By Pratyusha Malladi, Charter Communications; Dileep Kumar Soma, Charter Communications
Traditionally, network performance has been evaluated by metrics like speed and throughput. With broadband networks delivering multi-gigabit speeds, latency is growing as a key metric of network performance.
Latency typically refers to round-tripdelay. This round-trip encompasses the time it takes for the data to traverse the network. Today, a large majority of internet traffic’s first hop is via either a mobile wireless network or a provider’s managed Wi-Fi network. This first hop is often the largest contributor to latency.
Wireless technologies, such as cellular and Wi-Fi, have implemented various mechanisms to minimize the latency in the first hop. This paper investigates the factors that contribute to latency in Wi-Fi networks and examines various technologies that can be used to further reduce latency. The aim is to enable cable operators to extend Low Latency DOCSIS® (LLD) networks to their customers who are connected via Wi-Fi. In this paper, we will use the terms Wi-Fi 7 representing the latest IEEE 802.11be standard interchangeably.