Connectivity is a crucial part of our lives, no longer something that makes life easier. Wi-Fi and cellular service have made huge technological advancements to allow for wireless connectivity, but the two technologies have often been pitted against each other. Monica Paolini recently released a report showing that it’s not a question of which is better, but rather how can Wi-Fi and cellular “jointly meet the needs of those already connected and of those who still need to be connected in a way that neither technology on its own could.”

Photo by: Nastya Dulhiier

Paolini’s report gives three reasons for why we need both technologies: 

• Having both cellular and Wi-Fi encourages technological and market competition
• Cellular and Wi-Fi meet connectivity needs in different ways 
• Wi-Fi 6 and LTE will continue to “enable different service models and use cases”

In the report, Paolini lays the foundation that Wi-Fi is primarily for nomadic purposes, meaning it’s most useful where there are fixed broadband connections, like at home or in an office, while LTE is used in more mobile situations, such as mapping out a driving route.

But as innovation pushes forward and internet access becomes a public necessity, both Wi-Fi and cellular services will play key roles in providing access. In fact, mobile operators already “indirectly rely on Wi-Fi as an offload channel” because if they didn’t, the traffic demand would immediately triple, and “their existing networks would not have enough capacity to meet the demand.”

Paolini makes it clear: 5G won’t replace Wi-Fi and vice versa. But she highlights that spectrum sharing regulatory policies are crucial to ensure that everyone wins. In her report, Paolini emphasizes that “spectrum sharing gives access to new types of users [such as enterprises, cities, etc.]” who will finally have access to cellular services in addition to Wi-Fi.

The future isn’t one of only cellular connectivity or only Wi-Fi, but a happy balance of both.