5G vs. WiFi 6: Tips for Choosing the Best Wireless Networking Option

For nearly five years now, those of us in IT who have followed enterprise networking have been inundated with various claims and counterclaims regarding some sort of competition between 5G-based cellular networking and WiFi 6. Much has been made of the theoretical superiority of 5G's capabilities in terms of network management, performance, security, and propagation capabilities; but in my experience, deciding on any technology in the abstract without specific context has always been a risky proposition.

It should always be the specific needs of a business application that determine the optimal technical environment needed to support it; anything else is putting the cart before the horse, so to speak. This makes it difficult to understand the messaging about 5G being the thing a company needs to "accelerate their business," when in reality, it's common for many business customers to use WiFi and cellular data services interchangeably, especially given the growing adoption of SD-WAN technology that looks to expand beyond the traditional networking challenges to streamline access to the cloud.

From a mixed business/consumer perspective, it's estimated that there are more than 18 billion WiFi-enabled devices in use worldwide, closely followed by nearly 12 billion cellular connections. This is remarkable considering there's just over 8 billion people in the world, about a third of which are likely either too young or live in areas where digital technology is sparse.

Related:5G Was an Overhyped Technology Bust. Let’s Learn Our Lesson.

Fortunately, both WiFi 6 and 5G cellular networks have undergone substantial and continuous improvement over the last two decades or so, but even though both technologies use radios to move data, the infrastructure and detailed management needed to support a global 5G network is far more complex and expensive than that required for WiFi, a low-cost and functional wireless network that is already in use in many homes and businesses.

WiFi 6 or 5G? It Depends on the Business Need

In some ways it's easy to see where the line between WiFi and 5G can be drawn. The traditional use case for WiFi has been to support client systems where it would be too costly or impractical to wire directly, based on their location or nominal bandwidth requirements. WiFi has become ubiquitous, and the configuration and management process for building out a WiFi network is close to plug and play. Modern WiFi access points (APs) for both consumers and businesses offer simplified and intuitive web-based utilities that guide users through setting up authentication, security, and access policies that can get a secure and functional WiFi network up and running in minutes.

For mobile and outdoor applications, cellular networks, starting with 4G LTE and now 5G, have evolved beyond telecommunications to provide substantially greater range and reliable connectivity for a number of data-rich mobile applications. Both public and private cellular networks have found a home in some of the largest-scale industries — such as light and heavy manufacturing, public utilities, oil and gas production, and transportation, to name a few — where WiFi can't meet the mobility, performance, and signal reliability required for specific mission-critical applications.

Like any other IT project, it's up to us technologists to adequately define the business need and then make technological recommendations that will reliably meet or exceed those needs. The choice between 5G or WiFi 6 isn't a binary one — both methodologies can and should coexist, like any other hybrid IT environment.

Top Factors to Consider Before Choosing 5G and/or WiFi 6

Of course, there is a broad range of technical considerations that come into play when assigning business applications to 5G and/or WiFi 6. When I began this research on the current state-of-the-art wireless networking, I was able to identify more than a dozen factors I would take into account, even without a specific use case in mind. In the interest of preserving our sanity, these top the list:

I'm a firm believer that any technological advice that doesn't begin with "well, it depends" should be considered highly suspect, particularly so in the wireless networking space. Truth be told, I can think of no other IT technology that is so susceptible to the variables of environment as is the challenge of high-speed networking via radio. The fact that it works to the current levels of 5G/WiFi 6 — even at its worst — is already remarkable, and it will undoubtedly continue to improve with the introduction of 6G toward the end of the decade.

The same holds true of WiFi 6 and the upcoming WiFi 7 standard, but then it's almost a sure bet that the data and application requirements will continue to increase along the same lines. However, switching over to 6G by the end of the decade will likely incur another massively expensive investment in new technology, something that will cost a tiny fraction in comparison for comparable WiFi 7 technology updates.

It's somewhat easy to forgive the 5G hype. Given the massively expensive underlying infrastructure and cutting-edge technology development necessary to run a worldwide, wireless communication grid, it's perfectly reasonable for cellular carriers to explore new applications to recoup hundreds of billions of dollars in 5G infrastructure and spectrum investments. But it's also likely that carriers will have to settle for only part of the wireless pie when a less complex, less costly, and very well understood alternative like WiFi is perfectly capable of supporting a large percentage of wireless use cases.

5G and WiFi 6 companies would do well to find ways to work in partnership, but this ideal is complicated by vendors and standards organizations that are more focused on advancing their own agendas rather than serving the needs of their customers.

As a customer, avoid the hype, take the time to really understand your business needs, and use a combination of whatever makes the most sense.