Database Users

WiFi / battery efficiency

At home my cell coverage is a little spotty. It jumps between 1x and evdo frequently. I'm experimenting with WiFi (just set it up yesterday at home) and I haven't yet had a chance to see first hand, but my question is, if I have a solid WiFi connection, is it more battery efficient than solely using the cell radio? I know that just having wifi on will drain the battery hence my confusion.

Strong WiFi is generally better on battery than even a strong EVDO signal. You should be much better off using WiFi. Make sure to set the WiFi to never sleep in the advanced settings.

zesta said:
Make sure to set the WiFi to never sleep in the advanced settings.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is this a new 2.1 option? I didn't even look for it because I am so used to having keepWiFi installed. Also, I have noticed that my wifi signal appears low even though I am only about 50 feet away from my router with only 1 wall in the way running on 802.11g on a dual band router. Also, my router has the ability to broadcast 2 SSIDs to allow for a guest network so you dont have to give out your WPA password to friends and it firewalls them away from your network. I have noticed that my phone has a problem with this. My netbook sees both SSIDs without any problems and stay connected to my main SSID. On my Hero, the main SSID appears and disappears constantly. I have to log onto my guest network because it is the one that my Hero likes for some reason.

In the WiFi setting, click menu and advanced option is available.
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Great info. Thanks!

[Q] Disabling WiFi network scanning...

I was wondering, is it possible to "disable" WiFi scanning once connected to a preferred network? I'm just guessing but does it use so little memory/battery to continually scan every few seconds that nobody has bothered to develop a script or app that allows this to be done?
I had a quick search on Google and the forums here but yielded little to go on.
I'm using a custom ROM atm based on Froyo 2.2.1.
Any help would be ideal. Thanks!

depending on your phone,cant you uncheck "notify me when an open network is available"?

turbo614 said:
depending on your phone,cant you uncheck "notify me when an open network is available"?
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Click to collapse
Unchecking this doesn't stop it from scanning, it just stops it from notifying you of an open network. It will still scan around.

I'm guessing the answer is no then?
Not to worry. Thanks.

Davey Boy said:
I'm guessing the answer is no then?
Not to worry. Thanks.
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Click to collapse
Once you're connected to a network it does not scan for new networks unless you're on the networks screen and then it will scan for them. Close the screen and it stops scanning.

Superorb said:
Once you're connected to a network it does not scan for new networks unless you're on the networks screen and then it will scan for them. Close the screen and it stops scanning.
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Click to collapse
I would argue that. Phones differ for sure, but mine (Eris) scans for networks and puts an icon in the status bar showing available networks if I leave wi-fi turned on. If I then open the networks screen it will show me all available networks, locked and open, but it scans regardless. It does use battery power, but a relatively small amount.

PieceKeepr said:
I would argue that. Phones differ for sure, but mine (Eris) scans for networks and puts an icon in the status bar showing available networks if I leave wi-fi turned on. If I then open the networks screen it will show me all available networks, locked and open, but it scans regardless. It does use battery power, but a relatively small amount.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It does scan, but not constantly. Something like every few minutes or so. Maybe it's just the ROM I'm running that does this though.

Yea, my phone notifies me of available networks within range, whether on the Wi-Fi screen or not.
While I appreciate the battery/memory usage may be minimal, with the aim of optimizing my phone, an app that could disable/enable Wi-Fi scanning would be great. Am I the only person who thinks this?! Lol.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App

Davey Boy said:
Yea, my phone notifies me of available networks within range, whether on the Wi-Fi screen or not.
While I appreciate the battery/memory usage may be minimal, with the aim of optimizing my phone, an app that could disable/enable Wi-Fi scanning would be great. Am I the only person who thinks this?! Lol.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree. I only use wifi when I'm at home. I also use Green Power, and that will disable wifi if 3g is enabled. When connected to wifi my ROM will still scan for new networks every few minutes. I'd like a way to completely disable wifi scanning.

@Davey Boy
I too wonder about this. Like you, when on the wifi settings page it seems to scan every 12 seconds or so even though I am connected to my home network. People have said that it only does this when in that particular screen but how do they know this?
I would like to think they are right but is there any way to prove it?
Please let me know if you get anywhere with this.

Yea unfortuately all wifi connections scan due to ip leases. Depending on the router after a certain amount of time in dhcp mode your ip address expires and then is re-issued. Another reason the wifi card pings the router to ensure the connection is still alive. So honestly to stay connected the wifi needs to scan.

wranglerray said:
Yea unfortuately all wifi connections scan due to ip leases. Depending on the router after a certain amount of time in dhcp mode your ip address expires and then is re-issued. Another reason the wifi card pings the router to ensure the connection is still alive. So honestly to stay connected the wifi needs to scan.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Pinging the router every few minutes is different from scanning for networks. Also, lease time is normally 24+ hours, so there is no need to constantly scan for networks or ping the router.

carlos67 said:
@Davey Boy
I too wonder about this. Like you, when on the wifi settings page it seems to scan every 12 seconds or so even though I am connected to my home network. People have said that it only does this when in that particular screen but how do they know this?
I would like to think they are right but is there any way to prove it?
Please let me know if you get anywhere with this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I too am wondering why we can't specify a prefered network and not bother scanning for others! I also have to kill wi-fi sharing service (with android optimizer) everytime I enable wi-fi

I have same problem after upgrading to 2.3 Wi-Fi shown as it is Active, but it is turning off and on and scaning and off again all times
hellllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllp hellllllllllllllllllllllllllllllp
heeeeeeeeeeelp
helppppppppppppppppppp

I have same problem after upgrading to 2.3.5 Wi-Fi shown as it is Active, but it is turning off and on and scaning and off again all times

sorry...........

Old topic but still interested. Any workaround found?

You can change the speed to a ridiculous amount of time. In your build.prop WiFi.supplicant.scan.interval should be set to a number of seconds. It is not advised to say change it to 24000000000000. Or something insane because if u lose signal it won't be reconnecting for you until that time is up.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2

Kindle Fire WiFi Oddity

I got a Kindle Fire for Christmas, and a few days later bought an Asus RT-N16 (it has DD-WRT on it) to use for WiFi for it (we have 2 other APs in the house, but they're not close enough to my bed to use the tablet in bed, which was something that I wanted to do).
It was working perfectly up until the day before yesterday. Now the Fire won't connect to the SSID at all. Sometimes it doesn't even recognize that the SSID is there at all. Even the WiFi Analyzer app sometimes won't see the SSID.
I'd think it was an AP problem, but going to the AP's configuration page shows that the radio is, indeed, on, and I can pick up my phone (HTC HD2 w/CyanogenMod 7) and connect and use the network perfectly.
Any thoughts?

I have the same issue I think. I have a wifi extender set up in my apartment out back because the main ap from the house doesnt provide a good signal in my apt. Other devices can have them both set up and switch accordingly, but my fire with CM7 installed will constantly only use the main one unless I forget it temporarily.
Not the best solution but a temp workaround.
Corey

If you are on stock than you go to wirless networks and then advenced settings and change it to Japan i had The same problem
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App

cryancaire said:
I have the same issue I think. I have a wifi extender set up in my apartment out back because the main ap from the house doesnt provide a good signal in my apt. Other devices can have them both set up and switch accordingly, but my fire with CM7 installed will constantly only use the main one unless I forget it temporarily.
Not the best solution but a temp workaround.
Corey
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's not the problem I'm having.
Even if I forget everything but the "target" SSID, it still won't connect at all, ever.
The only way I can get it to connect to this AP is to set the AP to G-only and turn security off.
My phone continues to connect flawlessly in all situations, however...
I don't really consider this a "solution" since no security is...no security...but I guess it'll have to do because as soon as I turn encryption back on the tablet just doesn't connect again.
QuBe2 said:
If you are on stock than you go to wirless networks and then advenced settings and change it to Japan i had The same problem
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App
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Click to collapse
I changed it to use all 14 channels, and I even tried forcing the AP to a certain channel that I knew the device would connect to, and the problem still did not disapper.

wifi issues on N4 possible fix?

for those with wifi 'broken' try to change your router settings to WPA2 personal (TKIP+AES) that seems to work for me now,
other settings 'broke' the wifi
this might be just an issue with must me and my router
*spoke too soon: still broken, it only works certain times, mostly it just spins when i try to connecto to online
the wifi icon keeps flashing a black dot... that means the wifi is NOT working right? it should be just a solid blue bars?
on wifi advanced settings, WPS Pin Entry - what is this and do i need to enter that pin on my router?

still no luck with wifi on my network after flashing back to stock 4.2 from 4.2.1
same 'broken' wifi
might be this phone's wifi hardware is incompatible with wDDRT router?
Firmware: DD-WRT v24-sp2 (10/10/09) std
my other wifi devices work perfectly fine, so im really stumped
in phones advance wifi settings it has this WPS entry - what is this and is it somehow not allowing me full wifi?
i can view playstore,, it checks and loads my gMail but it won't connect to websites
it takes so long to download and install apps from playstore, i have to hit cancel, redownload, reinstall to get it working,etc. its not 'instant' like normal 20Mbps wifi should be
ran speedtest.net app and it wont connect to any servers
if anyone has clues to why my wifi is broken, please PM me thanks
it get a blue 3 to 4 bars on wifi signal but it keeps having this 'black' dot flashing in that wifi signal bar, (what is that?)
shows connected to my wifi at 72Mbps at good strength

I found my solution: in my router I unchecked the option WMM (Wi-Fi-multimedia)-settings (2.4GHz b/g/n). After I activated it, my data speeds increased enormously. Try it & report!

danielvc said:
I found my solution: in my router I unchecked the option WMM (Wi-Fi-multimedia)-settings (2.4GHz b/g/n). After I activated it, my data speeds increased enormously. Try it & report!
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Click to collapse
thanks i will look for that option in my router but don't think i have it

Public wifi and my work wifi working perfect with n4. So it definitely my routers wddrt firmware issues with n4... still gottta figure it
Sent from my TC970 (Wi-Fi) using xda app-developers app

My n4 will not connect to any of the WPA2 AP's around here.

I have the opposite problem. I can connect to my WPA2 router at home just fine but cannot connect to the WEP wifi at work. Well, not reliably. I've gotten connected twice, but was unable to recreate the conditions.
-Matt

I had speed problems with my 5GHz band at home. Connected, but couldn't get over 1Mbps on my 30+ connection. Connected to the 2.4Ghz band and I get significantly faster speeds. Haven't had problems connecting though.

siscim23 said:
I had speed problems with my 5GHz band at home. Connected, but couldn't get over 1Mbps on my 30+ connection. Connected to the 2.4Ghz band and I get significantly faster speeds. Haven't had problems connecting though.
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Click to collapse
I've noticed similar behavior, seems like my 5ghz signal strength is much weaker than my 2.4ghz signal according to my n4.

So this n4 is picky about. Certain WiFi networks.configs
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium

Sometimes, my N4 loses wifi connection at work. It's inconsistent. My work wifi is open but MAC filtered.
There have been 3-4 times when I noticed that it lost wifi connection. I had to turn off wifi radio and back on to reconnect.
OTOH, connection to home DD-WRT wifi router is rock solid.

Set lease time for as long as possible, it normally this is 2 weeks..
sent via xda premium with Nexus 7 or Nexus 4!

I flashed my stock recovery backup and my wifi is working again!

jim.k.yee said:
I flashed my stock recovery backup and my wifi is working again!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
??????
very strange !!!!
can you test to flash back CWM recovery and test again the wifi ?

Hello, I am also having problems with WIFI. I've tried a lot of things (change the router configuration, the cellular exchange kernel, etc ...) but I could not fix this problem. Can you give any more ideas? I've even thought about buying another router but can be giving the same problem.
I used my wife's phone as a router and it works normally, but when I connect directly to the router from home and he trasfere data only for a few moments and then transferring data, although still seem the symbol of wifi connected.

I found changing a setting on the Nexus 4 seems to have remedied most of my WiFi issues. Forcing the WiFi frequency band to 2.4GHz only instead of Auto appears to have done the trick for me.
In WiFi if you select Settings and Advanced under Wi-Fi frequency band there is an option to force 5GHz or 2.4GHz with the default on Auto.

BigVDawgy said:
I found changing a setting on the Nexus 4 seems to have remedied most of my WiFi issues. Forcing the WiFi frequency band to 2.4GHz only instead of Auto appears to have done the trick for me.
In WiFi if you select Settings and Advanced under Wi-Fi frequency band there is an option to force 5GHz or 2.4GHz with the default on Auto.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Will try it, thanks.

BigVDawgy said:
I found changing a setting on the Nexus 4 seems to have remedied most of my WiFi issues. Forcing the WiFi frequency band to 2.4GHz only instead of Auto appears to have done the trick for me.
In WiFi if you select Settings and Advanced under Wi-Fi frequency band there is an option to force 5GHz or 2.4GHz with the default on Auto.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried but did not fix, thanks for trying to help.

Lucena04 said:
I tried but did not fix, thanks for trying to help.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
for me too
anyways thanks for the help...

Problem with the WiFi

Hi all..
I bought this device SM-T230 yesterday and am not satisfied with the WiFi, it's very very weak, and I can't use the Internet unless am sitting near the adapter I can't use it from the other room, is it a major issue with the device or just mine?
Turned out that the device keeps disconnecting and reconnecting continously every few seconds, please help me.

iZoal said:
Hi all..
I bought this device SM-T230 yesterday and am not satisfied with the WiFi, it's very very weak, and I can't use the Internet unless am sitting near the adapter I can't use it from the other room, is it a major issue with the device or just mine?
Turned out that the device keeps disconnecting and reconnecting continously every few seconds, please help me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
go into wifi advanced settings and set frequency band to auto/5ghz/2.4ghz , experiment
or check you home for phone lines that aren't filtered
if you have been having weather troubles call your isp, it could likely be something at their end.

Is it just the tablet that has this problem or can you check with a laptop or a phone to see if that's the problem...
Sent from my SM-T230 using XDA Free mobile app

My Tab 4 7 inch has this same issue. The wifi is horrible on this device.
However, if you go into wifi settings
Forget the network
Add a new wifi
Manually add a network
Type in the Broadcast SSID and auth information
It's better - not "good" but better.
I can't use my chromecast 60% of the time without walking out my room to the router and starting the cast there. Network latency is insane. I have 10 or 15 other wifi devices and they are all fine. It's just the Tab 4 that has an issue.