Comparison TP-LINK Archer AX12 vs TP-LINK Archer C80

Wi-Fi standards supported by the equipment. Nowadays, in addition to modern standards Wi-Fi 4 (802.11n), Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac), Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax)(its variation Wi-Fi 6E), Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be) and WiGig (802.11ad), you can meet also support for earlier versions — Wi-Fi 3 (802.11g) and even Wi-Fi 1 (802.11b). Here is a more detailed description of each of these versions:

— Wi-Fi 3 (802.11g). An outdated standard, like Wi-Fi 1 (802.11b), which has sunk into oblivion. It was widely used before the advent of Wi-Fi 4, nowadays it is used mainly as an addition to newer versions — in particular, in order to ensure compatibility with outdated and low-cost equipment. Operates at a frequency of 2.4 GHz, the maximum data transfer rate is 54 Mbps.

— Wi-Fi 4 (802.11n). The first of the common standards that supports the frequency of 5 GHz; can operate in this range or in the classic 2.4 GHz. It is worth emphasizing that some models of Wi-Fi equipment for this standard use only 5 GHz, which is why they are incompatible with earlier versions of Wi-Fi. The maximum speed for Wi-Fi 4 is 600 Mbps; in modern wireless devices, this standard is very popular, only recently it began to be squeezed into this position by Wi-Fi 5.

— Wi-Fi 5...(802.11ac). The successor to Wi-Fi 4, which finally moved to the 5 GHz band, which had a positive effect on the reliability of the connection and data transfer rate: it is up to 1.69 Gbps per antenna and up to 6.77 Gbps in general. In addition, this is the first version to fully implement Beamforming technology (for more details, see "Functions and Capabilities").

— Wi-Fi 6, Wi-Fi 6E (802.11ax). The development of Wi-Fi 5, which introduced both an increase in speed to 10 Gbps, and a number of important improvements in the format of work. One of the most important innovations is the use of an extensive frequency range — from 1 to 7 GHz; this, in particular, allows you to automatically select the least loaded frequency band, which has a positive effect on the speed and reliability of the connection. At the same time, Wi-Fi 6 devices are capable of operating at classic frequencies of 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz, and a modification of the Wi-Fi 6E standard is capable of operating at frequencies from 5.9 to 7 GHz, it is generally accepted that devices with Wi-Fi 6E support operate on frequency of 6 GHz, while there is full compatibility with earlier standards. In addition, some improvements were introduced in this version regarding the simultaneous operation of several devices on one channel, in particular, we are talking about OFDMA technology. Thanks to this, Wi-Fi 6 gives the smallest of modern standards a drop in speed when the air is loaded, and the modification of Wi-Fi 6E operating at a frequency of 6 GHz has the least amount of interference.

— Wi-Fi 7 (802.11be). This Wi-Fi standard began to be implemented in 2023. Thanks to the use of 4096-QAM modulation, a maximum theoretical data rate of up to 46 Gb / s can be squeezed out of it. Wi-Fi 7 supports three frequency bands: 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz and 6 GHz. The maximum bandwidth in the standard has been increased from 160 MHz to 320 MHz - the wider the channel, the more data it can transmit overnight. Among the interesting innovations in Wi-Fi 7, the development of MLO (Multi-Link Operation) is noted - with its help, connected devices exchange data using several channels and frequency bands simultaneously, which is especially important for VR and online games. The Multiple Resource Unit technology is designed to minimize communication delays when there are many connected client devices. The new 16x16 MIMO protocol is also aimed at increasing throughput with a large number of simultaneous connections, doubling the number of spatial streams compared to the previous Wi-Fi 6 standard.

WiGig (802.11ad). Wi-Fi standard using an operating frequency of 60 GHz; data transfer rates can be up to 10 Gbps (depending on the specific version of WiGig). The 60 GHz channel is much less loaded than the more popular 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz, which has a positive effect on the reliability of data transmission and reduces latency; the latter is especially important in games and some other special tasks. On the other hand, the increase in frequency has significantly reduced the connection range (for more details, see "Frequency range"), so that in fact this standard is only suitable for communication within the same room.

Note that in fact, the data transfer rate is usually much lower than the theoretical maximum — especially when several Wi-Fi devices operate on the same channel. Also note that different standards are backwards compatible with each other (with a speed limit according to the slower one) provided that the frequencies match: for example, 802.11ac can work with 802.11n, but not with 802.11g.

The maximum speed provided by the device when communicating wirelessly in the 2.4 GHz band.

This range is used in most modern Wi-Fi standards (see above) - as one of the available or even the only one. The theoretical maximum for it is 600 Mbit. In reality, Wi-Fi at a frequency of 2.4 GHz is used by a large number of client devices, from which congestion of data transmission channels emerges. Also, the number of antennas affects the speed performance of the equipment. It is possible to achieve the speed declared in the specification only in an ideal situation. In practice, it can be noticeably smaller (often by several times), especially with an abundance of wireless technology simultaneously connected to the equipment. The maximum speed at 2.4 GHz is specified in the characteristics of specific models to understand the real capabilities of Wi-Fi equipment. As for the numbers, according to the capabilities in the 2.4 GHz band, modern equipment is conditionally divided into models with speeds up to 500 Mbit inclusive and over 500 Mbit.

The maximum speed supported by the device when communicating wirelessly in the 5 GHz band.

This range is used in Wi-Fi 4, Wi-Fi 6 and Wi-Fi 6E as one of the available bands, in Wi-Fi 5 as the only one (see "Wi-Fi Standards"). The maximum speed is specified in the specifications in order to indicate the real capabilities of specific equipment - they can be noticeably more modest than the general capabilities of the standard. Also, in fact, it all depends on the generation of Wi-Fi. For example, devices with Wi-Fi 5 support can theoretically deliver up to 6928 Mbit (using eight antennas), with Wi-Fi 6 support up to 9607 Mbit (using the same eight spatial streams). The maximum possible communication speed is achieved under certain conditions, and not every model of Wi-Fi equipment fully satisfies them. Specific figures are conditionally divided into several groups: the value up to 500 Mbit is rather modest, many devices support speeds in the range of 500 - 1000 Mbit, indicators of 1 - 2 Gbps can be attributed to the average, and the most advanced models in class provide a data exchange rate of over 2 Gbps.

- 160 MHz. The presence of a bandwidth of 160 MHz increases the throughput for data transmission and allows it to approach the maximum theoretical speed.

- 320 MHz. The bandwidth of 320 MHz was introduced in the Wi-Fi 7 standard (see the corresponding paragraph). It provides a significant increase in the speed of data exchange - twice as much compared to the width of the wireless channel of 160 MHz.

In this case, LAN means standard network connectors (known as RJ-45) designed for wired connection of LAN devices — PCs, servers, additional access points, etc. The number of ports corresponds to the number of devices that can be directly connected to wired equipment. way.

In terms of speed, 100 Mbps (Fast Ethernet) and 1 Gbps (Gigabit Ethernet) are the most popular options today. At the same time, thanks to the development of technology, more and more gigabit devices are being produced, although in fact this speed is critical only when transferring large amounts of information. At the same time, some models, in addition to the standard speed of the main LAN ports, may have a 2.5 Gbps, 5 Gbps and even 10 Gbps LAN port with increased bandwidth.

The number of cycles per second that the processor produces in its normal operating mode. A clock is a single electrical impulse used to process data and synchronize the processor with the rest of the computer system. Different operations may require fractions of a clock or several clocks, but anyway, the clock frequency is one of the main parameters characterizing the performance and speed of the processor — all other things being equal, a processor with a higher clock frequency will work faster and better cope with significant loads.

— WPA. An encryption protocol created as a temporary solution to the most critical vulnerabilities of the WEP described below. It uses a more advanced encryption algorithm, as well as the transmission of passwords in encrypted form. However, the reliability of this standard also turned out to be insufficient, so an improved version, WPA2, was developed.

— WEP. Historically, the first encryption protocol used in wireless networks. It uses encryption from 64-bit to 256-bit, the latter option is considered strong in itself, however, the standard's own vulnerabilities allow a specialist to hack such a communication channel without much difficulty. As a result, WEP is completely obsolete, its support is provided mainly for compatibility with the simplest equipment (especially since it is technically easy to provide this support).

— WPA2. The most popular security standard in modern Wi-Fi equipment. At one time, it became an important update to the original WPA: in particular, the AES CCMP algorithm was introduced into WPA2, which is extremely difficult to crack. Over time, however, some vulnerabilities were identified in this protocol, which led to the development of a more advanced WPA3; however, WPA3 is just beginning to be massively implemented, and in most Wi-Fi devices, WPA2 remains the most advanced standard.
It is worth noting two nuances. First, WPA2 is available in two versions — personal and corporate; in this case, we are talking about pers...onal, corporate options are placed in paragraph "802.1x". Secondly, support for this standard is guaranteed to also be compatible with WEP and original WPA.

— WPA3. A fundamental improvement to WPA2, introduced in 2018, addressing weaknesses identified in WPA2 in the 14 years since it went live. This standard introduced four key innovations:

• Improved security for public networks. Unlike its predecessor, WPA3 encrypts the traffic between the gadget and the router / access point, even if the network is public and does not require a password.
• Protection against the KRACK vulnerability, which allowed hacking the WPA2 communication channel at the time the connection was established. The SAE algorithm is responsible for this protection — more advanced than the previously used PSK. In particular, when establishing a connection via SAE, both devices are considered equal (in PSK, the receiver and transmitter were clearly defined) — this does not allow an attacker to “wedge” between devices using KRACK methods.
• Easy Connect feature — simplifies connection to Wi-Fi networks for devices that do not have displays (in particular, smart home components). Each of these devices will have a QR code on the body, and to connect to the network, it will be enough to scan this code using a smartphone / tablet already connected to this network. However this function is not directly related to WPA3, WPA2 is sufficient for its operation; however, mass adoption of Easy Connect should be expected at the same time as WPA3.
• Improved encryption algorithms for sensitive data, suitable even for government agencies and defense enterprises. However, this feature is relevant mainly for the corporate version of WPA3 — and support for this version is indicated as "802.1x" (see below, in this case we are talking mainly about the personal version of this standard).

In many devices, upgrading from WPA2 to WPA3 can be done in software by installing a new firmware version. However, if support for this protocol is important to you, it is best to choose equipment where such support is initially provided. Also note that the presence of WPA3 is almost guaranteed to also be compatible with WPA2.

— 802.1x. In this case, it implies support for corporate security standards — most often the corresponding versions of the WPA2 protocols, in new devices also WPA3. For example, if the specifications indicate "802.1x" in addition to "WPA3", then this means that this model supports both personal and corporate versions of WPA3. As for the differences between similar versions, one of them is the support for a separate authentication server in corporate protocols. In other words, when using this function, data on accounts and access rights are stored separately from Wi-Fi equipment, on a special secure server, and it is this server that in each case checks the data of the connected equipment and decides whether to allow or deny access.