MU-MIMO vs. SU-MIMO Questions

[mccainm]

I just bought a Linksys EA 9500 to replace an older Linksys WRT-1900AC (it reset too frequently). None of my devices posess MU-MIMO capability but I am trying to find out if I can upgrade my Dell XPS 13 to a MU-MIMO wireless card (Killer 1535 or future Intel). Out of curiosity, even if I can, on MU-MIMO routers, does MU-MIMO work if just one device is MU-MIMO capable, or do ALL devices have to be MU-MIMO capable, in which case an upgrade isn't really needed until all my networked devices (computers, cell phones, Blu-Ray players, TVs, etc.) are capable?

 

[bill001g]

This is a question I have seen before and still have not found a clear answer. It may depend on the router implementation. There is a limitation of 4 separate streams to start with and what it does when there are more than 4 mu-mimo users is share these streams....ie it runs SU over each of 4 MU connections. My guess would be it will run all the non MU-mimo devices in 1 group and give the mu-device their own until you hit the 4 stream limit.

In the real work it likely makes no difference. Even streaming multiple uncompressed blue ray movies to multiple end devices does not even come close to the capacity of more modern routers.

I think the one you list has 2 5 gig radios so it makes this discussion even more complex because now you have 2 radios that can run their own group of mu-mimo users independently of the other.