Wi-Fi 6 devices: The top compatible phones, laptops and gadgets thus far

Wi-Fi 6 is the latest and fastest version of Wi-Fiand we expect it to roll out on a growing number of devices during 2020. It’s early days for the quick new standard, but there are some interesting options if your looking to shop.

Wi-Fi 6 is able to reach top speeds About 30% faster than the fastest Wi-Fi 5 speeds, and be much better suited for dealing with busy networks with many devices and with dense, crowded environments with many users. So it won’t do anything to speed up a slow ISP connection Don’t expect miracles – but it will help you get the fastest, most efficient connection at home.

You need one Wi-Fi 6 router and new Wi-Fi 6 devices to take advantage of these benefits at home – here are the top options currently available and we’re regularly updating them.

Telephones

It is not surprising that, after routers, smartphones were among the first devices to support Wi-Fi 6. Samsung was the first with the Galaxy S10, but Apple, LG, Huawei and others should follow suit soon.

As of now, the list of phones that can connect at higher Wi-Fi 6 speeds includes:

What about the phones? Not Support Wi-Fi 6? The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip comes to mind, but Google‘s pixel lineup is probably the most notable example. None of them have any support for 802.11ax yet, including Pixel 4.

We’re also seeing the first phones to support this Wi-Fi 6E, A new name for Wi-Fi 6 devices that can be accessed the newly opened 6 GHz bandthat offers a tremendous amount of spectrum without interference from connections of older generations. The first phones to support the designation are two upcoming gaming phones: the Lenovo Legion and the Asus ROG phone 3. Everyone uses Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 865 Plus processorthat supports Wi-Fi 6E and 5G.

I wouldn’t be surprised if a handful of other phones with Wi-Fi 6E got on board by the end of this year, but the bulk of the new Wi-Fi 6E devices are expected to arrive in 2021. Stay tuned.

Laptops

There are a growing number of new laptops that come standard with Wi-Fi 6. Some our favorites lock in:

And no, none of the Apple laptops support Wi-Fi 6 yet – not even the brand new 13-inch MacBook Pro.

Other devices

The latest Wi-Fi 6 devices are the new eighth generation iPad and fourth generation iPad AirHowever, we didn’t see Wi-Fi 6 support for many other types of devices – no TVs, no streamers, no smart home devices. But that should change in the coming months. We’ll definitely update this post as the introduction of Wi-Fi 6 spreads.

There is one big, obvious exception: routers. You need one that supports Wi-Fi 6 running your home network if you want to get the most out of the Wi-Fi 6 radio in your new phone or laptop – and luckily, you already have many options.

My favorite among them is this one Asus ZenWifi AX, a two-part Wi-Fi 6 mesh router priced at $ 450. It’s not cheap, but it beat my tests and offers almost everything you could want in a router. Even more an upgrade: the $ 600 Netgear Orbi AX6000 mesh systemthat achieved the fastest top speeds we’ve ever seen from a mesh router.

If you don’t need a multipoint mesh router (or just don’t want to pay as much), you can find Wi-Fi 6 support in standalone models that cost a little less. I like the TP-Archer AX6000 – it hit The fastest top speeds our test lab has ever seenand you can get it for less than $ 300. Meanwhile it is TP-Archer AX1500 only costs $ 80 or less, although top speeds are more limited.

Additionally, you may be able to upgrade an older laptop with a new Wi-Fi 6 radio. For example, Rivet Networks sells the Killer AX1650 Wi-Fi 6 adapter for laptops with an M.2 connector and a standard A or E socket. We picked one last year to update the laptop in our test lab and it works great. The costs? Only $ 35.

For Wi-Fi 6E, we do not expect routers to offer access to the newly activated 6 GHz band until the end of 2020. The only one announced so far is that Asus GT-AX11000, a premium gaming router that will be available in stores in December.