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Technical Advisory: Realtek Wi-Fi 6 (RTL8852-Series) Adapters and Miracast P2P Performance Issues

This article applies to ScreenBeam 1xxx-Series, 960 and 750 models.

Overview

Wireless display technologies such as Miracast Peer-to-Peer (P2P) rely heavily on the performance and stability of the client device’s Wi-Fi adapter. While Miracast P2P has proven robust on enterprise-recommended adapters (such as Intel and Qualcomm Atheros chipsets), certain Realtek Wi-Fi 6 adapters — specifically the RTL8852 series (RTL8852AE, RTL8852BE, RTL8852CE) — have been observed to underperform in demanding enterprise wireless environments.

This article outlines the symptoms, technical root causes, and recommendations for IT administrators deploying Miracast in classrooms, meeting rooms, and enterprise campuses.

Symptoms

Users attempting to cast wirelessly from laptops equipped with Realtek 8852-series adapters may experience one or more of the following:

  • Screen tearing or pixelation during video playback

  • Stuttering or frozen video/audio streams

  • Intermittent session drops when moving between rooms or access points

  • Degraded frame rates or visual artifacts, especially during high-motion content

These issues are not typically observed when using Intel AX/AC or Qualcomm-based Wi-Fi adapters under the same conditions.

Technical Analysis

Miracast P2P creates a Wi-Fi Direct session alongside the client’s active infrastructure Wi-Fi connection. This requires the adapter to maintain both:

  1. The Miracast P2P link on a fixed channel selected by the wireless display receiver.

  2. The infrastructure Wi-Fi connection to the campus wireless LAN (WLAN), which may dynamically change channels due to AP load balancing, DFS (Dynamic Frequency Selection), or roaming between access points.

Why RTL8852 Struggles

  • DFS Channel Transitions
    When the infrastructure Wi-Fi connection moves to or from a DFS channel, Realtek RTL8852 adapters often fail to gracefully maintain the secondary P2P session, resulting in screen tearing or session collapse.

  • Roaming Sensitivity
    In enterprise environments with multiple access points, roaming events can trigger interruptions in the Wi-Fi Direct session, as the adapter reprioritizes infrastructure connectivity over the P2P channel.

  • Driver Limitations
    Observations suggest that Realtek’s driver stack for RTL8852-series has limited support for Different Channel Mode (DCM), where adapters must simultaneously manage P2P traffic and infrastructure traffic on non-overlapping channels.

Deployment Considerations

These issues are most pronounced in environments such as:

  • Higher education campuses with dense AP deployments and DFS channel utilization.

  • Enterprise offices where seamless roaming between APs is prioritized for mobility.

  • Congested 5 GHz networks, where channel changes are frequent during peak usage.

Recommendations

  1. Prefer Enterprise-Grade Adapters
    For consistent Miracast P2P performance, ScreenBeam and other enterprise wireless display vendors recommend Intel AX/AC and Qualcomm Atheros adapters, which handle DFS and roaming more gracefully.

  2. Optimize Receiver Channel Settings
    Configure ScreenBeam receivers to operate on non-DFS 5 GHz channels (e.g., UNII-3: 157/161/165) where possible, minimizing disruptive channel switching events.

  3. Update Drivers
    Ensure client devices with Realtek RTL8852 adapters are running the latest OEM-provided driver. While this does not fully resolve the issues, incremental improvements may reduce severity.

  4. Evaluate Miracast over Infrastructure (MS-MICE)
    Where supported (Windows 10/11 with ScreenBeam 1xxx-series), opt for Miracast over Infrastructure as an alternative to P2P. This method routes Miracast traffic through the existing Wi-Fi or LAN network, helping to avoid many of the P2P-related challenges seen with Realtek adapters. Please refer to Why Miracast over Infrastructure is The Preferred Deployment Model in Environments with Low-end Wi-Fi Adapters article. 

Conclusion

While Realtek RTL8852-series Wi-Fi 6 adapters are widely deployed in cost-sensitive laptops, their limitations in handling concurrent Miracast P2P sessions under dynamic channel conditions make them unsuitable for enterprise-grade wireless display deployments. For reliable screen mirroring and presentation in classrooms or corporate networks, IT administrators should standardize on Intel or Qualcomm Wi-Fi adapters or shift toward Miracast over Infrastructure when possible.