Wifi 5 vs Wifi 7

[ITGuyInTraining]

Hello!

We use out of support Wifi 5 APs (eg MR32s, MR44) and I was wondering if we would notice a big change when upgrading to whatever the latest version of the APs are?  

Any help appreciated!

[Inderdeep]

Its not there yet but soon you will see the support for Wifi7 on Cisco APs. Technical doc is here 

https://documentation.meraki.com/MR/Wi-Fi_Basics_and_Best_Practices/Wi-Fi_7_(802.11be)_Technical_Gui... 

[Mloraditch]

This heavily depends on your endpoints being compatible with newer speeds. It also depends on your available lan and internet bandwidth. If you don't have a bunch of ancient equipment you will likely see some improvements. The biggest improvements of using 6 Ghz are perhaps the hardest to realize as compatible endpoints are fewer. Coming from MR32s if nothing else there are stability improvements in the overall platform.

MR44s are Wifi 6 so unless you have 6Ghz compatible clients, I wouldn't necessarily replace those yet unless you are getting a fantastic deal from your partner/account rep.

MR 32s are EOL and I would recommend replacing. Meraki is selling their WiFi 7 aps for the same pricing as their 6e options so I do generally recommend getting them, but be careful to understand the power requirements and what does and doesn't work if you don't yet have switching with the full PoE requirements necessary. The new 9172s just announced may be good for you: https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/products/collateral/wireless/catalyst-9100ax-access-points/wireless-91...

[KathleenJ]

It really depends on what kind of clients you have. If your clients have devices that support WiFi7 then upgrading to APs that support this would not be a bad thing. I would suggest contacting your reseller and asking them about demoing one of the new wifi7 access points so that you can have a fair comparison to your existing APs. One thing to keep in mind there will probably be a higher power draw but this is why getting trial equipment is a good thing. Here is the data sheet for Meraki APs so you can compare features.

[rhbirkelund · Accepted solution]

MR32 had End of Support last year, while MR44 still doesn't have an Announcement from the looks of it.

That being said, as other say it really comes down to your client base and type of users.

Typically for warehouses, these types of clients rarely see much innovation, so WiFi6E would most certainly be way out in the future. Even more so for WiFi7.

However, for office and campus sites clients tend to be replaced more frequently and be updated faster. I can't speak for other vendors, but I recall that the next iteration of Macbook Pros, should support WiFi 7. iPhone 16 Pro already does, if memory serves me.

For an office or campus, I'd look towards WiFi7 to have a ready and future proof network, for those that move towards WiFi7.

For warehouses, perhaps WiFi6E would be worth doing.

[cmr]

I'm guessing you meant MR34s and not MR44s, as the latter are quite new and still fully supported?

Moving to WiFi 6 APs will give you the possibility of faster connections, with existing settings though it is an incremental improvement and not a huge change.

Going up to WiFi 6e models only makes a further improvement if you can use WPA3 encryption and I'd have to say that client support is patchy and not as stable as WPA2.  Without WPA3 you cannot use the new 6GHz band.  Even with it, outside of the US it only works for APs with internal antenna that are inside.

WiFi 7 adds on to 6e, but retains the same requirement for WPA3.

[ITGuyInTraining]

Thank you everyone, a lot of helpful stuff here.  I work in an office environment across multiple sites, so I'll go to the management, cap in hand and see what I can get for our networks!

[rhbirkelund]

Good luck with the song and dance with Management. 🙂