\tLi-Fi was tipped for mass-market adoption from as early as 2021, around the same time as the standard for the technology is ratified, pureLiFi CEO Alistair Banham told Mobile World Live.<\/p>\n
Early consumer use cases are expected to be developed in areas which are usually accompanied by constantly growing interest and demand for services including gaming, VR, AR and mixed reality.<\/p>\n
\u201cLight can make VR truly wireless”, Banham said, explaining the technology “offers faster speeds, lower latency and interference-free wireless communications that helps overcome technology challenges allowing VR and AR products to become wire free and reliable\u201d.<\/p>\n
The technology could also find a home in the consumer mobile handset market, he added, noting the technology\u2019s ability to provide \u201c1,000-times the bandwidth of the entire radio spectrum, unprecedented privacy and reliable, interference free communications\u201d.<\/p>\n
Current deployment
\nThe company has more than 200 deployments of the technology worldwide, covering 16 different use cases, with Li-Fi particularly popular among the defence and industrial sectors \u201cdue to privacy and lack of interference\u201d, said Banham.<\/p>\n
PureLiFi this week completed a funding round of $18 million which included involvement from Singapore-based investment company Temasek, and the Scottish Investment Bank.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis investment will allow pureLiFi to deliver Gb\/s Li-Fi light antennas to the mobile device and lighting industries and bring Li-Fi closer to the hands of the consumer\u201d, Banham stated.<\/p>\n
He added the company had already developed the products needed for Li-Fi integration into consumer devices and lighting, and is not planning another fundraising round at this stage.<\/p>\n
Pros and cons
\nBanham highlighted the ability to deliver multi-gigabit data rates on mobile devices as among the biggest benefits of Li-Fi, noting it can currently reduce latency by three-times compared with Wi-Fi.<\/p>\n
It also addresses privacy concerns, as \u201clight can be contained and secured in a physical space\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe fact that Li-Fi does not work in your pocket can be seen as a downside,” Banham acknowledged: “However, there is little need for high bandwidth data communication when you\u2019re not using your phone. This is why we don\u2019t see Li-Fi completely replacing RF technologies.”<\/p>\n
In October 2017 the company demonstrated how the technology works by presenting the Li-Fi XC USB dongle and access point [1]. The product was later used in a network trial by O2 UK [2].<\/p>\n
Consulting company Global Market Insights projected the Li-Fi market will be worth $75 billion by 2023.<\/p>\n[1] https:\/\/www.mobileworldlive.com\/featured-content\/home-banner\/li-fi-can-help-networks-tackle-capacity-crunch\/
\n[2] https:\/\/www.mobileworldlive.com\/featured-content\/top-three\/o2-looks-to-boost-connectivity-with-li-fi\/<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Li-Fi was tipped for mass-market adoption from as early as 2021, around the same time …<\/p>\n
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