four platforms, the 1200, 800, 600, and 400, distinguished by format, scale of application, and computing needs.
The platforms leverage the company’s unique Wi-Fi 6 architecture and approach and are designed for densely congested networks, onboarding of hundreds of devices without degradation of user experience, and high performance.
Modern networks are overmatched by the number of devices and data demands placed on them in the most densely populated environments today. Networks must meet expectations for high bandwidth, low latency, and with fair and simultaneous access.
This reality belies the promise of the Wi-Fi 6 standard and demands a new architectural approach to wireless networking silicon optimized for this environment. The Qualcomm Networking Pro Series platforms are built for the dense connectivity requirements of modern Wi-Fi networks, with Wi-Fi 6 features offering increased network capacity for high-density environments such as university lecture halls, malls, stadiums, and office buildings.
“Wi-Fi 6 is a transformational reimagining of how Wi-Fi works, a leap forward arriving alongside 5G and designed to accommodate the massive surge of connected devices,” said Nick Kucharewski, vice president and general manager, wireless infrastructure and networking, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. “The Qualcomm Networking Pro Series platforms raise the bar for the management of the ever-growing number of connected devices, the variation and complexity of those devices’ data needs, and the quality of the overall connectivity experiences they deliver.”
“The proliferation of connected devices combined with exploding demand for video streaming and other types of real-time data are straining the average Wi-Fi network,” said Mike Feibus, president and principal analyst at industry research firm FeibusTech. “Wi-Fi 6 is built to address the needs of modern Wi-Fi networks, offering increased network capacity for high-density environments.”
Qualcomm Networking Pro Series Platforms
The Qualcomm Networking Pro Series spans four tiered platforms designed to provide OEMs with maximum flexibility. Each platform leverages all elements of Qualcomm Technologies’ Wi-Fi 6 differentiated feature implementation, but is distinguished by format, scale of application, and computing profile:
◦Qualcomm Networking Pro 1200 Platform (supports up to 12 spatial streams of Wi-Fi 6 connectivity with up to 2.2GHz Quad-core A53 processor)
◦Qualcomm Networking Pro 800 Platform (supports up to 8 spatial streams of Wi-Fi 6 connectivity with up to 1.4GHz Quad-core A53 processor)
◦Qualcomm Networking Pro 600 Platform (supports up to 6 spatial streams of Wi-Fi 6 connectivity with up to 1.0GHz Quad-core A53 processor)
◦Qualcomm Networking Pro 400 Platform (supports up to 4 spatial streams of Wi-Fi 6 connectivity with up to 1.0GHz Quad-core A53 processor)
Derived from decades of R&D and proven engineering expertise across multiple connectivity portfolios, the Qualcomm Networking Pro Series platforms bring a highly differentiated portfolio of features that go far beyond the standards to deliver superior performance outcomes:
◦8×8 radio support – Qualcomm Networking Pro Series platforms expand overall available capacity by offering up to 12 full streams of Wi-Fi 6 connectivity (in the 1200 tier), including 8 streams of Wi-Fi 6 connectivity in the 5GHz band.
◦Qualcomm Technologies’ multi-use scheduling algorithms represent a distinctly differentiated form of traffic management for Wi-Fi. Through its advanced implementation of Wi-Fi 6 protocol standards, networks built on Qualcomm Networking Pro Series platforms can set a new benchmark for prioritizing network access for large numbers of connected clients:
◦MU-MIMO: Qualcomm Networking Pro Series platforms support MU-MIMO in the uplink and downlink across all bands, ensuring maximum capacity (up to 12 independent chains of Wi-Fi to simultaneously connect MU-MIMO capable clients).
◦OFDMA: Qualcomm Networking Pro Series platforms support OFDMA in the uplink and downlink across all bands with up to support for 37 users per 5GHz channel used.
“Qualcomm Technologies has been an outstanding partner in our work to develop and bring to market next-generation Wi-Fi. Today’s announcement is a key milestone to ensuring exceptional customer experiences in every environment,” said Morgan Kurk, chief technology officer, CommScope. “We’re excited about using the new platform to address the current and emerging needs of our education, hospitality and large venue customers, in particular. Wi-Fi 6 is uniquely equipped to handle the growing demands arising from the transition to digital learning in schools to the widespread adoption of augmented and virtual reality in stadia, to everything in between, and Qualcomm Technologies’ Wi-Fi 6 technology is once again a preferred solution.”
“Wi-Fi 6 is ushering in a broad set of new and compelling use cases that require high-bandwidth, low-latency connectivity in highly dense environments,” Chuck Lukaszewski, vice president of wireless strategy and standards, Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company. “Working with innovative companies like Qualcomm Technologies allows Aruba to utilize key Wi-Fi 6 features such as OFDMA, dual 5G, intelligent network management and target wake time (TWT) to deliver simple, secure and intelligent enterprise-grade solutions that enable customers to realize the business advantages afforded by this next generation wireless technology.”
“The number of wireless devices in today’s homes are expected to double by 2022. This requires networking solutions to evolve in order to ease congested networks and maintain the high level of performance Linksys Intelligent Mesh products are known for,” said L.C. Wu, chief operating officer, Belkin International. “As a global leader in networking, we are constantly investing in technologies to bring the best experiences to people. Working with Qualcomm Technologies’ latest Wi-Fi 6 networking platform helps us do just that – it’s purpose-built for maximum performance in today’s high-density environments.”
“Through our collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies, we ushered in a new era of super-fast and ultra-reliable mobile connectivity with the world’s first nationwide 5G cellular network. We’re excited to compliment that effort with Qualcomm Technologies’ high-performance Wi-Fi 6 technology,” said Lee Jong-Pil, vice president, KT Institute of Convergence Technology. “With the new Wi-Fi 6 networking platform, we’ll be able to accelerate our time-to-market leadership and overall availability of Wi-Fi 6 in South Korea, providing our customers with a seamless, next generation, connected experience, whether they’re using 5G on-the-go or Wi-Fi at a busy hotspot.
“NETGEAR, together with our technology partner Qualcomm Technologies, is committed to ushering in the next generation of Wi-Fi 6 mesh systems,” said David Henry, senior vice president, connected home product, NETGEAR. “We are proud to introduce our next generation Orbi Wi-Fi 6 Mesh system based on Qualcomm Technologies’ latest generation Wi-Fi 6 solution. Orbi Wi-Fi 6 Mesh System is a leap ahead of current industry offerings, delivering significantly enhanced capacity, coverage and simultaneous multi-user performance through dedicated tri-band support with quad stream radios for all the three Wi-Fi bands with support for MU-MIMO and OFDMA technologies. These industry-leading features will enable us to push what’s already the best and highest performing mesh Wi-Fi experience in the world to the next level.”
