Questions and Answers

Q1: What is the purpose of WiGig Alliance?
A1: WiGig Alliance was formed to establish a unified specification for 60 Gigahertz (GHz) wireless technologies and drive a global ecosystem of easy-to-use, interoperable, multi-gigabit wireless products. The widespread availability and use of digital multimedia content has created an ever-increasing need for faster wireless connectivity that current wireless standards cannot support. This has fueled demand for a single technology that can support instantaneous file transfers, wireless display and docking, and streaming high definition media on a variety of devices.

Q2: Who is on the WiGig Alliance board of directors?
A2: Companies that comprise the industry-leading board of directors include Broadcom Corporation, Cisco Systems Inc., Dell Inc., Intel Corporation, Marvell International LTD., MediaTek Inc., Microsoft Corporation, NEC Corporation, Nokia Corporation, Panasonic Corporation, Qualcomm Atheros, Samsung Electronics Co., Toshiba Corporation and Wilocity. For more information on WiGig Alliance membership, visit the membership page.

Q3: What are the requirements for membership in WiGig Alliance?
A3: Any company may participate in WiGig Alliance. Prospective members are required to sign a member’s agreement, which provides license rights for use of the WiGig specification. Interested parties are invited to contact us at admin@wigig.org.

Q4: What is the purpose of the WiGig specification?
A4: WiGig Alliance has developed a unified specification for 60 GHz wireless technologies that will provide multi-gigabit wireless connectivity among PCs, consumer electronics and handheld devices. WiGig’s specification enables high performance wireless data, display and audio applications that supplement the capabilities of today’s wireless LAN devices. See specifications for more details.

Q5: What kind of throughput and range can we expect from the WiGig specification?
A5: The WiGig specification defines protocols to deliver data transfer rates up to 7 Gbps. However, throughput and range will vary as some products will be designed for high performance, while some will be optimized for low power consumption. All products based on the WiGig specification will be capable of at least gigabit data transfer rates. Built in support for beamforming will also enable robust communications at a range beyond 10 meters.

Q6: When will products based on the specification be available?
A6: Each company has different product schedules, so product inquiries should be directed to individual members.

Q7: Does WiGig Alliance cater specifically to one type of device?
A7: No. The WiGig specification was designed from inception to address the most rigorous, specific requirements of various platforms, from low-power handhelds to high-performance PC and CE applications. WiGig’s 60 GHz technology will enable the broadest ecosystem of interoperable systems. It does not need to be retrofitted or adapted for future applications because it includes IP data support and streaming HD video and audio on day one.

Q8: How will WiGig ensure interoperability?
A8: WiGig Alliance intends to certify products to clearly communicate to the consumer which products have passed rigorous interoperability testing. WiGig Alliance and Wi-Fi Alliance have agreed to collaborate on testing for the WiGig specification.

Q9: Will there be a 60 GHz or WiGig certified logo to communicate interoperability?
A9: The organization intends to provide a certification mark, which will show consumers that products have passed interoperability testing.

Q10: Won’t gigabit wireless be too power-hungry for mobile devices?
A10: The WiGig specification was designed from inception to address the rigorous requirements of various platforms, including low-power handhelds and battery-operated CE devices. To be more specific, the WiGig specification will include a high-efficiency PHY mode for mobile devices, with error-control schemes and MAC-layer features that are optimized for energy efficiency.

Q11: For wireless communications, is the 60 GHz band better than using 2.4 or 5 GHz bands?
A11: It is not a question of better or worse, but 60 GHz is the ultimate complement to both 2.4 and 5 GHz. The 60 GHz band simply has much more bandwidth available (7-9 GHz of spectrum) vs. 83.5 MHz in the 2.4 GHz band, which enables much higher data rates. Applications that require multi-gigabit per second speeds (like uncompressed video transmission) to operate will need to run in 60 GHz. Other applications that lend themselves to lower speeds, but require operation throughout the home are better suited to traditional “whole home coverage” 802.11 in the 2.4 and 5GHz bands.