WiGig Has Arrived to Enable IoT Designs--and Cut the HDMI Cord!

What is WiGig

WiGig is the name given to a high-speed multi-gigabit wireless communications standard over unlicensed 60GHz radio frequency band established by the Wireless Gigabit Alliance in 2007. Since then it has become part of the WiFi Alliances and established as one of the IEEE 802.11ad protocol. As part of the WiFi Alliances, WiGig tri-band-enabled devices will operate in the 2.4, 5 and 60GHz radio band.

WiGig (802.11ad) vs. 802.11n and 802.11ac

Demand for faster wireless broadband drove the development of WiGig (aka 802.11ad). WiGig can offer transfer rates up to 7Gbps, which is approximately equivalent to 8 channels of 802.11ac or 50 channels of 802.11n. At these speeds, the protocol is perfect for hotspots, office workspaces, and smart homes. In its early infancy, WiGig may have been earlier than market readiness. In today’s market, WiGig is just in time, especially with the demand for data transfers given the proliferation of tablets, smartphones, and some classes of Internet Of Things (IoT) devices.

60GHz radio offers users an uncongested and clean spectrum perfect for high-bandwidth communications. The same radio frequency, however, does restrict the signal from transmitting effectively  through walls. As such, this limits WiGig use for in-room applications. But the high data transfer allows for WiGig users to enable near-field streaming of uncompressed HDTV content, and WiGig has emerged as a leading innovation to cut the HDMI cord in TV entertainment rooms or conference rooms.

What Companies Will Adopt WiGig?

Recently, Samsung announced their WiGig solution. There are detractors on the benefits of WiGig, just like there were for other leading-edge technologies, such as moving from black/white laptop displays to color laptop displays or from landline to cellular, or when HDD broke the 1GB barrier (The refrain was, who was ever going to need so much HDD space?). Advanced technologies have a way for application to find them, and companies have enough products in the marketplace that they could leverage WiGig for the full capabilities it has.

Analysts such as ABI Research have stated that they expect that “over 1.5 billion chipsets with 802.11ad will ship in 2018.”

What are Key Applications that Could Adopt WiGig?

Major applications that will benefit from WiGig are:

• Wireless Display Connectivity for public areas, offices, and homes, which will probably be the first market projected to adopt this protocol. No longer will you scrounge around for the HDMI cable to connect your laptop/notebook to your TV. In the office environment, people won't have to shuffle seating arrangements so that the person with the presentation is close enough to the connector, or deal with the different cable connectors for Windows- or iOS-based platforms.

• Instant Wireless Sync,where advertisers with kiosks or displays can quickly identify smartphones in their vicinity and quickly push a video clip to their targeted audience. The concept is not new and has been promoted in SciFi. WiGig and proximity-based applications (i.e Alljoin, Gimbal, Tile, etc.) will make this service seamless for the users. A customer could potentially walk by a store, the entrance to the mall, or an advertisement display, and their phone could be sent an uncompressed HD short video promoting a product, discount, or promotion on products that have been identified to be of interest. This type of application will have the lowest cost because the deployment will be subsidized by advertising money.

  

• Workgroup/Docking Station.The working environment has changed dramatically in the last decade. Today it is not unusual for small workgroups to be formed for certain projects in a remote office. In locations without access to a local server, there could be delays as large amounts of data (i.e medical data, banking information, simulation data, etc.) are accessed remotely or shared locally using memory sticks. With a WiGig-enabled router, this delay can be eliminated, or a member’s laptop can become the local server/router.

  

• Access Point/Hot Spot. This is probably one of the first applications that comes to mind when you are taking public transportation (i.e boats, trains, the subway, and/or buses) and are desperately trying to access an important customer video clip, simulation, or presentation and must share the bandwidth with other passengers who are viewing the latest comedy show.

Customers are beginning to incorporate WiGig IP in their SoCs. Read here about GUC’s entry into this market. WiGig is a trending standard, and an enabler of significant change in electronics and our experiences. Get ready to ride the waves!

Read about recent WiGig customer news here.

Steve Brown