Thanks to a new partnership with the most prolific provider of Wi-Fi hotspots in the United States, and a mobile developer that makes cell phone Wi-Fi as easy as pie, MetroPCS phones running Android can now tap into 500,000 hotspots for free while they’re on the go.
The LG Optimus M and Huawei Ascend, MetroPCS’s two Android phones, will now come pre-loaded with special software from a company called Devicescape. The app runs in the background and connects to trusted Wi-Fi locations automatically, even if the user has never programmed that specific hotspot in their phone.
The app recognizes hotspots that are controlled by Boingo, the nation’s leading source of public Wi-Fi. It’s most commonly seen in airports, hotels, train stations, and restaurants. Many of them, however, require users to pay a fee to connect.
However, 500,000 of Boingo’s hotspots are paid for by the owner of the location where it’s set up, so for the most part, MetroPCS Android phone owners will not only automatically be connected to trusted hotspots, they won’t even have to pay for it.
For the remaining 200,000 hotspots that do cost money, users can pay a $7.95 monthly fee for unlimited access.
In a country where four mobile carriers have been the only ones worth talking about for years, MetroPCS has managed to do the impossible and really break into the market. Its extremely low-cost plan options have enticed thousands of customers to switch over from their high-priced mobile providers.
Service still isn’t available all over the country, but it is very quickly expanding and if it continue, we may have to stop talking about the “major four” carriers and start talking about the “major five.”
