It is an exciting time in wireless networking. The two most-used wireless technologies in the world are getting an upgrade, and the changes could affect nearly every technology-using human on Earth.

Wi-Fi, orlocalwireless, is undergoing a major advance, to Wi-Fi 6. Cellular, ormobilenetworking, is getting upgraded to 5G. These improvements will open new opportunities for businesses and new capabilities for users. The upgrades to local and mobile networking will serve us in different ways, as they have been optimized for different use cases.

How are these use cases different? There are three key dimensions that influence wireless design. They are: Physics, Economics, and Human Behavior. Understanding these factors helps us see how we can best leverage the evolving wireless landscape.

The Landscape of the Airwaves

As of early 2019, the new local wireless standard, Wi-Fi 6, is already incorporated into some mobile devices. By the end of this year, it will be built in to nearly all new medium-tier to premium smartphones, tablets, and notebook computers.  Similarly, Wi-Fi 6 access points (APs) are expected to become widely available by later this year.

Wi-Fi devices and services are optimized to provide excellent indoor coverage, even in high-density situations with high data rate demands.

5G is also starting to be supported by premium smartphones (the first company to announce a 5G phone in the U.S. rolled it out in an upgrade model above their flagship phone), and its availability in devices will increase over the next 2 years. 5G base stations are also beginning to be deployed, in select markets, and 5G coverage will continue to expand.

Cellular service, in comparison to Wi-Fi, is designed to provide ubiquitous outdoor coverage, including roaming between service providers and across countries.

Given those basics, let