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Android 5.1 Fixes a Wi-Fi Annoyance

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Re: Android 5.1 Fixes a Wi-Fi Annoyance

#41

Post by organsnyder »

rikkus wrote: post #39

What would have been better, though perhaps not technically possible, was to try WiFi while keeping the mobile data active, only switching if the WiFi worked well. Not sure it's possible to run both at the same time, though.

It already does that for access points that require logging in (or accepting a ToS). It shows an exclamation point on the wifi icon, and continues to use mobile data.

This behavior was introduced to my Nexus 5 beginning with Android 5.0. It's actually a bit annoying—it broke an app I had purchased that could record and replay scripts to automatically log me in to access points, and the app maker can't (last I checked) find an API that will allow them to re-create the functionality.

Re: Android 5.1 Fixes a Wi-Fi Annoyance

#42

Post by cesarb »

prattmic wrote: post #40
cesarb wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's worse when the "poor" connection is because you're in the edge of its coverage area, so you move right next to the router... and it still won't connect, because it decided that this network was a "poor" connection and memorized that decision. Happened to me a few days ago. Luckily, leaving it alone for a few minutes cured that and it connected.

I've found that turning WiFi off and on again will also reset the 'poor connectivity' decision.

That was the first thing I tried. Didn't work.

Re: Android 5.1 Fixes a Wi-Fi Annoyance

#43

Post by na85 »

MichaelGG wrote: post #37
adamkittelson wrote: post #3

This was one of the reasons I left AT&T. They have hotspots everywhere that my phone would connect to and they inevitably either sucked or were located just far enough away from the store I was visiting that the phone could connect but not get usable internet. I'd have to keep turning wi-fi off in order to use the internet, then naturally I'd forget to turn it back on. Between the removal of unlimited data plans and…

Windows Phone has a nice idea when turning off WiFi: it's got options to disable it for a limited time, which is basically what everyone wants went disabling WiFi.

Yeah but then you have to use Windows Phone, which is like buying a Lada for drag racing performance.

Re: Android 5.1 Fixes a Wi-Fi Annoyance

#44

Post by mortehu »

aninteger wrote: post #35
adamkittelson wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If there was an option not to connect to AT&T wifi hotspots I couldn't find it. Unlike most wireless routers it wouldn't only automatically connect to ones I've used before, it would eagerly connect to any AT&T hotspot.

There is no way to remove it via the UI. You sadly need a rooted phone to remove it.

I thought so at first too, but here it is on my AT&T branded Moto X: http://bitraf.no/~mortehu/skrot/attwifi.png

Re: Android 5.1 Fixes a Wi-Fi Annoyance

#45

Post by mortehu »

msoad wrote: post #16

To me the biggest annoyance is when phone connects to WiFi but doesn't open a browser to login or accept terms so it's just silently done't work at all

Apple and Android devices connect to fixed URLs[1][2] to verify the connection. Some captive portals whitelist only those URLs, so you only see this behavior when the captive portal creator wants it to happen.

1. http://www.apple.com/library/test/success.html

2. http://clients3.google.com/generate_204

Re: Android 5.1 Fixes a Wi-Fi Annoyance

#46

Post by maxerickson »

wsxcde wrote: post #13

> While the Nexus 6 has already started seeing the update stateside, Google’s latest and greatest software still takes too long to percolate around the ecosystem for everyone else. Both my Nexus 5 and first generation Nexus 7 got 5.1 a week ago. The 7 got it before the 5, which is weird because it got Kitkat almost a month after the 5 got it.

My first generation Nexus 7 got 5.0 a couple of weeks ago and 5.1 today. First impression is that 5.1 is much smoother, I wonder if they prioritized the devices that were sluggish with 5.0.

Re: Android 5.1 Fixes a Wi-Fi Annoyance

#47

Post by MichaelGG »

na85 wrote: post #43
MichaelGG wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Windows Phone has a nice idea when turning off WiFi: it's got options to disable it for a limited time, which is basically what everyone wants went disabling WiFi.

Yeah but then you have to use Windows Phone, which is like buying a Lada for drag racing performance.

WP is actually a great platform and I wish I could use it. My two main complaints are: terrible app store due to MS emphasizing quantity, and lack of high-battery models. I require at least 30 hours battery, which Android models have no trouble handling (Mate2 (I get 30-40+ he's), or Blu Energy (haven't run it down in 72hrs).

If MS offers a virtualization platform to run Android apps, even at low perf, that'd probably be a turning point for them.

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