Qualcomm® Direct Connect™

Qualcomm® Direct Connect™ technology enables two or more Wi-Fi®-enabled devices to easily connect directly to establish a network of wireless connectivity without transmitting through an access point.

Direct Connect on the go

For devices outside of the home or office, in locations like airplanes and trains, classrooms and libraries, sports events and coffee shops, Direct Connect opens up a world of content sharing, With Direct Connect Mobile, a user can share content drawn in real-time from the Internet or 3G network or from existing stored files to share with virtually any other Wi-Fi device present— like a computer, tablet, smartphone or mobile gaming product. In fact, Direct Connect, also known as Direct Connect for mobile handsets, enables simultaneous connectivity with up to 10 other Wi-Fi devices. This direct connectivity eliminates the need for an access point, enabling device-to-device connections virtually anywhere.

Direct Connect in the home or office

Direct Connect allows for simple peer-to-peer connections between devices in the home or office, such as computers to printers, cameras to computers, smartphones to computers, computers to gaming devices….without hopping through the access point. This preserves bandwidth, as an indirect hop through the access point cuts throughput virtually in half and enables easy file sync and printing. And, with Direct Connect, a device like a computer can be connected to up to as many as 16 devices simultaneously.

Why Qualcomm Direct Connect is the Peer-to-Peer Connection of Choice?

Qualcomm Direct Connect technology is already market-proven in mobile handsets and routers. And, computing multiple platforms are launching Direct Connect this year.

Qualcomm Atheros offers both standardized and proprietary features that make Direct Connect easy for product developers and better for consumers.

Qualcomm Direct Connect

  • Complies with the emerging Wi-Fi Alliance standard for peer-to-peer connectivity, Wi-Fi Direct.
  • Provides a simple, intuitive graphical user interface for configuration and Internet sharing.
  • Offers one-button-press Wi-Fi Protected Setup configuration and security with WPA2.
  • Supports all major discovery protocols including UPnP, Bonjour, WSD, NetBios
  • Enables connectivity with Windows® and non-Windows platforms (for smart phones and Linux-based PCs)
  • Allows devices to maintain robust connectivity to the AP while switching directly to peer devices with Qualcomm Atheros Fast Channel Switch (in as little as 1ms as compared to regular 10ms switching) to prevent connection latency and enable seamless connectivity throughout the network