Yes, you heard that correctly. Connecting to the internet could be as simple as turning on the light. Picture this: Using this technology to connect to the internet promises speeds that will blow Wi-Fi out of the park. The average household requires more and more bandwidth, with users spending an average of 21-plus hours streaming weekly, according to the latest OpenVault report. That makes the promise of Li-Fi convenient. Li-Fi has made plenty of headlines lately, particularly about how it could make broadband deployment easier. Since this technology is still in its infancy, it's garnered criticism, and it's still too early to say what it could mean for broadband in our homes. Nonetheless, it begs the question: How does Li-Fi work?
Li-Fi takeaways:
Li-Fi technology harnesses the power of light for internet connectivity.
Li-Fi promises ultra-fast speeds, which could benefit 4K streaming, online gaming and virtual reality.
Li-Fi poses certain limitations as it is still in its trial period. Although it is already being used across different industries, it will take some time before we see how it affects internet connectivity.
What is Li-Fi?
Light Fidelity, also known as Li-Fi, uses the power of light to transmit data. This technology harnesses light signals to connect to the internet. Unlike Wi-Fi, which uses radio waves to create a wireless connection, Li-Fi relies on light to transmit data. Through this process, Li-Fi promises speeds that are 100 times faster than Wi-Fi.
Research for Li-Fi has been around since the early 2000s. Alongside his team, German physicist Harald Haas founded this technology by discovering that light can be used for two-way data transmission. It wasn't long before French company Oledcomm, one of the global leaders in this technology, began conducting its experiments on Li-Fi in 2008. In July 2024, Europe launched Ariane 6 into space, carrying out four experiments, one geared toward testing Li-Fi technology.
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How does Li-Fi work?
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