Wi-Fi 6 Devices Market Analysis

Market Overview

Wi-Fi 6 technology is an advanced wireless technology, which is also known as 802.11ax Wi-Fi. Wi-Fi 6 provides features such as Orthogonal frequency division multiple access (OFDMA), Multi-user multiple input multiple output (MU-MIMO), 160 MHz channels, Target wake time (TWT), 1024 quadrature amplitude modulation mode (1024-QAM), and others. Due to these features, it can provide up to four times more internet speed and four times more device connectivity than its predecessor Wi-Fi 5 or 802.11ac with increase in the overall network security.

The global Wi-Fi 6 technology market is expected to exhibit a CAGR of 26.5% during the forecast period (2020-2027).

Market Dynamics- Drivers

Increasing demand for high-speed internet connection, and increasing number of internet users and devices are expected to drive the global Wi-Fi 6 technology market during the forecast period

The demand for high-speed internet connectivity has increased in the recent past. According to a report published by Cisco Systems, Inc. in April 2019, globally, internet users were 45.3% in 2017, which is expected to reach 59.7% by 2022.

Furthermore, average internet speed is expected to reach 75.4 Mbps in 2022 from 39.0 Mbps in 2017. Thus, the world is expected to witness significant increase in internet speed and the number of internet users over the forecast period. Consumers' devices equipped with internet connectivity are also expected to increase during the forecast period. However, presently used wireless technologies such as 802.11ac technology (Wi-Fi 5) and 802.11n (Wi-Fi 4) are not equipped for such high demand internet connectivity. For instance, Wi-Fi 5 technology router can handle up to 32 devices at a single time. Furthermore, according to Wi-Fi Alliance, a U.S.-based Wi-Fi certificate providing company, Wi-Fi 6 certified router can manage four times more devices than Wi-Fi 5 router and can send 25% more data in a single packet. Thus, increasing demand for high-speed internet connection, and increasing number of internet users and devices are expected to drive the global Wi-Fi 6 technology market growth during the forecast period.

Statistics:

North America held dominant position in the global Wi-Fi 6 technology market in 2019, accounting for 43.2% share in terms of value, followed by Asia Pacific, Europe, Latin America, and MEA.

Figure 1: Global Wi-Fi 6 Technology Market Share (%), By Region, 2019

Market Restraints

High initial investment in Wi-Fi 6 is expected to restrain growth of the global Wi-Fi 6 technology market during the forecast period

Wi-Fi 6 technology provides various benefits such as high-speed internet connectivity to a large number of devices with improved security. However, to use Wi-Fi 6 technology, all devices must be equipped with Wi-Fi 6 technology. For instance, to access the internet using Wi-Fi 6 technology on smartphones, both smartphones and internet routers must be equipped with Wi-Fi 6 technology, otherwise users might fail to get the anticipated results. To tackle this situation, many smartphone companies are developing high-end smartphones equipped with Wi-Fi 6 technology. For instance, in August 2019, Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., a South Korea-based electronics company, launched Samsung Galaxy Note 10 and Note 10+, which are the company’s first high-end smartphone equipped with Wi-Fi 6 technology. However, as of now, this technology is limited to high-end devices only, which might hamper the global Wi-Fi 6 technology market growth.

Market Opportunities

Increasing smart city projects across the globe is expected to create lucrative growth opportunities for market players in the global Wi-Fi 6 technology market

Across the globe, various governments are investing in smart city projects, which enables governments to manage the resources according to citizens’ needs. For instance, in June 2015, the Government of India launched the National Smart Cities Mission to develop 100 smart cities across India by 2023 with US$ 14 billion budget. Similar projects have been undertaken by various governments across the globe. In these smart city projects, various internet of things (IoT) devices such as smartphones, CCTV cameras, and others are connected to the internet, which will provide data to the government. Wi-Fi 6 technology can provide high-speed internet connectivity to manage real-time data on these devices. Thus, increasing number of smart city projects across the globe is expected to create lucrative growth opportunities for market players in the global Wi-Fi 6 technology market.

Global Wi-Fi 6 Technology Market - Impact of Coronavirus (Covid-19) Pandemic

Due to Covid-19 pandemic, many people are working from home. According to Coherent Market Insights’ analysis, in 2020, due to Covid-19 pandemic, around 4.8 million people are working from home. Furthermore, many companies across the globe are providing work from home option to employees. For instance, in May 2020, Facebook Inc. and Google Inc. extended work from home period till December 2020. Similar adoption of work from home (WFH) is seen in many other technology companies such as Twitter, Microsoft Corporation, and others due to which the usage of internet suddenly increased, which will increase demand for internet with higher bandwidth such as 6Ghz. Furthermore, many companies are using virtual private network (VPN) to safe guard their network. However, using VPN will create latency problem, which will further reduce the network efficiency. Thus, to protect the network and increase the efficiency, companies are adopting Wi-Fi 6 technology.

Competitive Landscape

Key companies operating in the global Wi-Fi 6 technology market include ADTRAN, Inc., Aerohive Networks, Aruba Networks (Hewlett Packard Enterprise), Cisco Systems, Inc. (including Cisco Meraki), Extreme Networks Inc., Fortinet, Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd., Mojo Networks, Inc., Riverbed Technology, Inc., Cambium Networks, Ltd., Ruckus Networks, TP-Link Technologies Co., Ltd., and Ubiquiti Networks.

These key market players are focusing on research and development of new products to capture new markets.

Key Developments

• Key manufacturers are focused on launching new products in order to enhance their product portfolio. For instance, in March 2020, Aruba Networks, a part of the U.S.-based Hewlett Packard Enterprise, launched Aruba Air Pass, which enables its users to connect to its Aruba enterprise Wi-Fi 6 networks.
• For instance, in April 2019, Cisco Systems, Inc. launched Wi-Fi 6 enabled Catalyst 9600 series, a wireless networking access points, and switch gears for the enterprise. According to Cisco, these new products will improve network speed and coverage with improved security.