Li-fi, the term, which was first heard four years back in a Ted Talk may soon replace the much used Wi-Fi technology. Discovered by Professor Harald Hass of the Edinburgh University the new technology claims to transfer data at a speed of 1Gbps, which is hundred times faster than the present Wi-Fi technology. Though it was initially considered to be just another big idea that will hardly come to fruition, the news of its testing by an Estonian startup company, Velmenni has raised the hope of its becoming a reality in the coming years.
Li-fi is tested at Velmenni
Chief Executive of Velmenni, Deepak Solanki confirmed the news of Li-fi testing to the 
International Business Times and said that consumers can expect to use the technology in the coming three or four years. To test the new technology, the company used a light bulb enabled with li-fi technology and found it to offer a data transfer rate as high as 224 Gbps. As the technology uses light bulb, workers not only transferred their data at a lightning speed but also experienced a smart lighting solution.
Advantages and disadvantages
Apart from the high speed and the smart lighting solution, li-fi offers a host of other advantages as well. As it uses light technology and does not make any kind of interference with the radio signals, it can keep people connected in flights or other places where interference is a problem. The spectrum of light is 10,000 times higher than radio waves. Thus, it will not run out very soon. Yet, like everything, Li-fi too has some shortcomings. Though it does not interfere with radio signals, it intervenes with light signal and cannot be deployed at outdoors under sunlight. The technology also does not have the ability to travel through walls. However, the shortcomings are expected to be recovered once it is released for commercial use.
