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Wi-Fi is one of the most successful wireless technologies ever. According to Wi-Fi Alliance,there are over 42 billion Wi-Fi devices in the world, which, at about 8 billion people in the world, means that there are more than 5 Wi-Fi devices for every man, woman, and child on Earth. A huge component of the success of Wi-Fi has been the interoperability between devices enabled by the strong testing and certification regime put in place by Wi-Fi Alliance. Users worldwide have confidence that when they purchase a device with the Wi-Fi certified trademark label, that device will work with any other certified device, and this has led to widespread use of Wi-Fi for many different applications. Not only do more than 90% of US internet households use Wi-Fi, but more than 30% of all devices connected to the internet of things are connected by Wi-Fi, more than for any other technology.
This widespread adoption of Wi-Fi for, well, pretty much everything, has meant that the expectations for Wi-Fi performance have also been growing over time. “Good enough” is no longer good enough. People watching movies want uninterrupted experiences. People participating in Zoom meetings want clear connections and (sometimes) videos. People watching their cats eat, or checking on the packages on their front steps, or turning up the heat in the house, or any of a million other things, want those things to work, the first time, every time.
Not only do more than 90% of US internet households use Wi-Fi, but more than 30% of all devices connected to the internet of things are connected by Wi-Fi, more than for any other technology.
And for this to happen, the Wi-Fi networks in people’s homes need to be excellent. The interoperability regime put in place by Wi-Fi Alliance checks that devices can communicate with each other, but it does not check on how well that communication works. How well do devices work when far from each other, or in the presence of many other devices, or when one of the devices is in motion (say, being carried from one room to another) are not questions asked or answered as part of an interoperability regime. The growing need to answer that question, coupled with the lack of any obvious way to answer it, was starting to become a noticeable gap in the market in the late 2010s.
When a gap exists in the market, usually someone will step forward to fill it, and so it was with what became known as “Performance Testing” (as opposed to “Interoperability Testing”) for Wi-Fi. The first group to step forward was the Broadband Forum, which created a working group to study “Wi-Fi Residential & SOHO Performance Testing.” This group produced the first version (or “issue”) of its specification, known as TR-398, in February of 2019.
Interestingly, the focus on Wi-Fi performance, coming at this time, was shockingly appropriate, although obviously not known to the group when it began working on the standard. About one year after Issue 1 of TR-398 was released, the Covid-19 pandemic shut down most of the world and forced many people to start relying heavily on home Wi-Fi networks to support remote working and nearly constant video conference meetings. Among its many other effects, the Covid-19 pandemic ramped up the requirement for excellent performance of Wi-Fi networks at exactly the time that the industry was starting to measure Wi-Fi performance.
Not to be outdone, other standards organizations entered the arena, as well. In June of 2022, ETSI Broadband Radio Access Networks (BRAN) released technical specification ETSI TS 103 754, Multiple Access Points Performance Testing.” Also a performance testing specification, this standard focuses explicitly on multiple access point deployments - those that use mesh products or Wi-Fi extenders. At nearly the same time (2022), Wi-Fi Alliance released its own performance testing specification, coming from a group known as the “Customer Experience” group, and called “Wi-Fi Device Metrics.” This specification has some overlap with both TR-398 and the ETSI Multiple Access Point specification.
While both ETSI and Wi-Fi Alliance have issued their specifications, the Broadband Forum’s TR-398 working group has emerged as the driving force in Wi-Fi performance testing. Following its initial release in February 2019, the group released Issue 2 in March 2021—during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic—and Issue 3 in March 2024. Currently, the group is actively developing Issue 4, anticipated for release by late 2025 or, more likely, in 2026, based on the previous intervals of 23 and 36 months between issues.
The TR-398 specification has consistently evolved to incorporate new Wi-Fi capabilities, aligning with the advancement of IEEE standards. Issue 1 focused on 802.11n and 802.11ac, while Issue 2 expanded to include 802.11ax, adding more complex use cases that push Wi-Fi products to meet the high-performance demands of users. For instance, Issue 1 included only single-AP use cases with simple data models, whereas Issue 2 introduced multi-AP scenarios, bi-directional and multi-band data models, and Issue 3 brought in tests for metrics beyond throughput, such as latency and Quality of Service (QoS).
While both ETSI and Wi-Fi Alliance have issued their specifications, the Broadband Forum’s TR-398 working group has emerged as the driving force in Wi-Fi performance testing… Currently, the group is actively developing Issue 4, anticipated for release by late 2025 or, more likely, in 2026...
The momentum continues as the TR-398 working group develops Issue 4. With IEEE standards advancing to 802.11be, both 802.11ax (“Wi-Fi 6”) and 802.11be (“Wi-Fi 7”) introduce key features—including OFDMA, multi-link operation, preamble puncturing, and targeted wait time—that remain untested in current performance specifications. While it’s still too early to confirm the contents of Issue 4, these features are strong candidates for inclusion. Given past trends, any new Wi-Fi feature focused on enhancing user experience is likely to appear in a TR-398 specification update sooner or later.
Spirent’s TR-398 Solution
Spirent's Octobox TR-398 solution delivers a robust, comprehensive test automation package designed to evaluate Wi-Fi performance in strict accordance with the Broadband Forum’s TR-398 standard. This solution supports a wide array of test cases to address key Wi-Fi performance metrics, such as maximum throughput, latency, airtime fairness, and QoS. These metrics are essential for ensuring high-quality performance across diverse Wi-Fi environments, especially when testing access points and mesh network configurations.
The solution's intuitive web interface enhances user experience by simplifying test execution; users can effortlessly run both individual and grouped test cases. For flexible reporting options, test results are available in downloadable PDF formats for convenient sharing and in raw JSON formats to support in-depth analysis or integration with custom reporting tools.
By offering this blend of automated testing, flexibility, and ease of use, Octobox TR-398 stands out as a powerful tool in the Wi-Fi testing landscape, equipping developers and QA teams with the insights needed to ensure optimal Wi-Fi performance across devices and networks...
To learn more about Spirent's Octobox TR-398 automation package, download our datasheet.
