Wi-Fi HaLow Bringing Wider IoT Connectivity

At Sensors Converge 2025, ipXchange met with Morse Micro to discuss a wireless protocol you’ll be hearing a lot more about in the coming years: Wi-Fi HaLow, based on the IEEE 802.11ah standard. This sub-GHz version of Wi-Fi operates in the 900 MHz band, offering low power, long range, and massive client capacity — three things traditional Wi-Fi can’t deliver at scale.

Unlike 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz Wi-Fi, which fades after a few dozen metres and struggles with walls, Wi-Fi HaLow reaches up to 1 kilometre in open environments and easily penetrates concrete and other physical obstructions. That makes it ideal for smart cities, industrial automation, agriculture, warehousing, and any environment where devices can’t always sit near an access point. Friss Transmission Equation, anyone?

Morse Micro’s HaLow Solution: Built for Embedded

Morse Micro isn’t just evangelising the HaLow standard — they’re building the hardware behind it. Their modules combine the MAC and PHY layers on-chip, supporting up to 8,000 connected clients per access point and running the WPA3 security protocol, ensuring that your extended network is secure by design, even across a wide physical footprint.

Transmission power is also fully adjustable, ranging from -12 dBm to 30 dBm, enabling designers to optimise for either ultra-low-power battery operation or long-distance coverage. Compared to technologies like LoRaWAN, Morse Micro’s Wi-Fi HaLow offers 1000x the data throughput — a crucial advantage for edge AI applications or high-volume smart metering deployments.

Modules, Dongles, and Dev Kits for Rapid Integration

During our demo, Morse Micro showcased a variety of form factors and integration paths, including:

• USB dongles for plug-and-play connectivity
• Embedded modules with USB, SPI, or SDIO interfaces
• Development kits compatible with Raspberry Pi and STM32 platforms
• Commercial-grade EVKs with full driver support

With a growing number of certified modules and development options, Morse Micro is making it easy to start designing with Wi-Fi HaLow today.