Virgin Media’s recent announcement of 5Gb broadband was a bit of an eye-opener for me. Home broadband customers don’t need to be charged more money for more speed into the home. I get by on a 500Mb connection, so why would more people spend on 5Gb? Truth be told, if you’re going to invest in anything at home, it should be either CAT 6A LAN cables or home mesh systems to improve your Wi-Fi coverage.
There has been a lot of excitement about Wi-Fi 7 since it launched last year, but why should you care about it?
What is Wi-Fi 7?
Wi-Fi 7 is the latest protocol for broadcasting Wi-Fi in your home, and in launched early in 2024. Typically in Ireland, home broadband providers don’t really talk much about these things, but they really should.
The smart home of today doesn’t really need faster speeds, especially not if you already have 1Gb or 2Gb home broadband. What you need is better infrastructure, and that’s what a modem that supports Wi-Fi 7 offers you.
I didn’t expect an Irish broadband provider to cop this, but Eir did when they recently announced 2Gb broadband including Wi-Fi 7; something I absolutely didn’t expect from a brand I would consider to be usually lagging behind the cutting edge by some distance.
By signing up to that package, you not only have the promise of great speeds, but also the hardware to support faster wireless internet connection in the home with more reliability across more devices. Basically, whether it’s for work calls, downloading movies or streaming games, Wi-Fi 7 offers a faster and more stable experience. But it takes a lot to access it.
What do you need for Wi-Fi 7?
The first thing you need is a Wi-Fi 7 supported router at home. Most homes have the router supplied by their internet provider (ISP). This is what plugs into the wall and broadcasts a Wi-Fi signal through your home. If you have a white Virgin Media router, you have Wi-Fi 5 and if it’s black, it’s Wi-Fi 6. Eir, right now, is the only provider offering Wi-Fi 7 out of the box.
However, you can purchase a (rather expensive) Wi-Fi 7 mesh system and plug this into your router to get Wi-Fi 7 throughout your home. Just remember that you need to connect the mesh system to your router with the correct, CAT 6A LAN cables, to get the most speed. You’ll also be limited by the connection speed you’ve signed up for (500Mb, 1Gb, 2Gb etc).
Those are the two ways of getting a Wi-Fi 7 signal in your home. But that’s not the whole story. You also need a device that’s capable of connecting to Wi-Fi 7. In the world of phones only the latest iPhone 16 range supports Wi-Fi 7 for Apple, while it also features on the Samsung Galaxy S25 series, Google Pixel 9 series, and HONOR Magic Pro 7, to name but a few examples.
But even if you’ve shelled out for a new M4 MacBook, you won’t have Wi-Fi 7. Instead, you’ll, rather oddly, be limited to Wi-Fi 6e.
My point here is that to make the most of an investment in Wi-Fi 7, you need to have a fast broadband connection in your home, a Wi-Fi 7 router or mesh and a device that supports Wi-Fi 7.
Should you focus on Wi-Fi 7?
Wi-Fi 7 is an excellent and exciting technology to support the wireless home of 2025. But getting it could be quite expensive if you are going the mesh route. Getting Eir is probably the most accessible way in Ireland to get Wi-Fi 7, but Eir’s customer care is a massive sticking point for prospective customers.
As I said when Virgin Media launched 5Gb broadband, I run my home off a 500Mb connection wired up to a Linksys Velo 6e mesh system with key devices connected via CAT 6A LAN cables. I have more than enough connectivity with all of this. If I was building a home, I’d be tempted to add Wi-Fi 7 alongside LAN cables, but it’s not a must-have.
It is, however, the first time in years I’ve given consideration to Eir now that they offer it as standard. So credit where it’s due for them opening this conversation in Ireland relatively early for a market that typically adopts very late.
