Nokia unveils Wi-Fi 7 gateways as high-end router market sees growth

Just as research from Dell’Oro Group reveals that the high-end router market has posted its first positive year-on-year (YoY) growth rate since the second quarter of 2023, Nokia has launched two Wi-Fi 7 gateways designed to deliver reliable, ultrafast broadband to meet the demands of streaming, video, smart home and security applications.

The analyst believes the market contraction towards the end of 2024 was caused by excess customer inventory of systems and deteriorating macroeconomic conditions, but in its analysis of the market for the first quarter of 2025, it estimates that the high-end router market grew by 10% on an annual basis in the three-month period, with growth across all segments, particularly in service provider core and edge routers. Every major market region contributed to the strong revenue increase in the quarter.

Assessing the topline results, Dell’Oro Group noted that the first quarter of the year came in stronger than it would have anticipated just three months ago. As a result, it has now raised its 2025 market outlook, but with the caveat that market uncertainty remains elevated due to US government initiatives that may increase costs and slow global economic growth.

According to the study, four suppliers held more than a 10% share of the high-end router market in the first quarter of 2025: Huawei, Cisco, Nokia and Juniper. Among these suppliers, Huawei outperformed the market, growing revenues 23% YoY, gaining three percentage points of share. Among the top four suppliers, only Cisco posted router revenue for the first quarter of 2025 that was below its revenue a year earlier. However, Cisco did grow its core router revenue, both year on year and quarter on quarter, driven by the success of selling its routed optical networking solution with 400Gbps ZR/ZR+ optics.

With revenue growth of 16% and 14% respectively, Juniper and Nokia also performed well. As it expands its router options, Nokia’s latest Wi-Fi 7 Beacon 4 and 9 devices are designed to offer global customers the multi-gigabit wireless capacity needed to support future devices and services in the connected home.

Explaining the rationale for the launch, Nokia stressed that as XGS-PON and 25G PON services grow, Wi-Fi upgrades are essential to delivering multi-gigabit speeds into homes. It said the Beacon 4 and 9 have been designed specifically for this purpose, allowing service providers to offer an affordable, “best-in-class” Wi-Fi 7 experience for the masses.

Attributed with incorporating Wi-Fi 7’s full capabilities, the dual-band Beacon 4 gateway delivers 3.6Gbps speeds over Wi-Fi, while the tri-band Beacon 9 gateway delivers 9.4Gbps speeds that help eliminate slowdowns and buffering issues. Both Beacon gateways are powered by Nokia’s Corteca software, which it said allows operators to create and monetise better broadband experiences.

“As the connected home ecosystem grows increasingly complex, Wi-Fi 7 emerges not just as a technological upgrade, but as a strategic necessity. To unlock the full market potential of Wi-Fi 7, it is essential to accelerate its availability across a wider range of devices,” said Alzbeta Fellenbaum, practice leader, service provider – consumer at analyst Omdia, commenting on the launch. “Expanding access – while preserving opportunities for service providers to differentiate and monetise premium offerings – will be key to driving adoption at scale and delivering the elevated experience consumers expect.”

Dirk Verhaegen, head of broadband devices, fixed networks at Nokia, added: “Wi-Fi 7 is a pivotal new technology that will power the connected home of the future. Operators can now make Wi-Fi 7 a reality for customers, with two new affordable solutions that ensure multi-gigabit speeds are delivered to every corner of the home for the ultimate experience.”