On the Free website, it is now possible to subscribe to a Freebox Pop offer with Wi-Fi 7, instead of Wi-Fi 6. The operator has discreetly modified the technical characteristics of its mid-range box.
The day after the announcement of its remote monitoring offer, in partnership with Qiara, Free discreetly updated its website with a new Freebox.
As noted Tiino-X83, known for its excellent information on Free, the Freebox Pop of 2020 quietly moved from Wi-Fi 6 to Wi-Fi 7 on March 27. It is thus aligned with the Freebox Ultra.
Warning: there is no 6 GHz on the Freebox Pop
Is the new Freebox Pop as fast as the Freebox Ultra? Don’t get carried away too quickly, since there is a major difference between these two boxes.
Indeed, the Freebox Pop 2024 supports Wi-Fi 7 on the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands, where the Freebox Ultra also offers 6 GHz (the famous Wi-Fi 6E band). The highest speeds, such as that of 3.2 Gbps measured by Numerama, are impossible to reproduce on the new Freebox Pop. Under certain conditions, the difference could still be notable (we are talking, theoretically, of a transition from 9.6 Gbit/s to 30 Gbit/s).
Another notable difference: the maximum speed of the Freebox Pop in fiber is 5 Gbit/s, compared to 8 Gbit/s on the Freebox Ultra. The difference is even more obvious in upload, with 700 Mbit/s on one side and 8 Gbit/s on the other. The Freebox Ultra remains, logically, the fastest Freebox.
Good news for the longevity of the Freebox Pop
In its catalog, Free now offers the Freebox Revolution (Wi-Fi 5), the Freebox Pop (Wi-Fi 7) and the Freebox Ultra (Wi-Fi 7, 6 GHz possible). The Freebox Pop costs 39.99 euros per month, with a discount to 29.99 euros per month for the first year.
Even if the Wi-Fi 7 of the Freebox Pop is not as complete as that of the Freebox Ultra, this is good news for people who subscribe to this offer today. Free offers them the assurance of not having a box obsolete within 3 to 5 years, with the latest generation Wi-Fi.
This practice is not surprising for Free, which is used to updating its boxes mid-term. In 2022, the operator notably added Wi-Fi 6E to the Freebox Delta, with a 6 GHz antenna.
Note that Free will continue to sell off stocks of its old Freebox Pop with new ADSL subscribers, since they do not have sufficient speeds to really exploit Wi-Fi 7. Obviously, existing Freebox Pop subscribers remain on Wi-Fi 6.
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