Broadcom has recently revealed its first WiFi 8 (802.11bn) chips with the BCM43109 for wireless clients such as smartphones, laptops, tablets, and automotive devices, the BCM6718 designed for residential and operator access applications, and the BCM43840 and BCM43820 made for enterprise access applications.
Broadcom BCM43109 WiFi 8, Bluetooth 6.0, and 802.15.4 client chip
Specifications:
- IEEE 802.11bn compliant
- Dual-stream spatial multiplexing data rate of up to 5 Gbps during single-band operation and 5.25 Gbps in RSDB mode
- Up to 320 MHz channels for the 2×2 5 GHz and 6 GHz radio, and 20 MHz channels for the 2×2 2.4 GHz radio
- STR MLO and EMLSR support
- Scan radio enhances 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz channel performance
- Dual-core Bluetooth 6.0 with 2G, higher band SDB with HDT, and support for future Bluetooth versions
- IEEE 802.15.4 supporting OpenThread, ZBOSS, etc.
- Host interface
- PCIe Gen3 x1 for WiFi
- UART for Bluetooth
- PCM and I2S for audio data over Bluetooth
The product page currently has limited information.
Broadcom BCM6718 WiFi 8 access point chip
Highlights:
- Four-stream (4×4) Wi-Fi 8 radio up to 320 MHz bandwidth, up to 4K-QAM modulation, 11.5 Gbps peak link rate
- Tri-band operation: 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz
- BroadStream wireless telemetry engine for AI training/inference
- BroadStream intelligent packet scheduler maximizing QoE
- Receiver sensitivity enhancements enabling faster uploads
- Advanced eco modes resulting in up to 30% greater energy efficiency
- Third-generation digital pre-distortion reduces peak power by 25%
- Full compliance with IEEE 802.11bn and WFA Wi-Fi 8 specifications
- Features
- Increased capacity – Dynamic Sub-band Operation, Non-Primary Channel Access, Inter-AP Coordination, Dynamic Bandwidth Expansion
- Higher throughput and range – Unequal Modulation as well as UHR new rates MCS17 / MSC19 / MCS20 / MCS23, extended range (Extended Long Range, Distributed Resource Units)
- Reliability and QoS – Seamless roaming, low-latency indication
- Security – WPA, WPA2, WPA3 (with 192-bit Suite B encryption), AES encryption/decryption, TKIP, and IEEE 802.1X support
- Temperature Range – 0°C to 70°C
For additional information, please visit the product page.
Broadcom BCM43840 / BCM43820 for Wi-Fi 8 enterprise-grade access points
Highlights:
- BCM43840 – Four-stream (4×4) Wi-Fi 8 radio up to 320 MHz bandwidth, up to 4K-QAM modulation, 11.5 Gbps peak link rate
- BCM43820 – Two-stream (2×2) scanning and analytics Wi-Fi 8 radio up to 320 MHz bandwidth, up to 4K-QAM modulation, 5.76 Gbps peak link rate
- Tri-band operation: 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 6 GHz
- BroadStream wireless telemetry engine for AI training/inference
- Advanced location tracking capability
- Advanced eco modes resulting in 30% greater energy efficiency
- Third-generation digital pre-distortion reduces peak power by 25%
- Full compliance with IEEE 802.11bn and WFA Wi-Fi 8 specifications
- Features
- Increased capacity – Dynamic Sub-band Operation, Non-Primary Channel Access, Inter-AP Coordination, Dynamic Bandwidth Expansion
- Higher throughput and range – Unequal Modulation as well as UHR new rates MCS17 / MSC19 / MCS20 / MCS23, extended range (Extended Long Range, Distributed Resource Units)
- Reliability and QoS – Seamless roaming, low-latency indication
- Security – WPA, WPA2, WPA3 (with 192-bit Suite B encryption), AES encryption/decryption, TKIP and IEEE 802.1X support
- Temperature Range – Commercial: 0°C to 70°C; industrial: -40°C to 85°C
I’m struggling to see any obvious difference between BCM43840 and BCM6718, except that the former is also available in the industrial temperature range. The BCM43840 and BCM43820 are supposed to be used in the same router, with the latter adding (indoor) location tracking capabilities.
Further details can be found on the product page.
As a reminder, WiFi 8 does not focus on improving the link rate of WiFi 7, but instead brings various reliability and efficiency improvements that should lead to a better user experience. That’s why it’s also called WiFI 8 UHR (Ultra High Reliability).
Broadcom BCM43109, BCM6718, BCM43840, and BCM43820 Wi-Fi 8 chips are currently sampling to “select partners”, and the IP is also available for licensing. The press release may have a few more tidbits of information. I’d expect the first WiFi 8-ccpable smartphones, laptops, and routers to show up sometime in the latter part of 2026.
Thanks to TLS for the tip.
Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
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