Wi-Fi 8 is appearing at CES before most of us have switched to Wi-Fi 7
TL;DR
Wi-Fi 8 routers debuted at CES 2026, promising improved stability and efficiency over Wi-Fi 7, suggesting users may want to delay upgrades for this next-gen technology.
The first Wi-Fi 8 routers and chips made a surprise appearance at CES 2026, and could launch this year, only a couple of years after Wi-Fi 7 debuted. So, if you don't already have a Wi-Fi 7 router - and many of us don't - you might want to consider holding off on upgrading.
Rather than focusing on speed upgrades, Wi-Fi 8 promises improved stability. It offers the high speeds and bandwidth of Wi-Fi 7, but with improved power efficiency, higher throughput, and better peer-to-peer communication between devices. Wi-Fi 8 is also better at maintaining fast, stable connections when users are moving devices around, or moving them further away from …