We have been quite silent over the last few months.
Well, it’s time to tell you why.
Over the last 2 years, Android has evolved a lot, especially in terms of privacy and security.
Many software limitations have been added to protect users’ privacy (e.g. background location tracking, background task executions, one-time permissions, and so on).
It means that developers may no longer have access to a set of features they used to work with in the past.
So, long story short, our Wi-Fi auto-connect will no longer work on more recent Android versions.
The good news is that we spotted an opportunity and we redesigned the app from scratch!
That’s why Wiman 4 will be different from the previous version.
🔑 Wi-Fi Autoconnect & Wi-Fi Passwords
After 200M connections, the auto-connect will be turned off.
The idea behind this feature has always been to make the connection process as simple as possible, even if the Wi-Fi was password-protected, the auto-connect used to work behind the scenes to get the password and connect the users to that specific Wi-Fi (when that Wi-Fi was part of the Wiman community, of course).
So it used to work like magic. No need to show, copy, and paste any Wi-Fi password. It just worked.
However, not all users have been fans of this feature.
That’s because:
- It differed from the usual flow (get, copy, paste the Wi-Fi password) that all of us are used to when it comes to connecting to a new Wi-Fi
- It required the app to be continuously running in the background
- It consumed battery (ok, not a lot, but some)
In fact, by reading all the Play Store reviews and beta testing feedback, we have realized that there are 2 different groups of users:
- Users that love the auto-connect as it is
- Users that don’t want to change their habits
This update will clearly make the second group very happy.
But even those users that loved the auto-connect will benefit from a very light app, with a new community feedback system, able to assist them when looking for a good Wi-Fi connection.
🍹 Wiman Places
We decided to focus 100% on public places.
They provide Wi-Fi networks that are intended to be shared with a lot of strangers and generate much more activity compared to private home Wi-Fi.
As a result, starting from Wiman 4, it will no longer be possible to add private home Wi-Fi, and we decided to remove all the private home Wi-Fi passwords added by the community so far.
(Thanks for that and we hope you understand our reasons).
5 place categories: Cafés, Restaurants, Hotels, Stores, Others
More power to the Wiman Community
Wiman community has always been our priority.
That’s why we have redesigned the whole app around our people!
🤟 Introducing “Wi-Fi Suggestions”
It’s not only a matter of Wi-Fi passwords.
Many places provide open Wi-Fi or Wi-Fi that requires creating an account.
Well, we want to provide our community with a tool to easily add any kind of Wi-Fi:
- Password protected Wi-Fi
- Open Wi-Fi
- Wi-Fi that requires an account
- Wi-Fi behind a paywall (yes…they still exist 😭)
By the way, if you are working for a TELCO or a WISP and want to ask for location bulk upload, drop us an email at places [at] wiman [dot] me
📋 A new “Contribute section”
One of the most frequent questions we get on a daily basis:
How can I contribute to Wiman!?
Hence, we realized that people need a more powerful tool to add their Wi-Fi suggestions around the globe.
Guess what? we built it!
Our contributors can consider it a sort of to-do list to easily figure out what places need to be added around you.
Get those places and add your Wi-Fi suggestion.
You’re done!
If you’re adding a Wi-Fi password, please make sure to inform the owner of the place that you’re doing it (maybe you can get a coffee on the house 😉)
👍 Reactions
And there are no communities without…reactions!
People sometimes go wrong by adding incorrect suggestions, maybe just a typo or even worse… Wi-Fi passwords can change over time. That’s why we need your help to keep information consistent and updated.
Well, like and dislike can be enough to start!
It’s super simple to add and super simple to understand.
🏆 Leaderboard
And how about adding a little bit of competition across the community?
We have redesigned our leaderboard. It’s now based upon the number of likes that the community gives to any suggestions.
🗺 Offline maps
Last but not least….let’s talk about offline maps!
Yes, you’re right: having connectivity to look for connectivity doesn’t make a lot of sense.
Hence, offline maps can be easily positioned as a core feature.
Indeed it is.
We have redesigned the whole download flow and added 3 shortcuts across the app.
🚀 The rollout starts today
You will receive the update in the next few days.
💡 Any feedback or feature request
Let’s talk on Trello where you can create and upvote as many features as you want!
㊗️ Translate into your language
Do you want to translate Wiman into your language?
You can easily do that.
It’s a matter of minutes (maybe 30 minutes if you’re using your phone) and all your compatriots will thank you.
Beta tester
If you want to try new updates and new features before anyone else, become a beta tester here:
