Google’s Android OS could soon introduce an option for 2.4 GHz and 6 GHz hotspot sharing. The option will provide a more balanced equation of speed and coverage.
The default Android gives the option to choose between 2.4 GHz, 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz, and 5 GHz preferred option. You may have noticed this on your Android device, too. Some flagship phones with support for WiFi 6e and WiFi 7 also have the option of the 6 GHz band for hotspot sharing. You can go to this setting via Settings > Connections > Mobile Hotspot and Tethering > Mobile Hotspot and choose your preferred band. The steps are similar to most Android phones.
Android 6 GHz and 2.4 GHz band hotspot sharing vs the old ways
The thing is, with 5 GHz and 2.4 GHz band options, Android is ensuring compatibility for users. That’s because there are still plenty of Android devices, including best 5G phones, that may not have 6 GHz band support. By including the 2.4 GHz band option, Android is making sure that handset owners can have more devices connect via the 2.4 GHz band—only the phones with WiFi 7 and WiFi 6e support 6 GHz preferred connection via hotspot sharing.
And there is a key benefit to 6 GHz band hotspot sharing. Due to wider channels, the 6 GHz band delivers the fastest possible speeds via hotspot sharing. But with a higher frequency, the coverage also gets lower. So, it’s particularly useful if the host and client devices are close to each other (within a few meters only). The real deal here is that with both 6 GHz and 2.4 GHz bands on Android, client phones will connect to either of these bands depending on compatibility. Also find out best ways to improve WiFi connection
A tip: If you want to limit the number of users on your hotspot SSID, you can activate “6 GHz preferred”. This only allows 6 GHz-compatible phones to connect.
Here is the summary of bands for hotspot sharing:
- 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz band: Combines coverage with speed: Compatible with nearly all Android devices and others too
- 5 GHz preferred: High speed and wider support for most devices
- 6 GHz preferred: Fastest speed, but compatible with a few phones
- 2.4 GHz and 6 GHz: Fastest speed and compatible with most devices
Dual-band 6 GHz hotspot sharing availability on Android
The dual-band 6 GHz hotspot sharing option features in the latest Canary build (the earliest version of Android OS) and will likely be in the Beta for Android 16 QPR3 soon. We will have more updates for you when they are available.
