UL First to Offer Wi-Fi 6E Testing Services in Europe to Help Advance Market Growth

New Wi-Fi 6E capabilities will help manufacturers assess improved wireless performance and complement existing offerings in U.S., South Korea, China and Japan.

NORTHBROOK, Ill., May 21, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- UL, the global safety science leader, today announced that it has begun to offer Wi-Fi 6E testing capabilities to meet the regulatory requirements for U.S. and Europe at multiple European sites. UL's laboratories in Basingstoke, England, and Stuttgart, Germany, are the first and only Wi-Fi 6E testing facilities in Europe and address the immediate demand for Wi-Fi 6E wireless testing and certification services. The facilities offer start-ups, scaling businesses and large corporations state-of-the art technology and a comprehensive service solution, including certifications to meet market regulatory requirements around the world, for the smooth introduction of Wi-Fi 6E-enabled products.

UL's Wi-Fi 6E services, supported by the latest equipment and the bespoke software with increased automation, significantly reduces turnaround time and helps ensure consistency of testing and reporting across global laboratories.

"Balancing new Wi-Fi 6E technology innovation and speed-to-market with operational and product safety are crucial to customer success as they move to market this future-facing Wi-Fi upgrade," said Maan Ghanma, smart solutions director for UL's Consumer, Medical and Information Technology division. "This is why we have proactively addressed potential challenges facing wireless technology manufacturers and their suppliers and have increased Wi-Fi 6E investments to test a myriad of devices and equipment."

Wi-Fi 6E is the next-generation wireless standard capable of operating in the 6GHz band at speeds up 9.6 Gbps. The "E" in Wi-Fi 6E stands for Extended, referring to the extended of the usable frequency range. Wi-Fi 5 uses frequencies in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands. Wi-Fi 6E is extended to the 6 GHz band.  Whereas Wi-Fi 5 can reach a maximum throughput of 3.5 Gbps, Wi-Fi 6E can reach speeds up to 9.6 Gbps. 

More than speed, Wi-Fi 6E provides better performance in congested areas, from corporate offices to device-packed homes.  With Wi-Fi 6E, a router will be able to send signals on the 6GHz band in addition to the 2.4 and 5GHz bands currently utilized by Wi-Fi 5. Wi-Fi 6E allows for a wider bandwidth for the latest Wi-Fi devices and overall network improvement. To harness the power of and demonstrate confidence in this new technology, manufacturers of telecommunications products, including routers and mobile phones with Wi-Fi 6E capabilities, made high-profile announcements earlier this year at CES.