Android - Best Apps for WiFi - refreshed for 2011

I’ve been writing about Android for some time now and Best Android Apps for Wifi is a very popular post.  So here is a refreshingly new look for 2011 at some of the best wi-fi apps for your smartphone.

Auto Wifi Enabler

This was a fav app for a month - til I realised I only ever needed 2 wifi hotspots - the one at work and the one at home. This is a good example of how to use network enabled location - so that Wifi automagically switches on when you’re in your area.  I always leave wifi enabled but my phone is not trying to connect to every public hotspot so I guess I fell out of ‘need’ for this app.

Get Auto Wifi Enabler from the Android Market

Wifi Fixer

This is a new one to me - but if you find your having problems like blocked connection or disabled or disconnected - then try this app.  Though I think if you can figure out how to flush your DNS or something then you won’t want this.  Don’t leave it set too aggressively or it will be trying to connect to Wifi every 30-ish seconds.

Get Wifi Fixer from the Android Market

HTC Wifi Hotspot

This app can’t be downloaded from the market – its part of HTC build for Android 2.2 Froyo

I’ve used this loads of times – its great for getting my laptop or iPad2 on the Internet when needed, but the main point to remember is it kills your battery very fast. So keep your charger handy.

WeFi

WeFi has long been a favourite of mine … it’s improved over the past 18 months a lot. Except it (annoyingly) keeps asking me to add details of my private home network to its database hmmm.

Get WeFi in the Android Market

WiFinder

WiFinder has been my personal favourite with its not bullshit, layout it will be popular for the techies and not the marketers or anyone into user centred design.

Get WiFinder in the Android Market

Y5 Battery Saver

A newer app to try – Y five - wifi … get it?  It apparently saves your battery so that your phone doesn’t keep trying to find public WiFi networks to connect to. You set networks that you want WiFi to be on and it does the rest.

Get Y5 Battery Saver from the Android Market

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Damien Saunders
An experienced management consultant and business leader interested in digital transformation, product centred design and scaled agile. If I'm not writing about living with UCTD (an autoimmune disease), I'm probably listening to music, reading a book or learning more about wine.
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