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Broadcom and Rohde & Schwarz are teaming up once again, this time to test and validate early Wi-Fi 8 chips, after the chipmaker launched the first Wi-Fi 8 silicon solutions ahead of schedule in October
In sum — what to know:
Broadcom validates R&S’ CMP180 — Broadcom confirms that R&S CMP180 Series radio communication tester can support testing of Wi-Fi-8 devices.
A test platform for next-gen Wi-Fi devices: The CMP180 offers 8 GHz of frequency, up to 500 MHz of bandwidth, and advanced RF capabilities, making it suitable for handling the demands of Wi-Fi 8 devices.
Faster time to market: The collaboration provides OEMs and ODMs automated test routines and resources jointly created by R&S and Broadcom — paving the way for faster validation and accelerated time to market.
Wi-Fi 8, the next leap forward in Wi-Fi technology, is already an ambitious project set to unlock new levels of user experience. The new standard — currently in the works with final specifications expected by 2028 — will combine the physical characteristics of the previous two generations and support for 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz frequency bands.
But, most importantly — Wi-Fi 8 is made for the users and devices of today. As Chris Szymanski, director of product marketing at Broadcom, wrote in a blog, “it’s designed for the way we live and work now: reliable performance at scale, consistent low latency, and uplink speeds to match the demands of tomorrow’s AI-powered experiences.”
The established cycle for Wi-Fi releases typically stretches four to five years, but Broadcom is not one to wait around. The chipmaker got off to an early start, bringing to market the first-ever Wi-Fi-8 enabled SoCs — not uncharacteristic of Broadcom, given that it was also the first to market with Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7 chips.
Looking to accelerate development, Rohde & Schwarz has jumped on the bandwagon and is now helping the chipmaker test and validate Wi-Fi 8 chips.
Wi-Fi 8 devices typically demand very wide channel bandwidths, high spectral efficiency, extreme order modulation, multi-link operations, and good OTA performance. Joint test campaigns carried out by the companies showed the R&S CMP180 radio communication tester meets the requirements for Wi-Fi 8 device testing.
“As a part of the partnership, both companies worked together to address the testing challenges for the device validation test and production based on Wi-Fi 8. We exchanged the testing concepts and implemented new test methods to verify the key physical parameters,” said Kishor Kumar Mysore Subba Rao, director of product management and application support non-signaling at Rohde & Schwarz, who was directly involved in the collaboration, in an email.
The CMP180 is a non-signaling testing solution for Wi-Fi devices in development, validation, and production. The solution packs up to 8 GHz of frequency, up to 500 MHz of bandwidth, and advanced RF capabilities for validating advanced wireless technologies like Wi-Fi 6E, Wi-Fi 7, 5G NR FR1 and more.
This allows it to verify parameters unique to Wi-Fi 8, the company said.
Manufacturers can leverage the CMP180 as an end-to-end solution for all Wi-Fi-8 devices, from development, through design validation, production, and quality assurance.
The collaboration brings to OEMs and ODMs access to shared test assets including ready-made test routines, and early access to resources like test vectors, calibration protocols, and software frameworks created by the partners, enabling them to move quickly from development to production.
“Together, we’re empowering Broadcom’s customers and partners to lead the transition to Wi-Fi 8 and redefine what’s possible in connectivity,” said Gabriel Desjardins, director of marketing for the Wireless Communications and Connectivity Division at Broadcom, in a statement.
The partnership extends earlier work between the companies, following a similar effort in 2023 to validate Wi-Fi 7 chipsets using the same CMP180 test platform. “The latest collaboration is the continuation of a successful cooperation for Wi-Fi 7 in 2023, where we joined forces to enable test solutions for OEMs,” Rao said.
Earlier this month, R&S partnered with Samsung completing what is “industry’s first fully validated 5G NR-NTN conformance test coverage.” With the milestone, R&S becomes the only T&M company to currently offer validated solutions across all three 3GPP Release 17 NR-NTN test areas.
