Gi-Fi or gigabit wireless refers to a

wireless Wireless communication (or just wireless, when the context allows) is the transfer of information between two or more points without the use of an electrical conductor, optical fiber or other continuous guided medium for the transfer. The mos ...

communication at a

data rate Data rate and data transfer rate can refer to several related and overlapping concepts in communications networks: Achieved rate * Bit rate, the number of bits that are conveyed or processed per unit of time ** Data signaling rate or gross bit rate ...

of more than one billion bits (

gigabit The bit is the most basic unit of information in computing and digital communications. The name is a portmanteau of binary digit. The bit represents a logical state with one of two possible values. These values are most commonly represent ...

) per second. By 2004 some trade press used the term "Gi-Fi" to refer to faster versions of the IEEE 802.11 standards marketed under the trademark

Wi-Fi Wi-Fi () is a family of wireless network protocols, based on the IEEE 802.11 family of standards, which are commonly used for local area networking of devices and Internet access, allowing nearby digital devices to exchange data by radio w ...

. In 2008 researchers at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne is a public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in Victoria. Its main campus is located in Parkville, an inner suburb n ...

demonstrated a transceiver integrated on a single integrated circuit (chip) that operated at 60 GHz on the CMOS process. It will allow

transfer of audio and video data at up to 5 gigabits per second, ten times the current maximum wireless transfer rate, at one-tenth the cost. Researchers chose the 57–64 GHz unlicensed frequency band since the millimetre-wave range of the spectrum allowed high component on-chip integration as well as the integration of very small high gain arrays. The available 7 GHz of spectrum results in very high data rates, up to 5 gigabits per second to users within an indoor environment, usually within a range of 10 metres. Some press reports called this "GiFi". It was developed by Melbourne University-based laboratories of

NICTA NICTA (formerly named National ICT Australia Ltd) was Australia's Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Research Centre of Excellence and is now known as CSIRO's Data61. The term "Centre of Excellence" is common marketing terminology u ...

(National ICT Australia Limited), ''Australia’s Information and Communications Technology Research Centre of Excellence''. In 2009, the

Wireless Gigabit Alliance The Wireless Gigabit Alliance (WiGig Alliance) was a trade association that developed and promoted the adoption of multi-gigabit per second speed wireless communications technology "WiGig" operating over the unlicensed 60 GHz frequency band. The ...

was formed to promote the technology. It used the term "

WiGig WiGig, alternatively known as 60 GHz Wi-Fi, refers to a set of 60 GHz wireless network protocols. It includes the current IEEE 802.11ad standard and also the IEEE 802.11ay standard. The WiGig specification allows devices to communicate with ...

" which avoided trademark confusion.

References

{{Internet Access Computer networking