Free has just updated its Freebox Pop offer, with a new Wi-Fi 7 server. The operator, however, reserves the latter for fiber optic technology alone, among other subtleties.
Just a few weeks after presenting and marketing with great fanfare its Freebox Ultra with multiple services and impressive speeds, Free has already released a new device. This time, it is not a new Freebox but a new version of the little Pop server, compatible with the new Wi-Fi 7 standard. However, not all Freebox Pop customers will be able to benefit from it. At least not right away.
A Freebox Pop that is catching up technologically
Just a few hours after the presentation of its partnership with Qiara and the launch of a fairly comprehensive home automation security offer, Free is rewarding us with another new feature. When it was launched in 2020, joining at the time the Delta and the high-end devices of Xavier Niel’s operator, the Freebox Pop was stuck in Wi-Fi 5, in fact showing a certain technological delay, particularly on the Delta already equipped with Wi-Fi 6.
Two years later, in 2022, Free switched the Freebox Pop server, including the internet box, to Wi-Fi 6. A more than welcome correction, at a time when more and more devices sold were with this technology.
And now two years later, on Wednesday March 27, 2024, a new proposition appeared at Free, with a Freebox Pop Wi-Fi 7 server. Some important details should nevertheless be known before making a change of hardware or software. subscribe to the offer.
A notable difference in frequency bands with the Freebox Ultra
The Freebox Pop in Wi-Fi 7 is indeed a reality. The offer is valid for all customers who subscribe to the offer, provided that it is fiber optic. This is the first subtlety to know. Customers who already have a Freebox Pop could soon be asked to pay 49 euros to change servers. For the moment, they must also make do with the Wi-Fi 6 one. The other difference this time concerns the speeds, and it is perhaps a little more dissuasive.
If Wi-Fi 7 offers, on paper, higher speeds and a significant reduction in latency, the one integrated into the Freebox Pop version 2024 is only “dual-band”, i.e. say in 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz. No Wi-Fi 7 in the 6 GHz band therefore for Pop customers. Too bad, because the theoretical speeds of the Pop are blocked at 5 Gbit/s shared when downloading (downloading), and 700 Mbit/s when uploading (sending).
To take advantage of the 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz and 6 GHz frequency bands, there remains the solution of subscribing to the Freebox Ultra. Little used, this 6 GHz band is less overworked and can therefore, also in theory, offer you better connection speed. Note that on the Freebox Pop, an on/off button has also appeared. The box remains available at 29.99 euros/month for 12 months, then at 39.99 euros.
Sources: Twitter @Tiino-X83Free
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