News

Wi-Fi 7, The Next Generation Of Wireless Internet, Is Here

The Wi-Fi Alliance is now certifying Wi-Fi 7 devices to ensure they meet the new standard and are compatible with one another.

Published

3 years ago

January 10, 2024

Nour Nasir

wi-fi 7 the next generation of wireless internet is here

The Wi-Fi Alliance is now officially certifying products that support Wi-Fi 7, the next generation of wireless internet. With certification, we should soon start to see new products such as smartphones, laptops, and routers using the Wi-Fi 7 standard, which will likely mean huge speed and efficiency gains.

Although Wi-Fi 7 Routers have already been released by companies like Netgear, TP-Link, and Eero, the products still need to be officially certified. That doesn’t mean they won’t work with Wi-Fi 7, but it does mean that some companies can’t officially guarantee compatibility for their devices just yet.

wi-fi 7 features

Wi-Fi 7 devices offer up to double the bandwidth of those using earlier standards, meaning the potential for wireless download speeds of two gigabits per second and theoretical local network speeds of up to 46 gigabits per second (though real-world peaks of 5-6 Gbps are more probable).

The technology also features Multi-Link Operation (MLO), which bonds connections spread across two or three of the 2.4 GHz, 5GHz, and 6GHz bands, giving extra speed and stability and allowing users to move more seamlessly between wireless access points.

Also Read: The Top 3 VPN Services For Android

In addition, Wi-Fi 7 may also unlock the use of additional bands between the 1Ghz and 7GHz+ range, but that will depend on local legislation and availability.

Wi-Fi 7 devices are backward-compatible with previous versions, though those older devices won’t benefit from new Wi-Fi 7 features or see a speed increase. However, if you’re a tech enthusiast or early adopter, a new Wi-Fi 7 router would be a fantastic upgrade to future-proof your home internet setup.

News

Visa’s Return To Syria Starts With A Test And A Bank In Lebanon

Foreign visitors will be the first users to benefit, but whether Syria’s own banks and cardholders follow is still an open question.

Published

2 weeks ago

August 27, 2026

Dana Saadeh

visa's return to syria starts with a test and a bank in lebanon

Visa is returning to Syria. Its first live international card transaction in the country was a test rather than a launch, and the milestone event ran through a Lebanese bank.

The acquirer (the bank on the merchant’s side of a card payment) was Fransabank Lebanon, with Paymera as the other named partner. Nadim Moujaes, who heads a Fransabank Group subsidiary, describes the test as both the culmination of “longstanding efforts to link Syria back to international payment networks” and “the first step in a larger path”.

Syrian President Ahmed Al-Sharaa makes the first electronic payment in Syria using a @Visa card at a store in Damascus, following the lifting of US sanctions on Syria. pic.twitter.com/lpAN7nQ6Fc

— Tech Magazine (@TechMGZN) August 27, 2026

“We are excited to have successfully tested live transactions today as we plan to enable international visitors to use their Visa cards while in Syria,” says Leila Serhan, Visa’s senior vice president and group country manager for the North Africa, Levant and Pakistan region. Although a significant first step, that plan doesn’t come with a hard date for when a visitor’s card will work normally.

Mohammed Safwat Raslan, governor of the Central Bank of Syria, says the test paves the way for international card acceptance in Syria and that maintaining strong compliance, risk management and operational controls will remain essential. Serhan likewise stresses that Visa has worked within applicable legal, regulatory and compliance requirements. For a test transaction, it seems there was a great deal of attention paid to the rules, with the entire operation being carefully managed.

Also Read: Lebanon’s 5G Era Begins With 150 Stations And A $1M Budget

The test is the latest step in a sequence that began in December 2025, when Visa announced a strategic roadmap to support Syria’s integration into the global digital economy. In February 2026 it hosted its first industry gathering of banks, ecosystem partners and policymakers in Damascus and, the same month, signed an agreement with Syria’s Ministry of Communications and Information Technology in San Francisco.

Michel Kattouah, Paymera’s CEO, called the test “the return of international card acceptance,” but while that’s positive news, there’s no word yet on when a Syrian bank will issue a Visa card to a Syrian customer.