[Wireless Router]How to ensure WiFi 7 router compatibility with existing ASUS router and connected devices?

What is WiFi 7?
WiFi 7 (IEEE 802.11be) is the seventh generation of the 802.11 standard since 1997. It packs all the benefits of WiFi 6/6E and expands several existing standards to a whole new level, such as 320 MHz bandwidth and 4K-QAM. And it introduces some revolutionary features like Multi-Link Operation, Multi-Resource Units (MRU) and Puncturing. As WiFi has become indispensable in daily life from work to home, WiFi 7 reshapes your WiFi experiences with a huge leap into the future.
You can refer to https://www.asus.com/content/wifi7/ for more information.
 

What devices supports WiFi7?
Currently, only a few new smartphones support Wi-Fi 7, but more devices will support it in the future. To ensure your device supports Wi-Fi 7, it's recommended to check the official website or contact the supplier.
 

Can I use existing AiMesh routers with WiFi 7 routers?
Yes, you can mesh up existing AiMesh routers with WiFi 7 routers.
However, while enabling MLO on WiFi might cause compatibility issue with existing AiMesh nodes, If MLO is enabled on AiMesh Primary router, the node without MLO will not broadcast 6GHz WiFi. If you want to disable MLO, log in to the ASUS router settings page, go to [Wireless] > [MLO], and click [Enable MLO] to disable this feature (enabled by default).

 

Note: For optimal performance with multiple ASUS AiMesh extendable routers, set the one with the highest specifications as the main router.

For more information about AiMesh, please go to: https://www.asus.com/Microsite/AiMesh/en/index.html

 

What is GCMP-256 encryption: 
GCMP-256 is an enhancement over the GCMP-128 used in Wi-Fi 6/6E/7, with its main improvement being the length of the encryption key, which has been increased from 128 bits to 256 bits. This increase makes decryption significantly more challenging, thereby boosting the security of the wireless network.


 

Can my old devices e.g. TV box, smart home devices and PCs work with WiFi 7 router?
Wi-Fi 7 router support the 2.4GHz, 5GHz or 6GHz (if the router supports) wireless bands. Your existing phones and laptops can still connect to the traditional 2.4GHz or 5GHz bands.  If you want to connect client devices to the 6GHz wireless signal, ensure that your client devices support 6GHz. 

 

However, some legacy devices might not compatible with WiFi 7 nor GCMP-256 encryption, here are two suggested methods:

 

1. Disable WiFi 7: Since WiFi 7 is a new standard, some legacy device’s firmware are not updated to compatible with yet, disable WiFi 7 is an option.

    Log in to the ASUS router settings page, go to [Network] > click the WiFi profile of the main network, you will see WiFi 7 mode, click [WiFi 7 mode] to disable this feature (enabled by default), and click [Apply] to save the settings.
 

2. Use IoT WiFi: We recommend using the IoT network to ensure compatibility.

    IoT (Internet of Things) Network: 2.4GHz +5GHz with WPA2-personal AES encryption. [Guest Network Pro] How to set up IoT Network?

 

Note:

　　Wi-Fi 7 Network: Smart connect is enabled with all bands 2.4GHz 5GHz and 6GHz (if 6GHz is supported in your region) and with AES+GCMP256 wireless encryption mode  

 

 

 

How to get the (Utility / Firmware)?

You can download the latest drivers, software, firmware and user manuals in the ASUS Download Center.

If you need more information about the ASUS Download Center, please refer this link.