This has to stop. According to a new comScore study, nearly 70 percent of Android smartphone users never connect to a Wi-Fi network, preferring to consume all of their Internet through their carrier's data connection.
This is an extremely bad idea. It's a great way to bust your data cap and raise your monthly bill. It overloads cellular networks, potentially causing slow connections for everyone. And especially if you're on Verizon or Sprint 3G, Wi-Fi can be much faster - even public Wi-Fi.
It's safe to say that if you are at home, you have a home Wi-Fi network and you're not connecting your phone to your Wi-Fi network, you are doing it wrong. The whole smartphone thing. You're doing it wrong.
The problem seems to be that many Android phone owners don't know how to connect their devices to Wi-Fi. Apple's iPhone gets all up in your face, popping up a list of Wi-Fi networks every time you wander into range, so it's hard to ignore. But Android doesn't prompt you with a list of networks even if your Wi-Fi is on, so many people never actually connect to a network. If you're lucky, you get a little exclamation point in your notification bar if there's an unlocked network in range, but even then you have to make several clicks to connect to it.
While Android has perfectly good Wi-Fi settings, by default they're buried a few levels deep in Menu > Applications > Settings > Wireless and Network > Wi-Fi Settings. It looks like only about 30 percent of Android users have decided to go spelunking to find them, so let's bring them to the surface.
How To Connect to Wi-Fi The Easy Way
The easiest way to improve the Wi-Fi experience on an Android phone is to install a Wi-Fi widget that tells you if you're connected. Right now I like Kostya Vasilyev's WiFi Manager, which you can download for free from Google Play.
Once you've downloaded it, go to your home screen and hold down your finger on an empty space. From the menu that pops up, pick Widgets, then WiFi Manager 2x1. You'll have a very clear reminder of when you are and aren't connected to Wi-Fi. The widget is shown in the image at the top of this story.
If you aren't connected but should be, tap the "Not Connected" part of the Wi-Fi widget. You'll get a colorful list of nearby networks. Either pick an open one (marked with a star) or a password-protected one (marked with a shield.) If the network is password-protected, enter the password.
Once you've connected to a network once, your phone should automatically reconnect to that same network. Sometimes it won't. If it doesn't, reconnect by hand. Remember, every byte you use of Wi-Fi is a byte you're saving from your mobile data plan. You might even be able to drop to a cheaper data plan, if you use enough Wi-Fi.
Once you've told your phone how to connect to your Wi-Fi networks at home, work, and school, you'll have covered a lot of your day.
Advanced Wi-Fi for Android users
Two third-party apps take things a step farther: DeviceScape's DataBooster and Boingo Wi-Finder, both of which are available for free from Google Play. They purport to automatically connect you to free Wi-Fi hotspots around the world.
I walked around for an hour with first one, then the other running on a T-Mobile Galaxy S Blaze 4G Android phone. Neither picked up the vast majority of free hotspots that I could find on my own. DataBooster did automatically connect in a Staples, though.
But both apps have other reasons to install them. DataBooster does a good job of showing how much data you've used on 3G/4G as opposed to Wi-Fi, using a flashy home screen widget. The Boingo app works best with Boingo's $8 per month Boingo Mobile subscription, which gets you access in a slew of paid hotspots in hotels and airports.
You can easily connect to public hotspots just with a standard Wi-Fi widget, of course. Just remember to open your Web browser after connecting to a public hotspot, because the hotspot will usually want you to agree to some legalese disclaimer before it lets you surf freely.
If that seems too complicated, you can still save a lot of data just by using Wi-Fi where it's most common: at home, work and school. Leave the mobile network for when you're mobile.
