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Wi-Fi on the go: what’s free and what’s not
(1 votes, average: 5 out of 5)
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We have children and they love their chicken nuggets and playlands/playgrounds. It’s nice to be able to get catch up on things while they play. So once in awhile the laptop comes out so we can read emails and news, finish that one client deliverable now that the mind is clear and uncluttered, etc. Imagine our surprise when we found out McDonald’s charges for Wi-Fi access. To quote their website, “Connectivity and/or usage fees may apply and be required for Wi-Fi services.” So, how do you find free hot spots? There are a number of websites to assist. Here’s a quick review of each.
openwifispots.com has over 24,000 Wi-Fi hotspots in the U.S. and many new listing added each week. No sign-up or login required. There are only a few listings in my area, some of which are restaurant favorites and we were completely unaware of their free Wi-Fi offerings. And you have the added ability of searching by location type. The site is promising with their continuously updated by a growing number of community users.
hotspotr.com – Wi-Fi Cafes and Hotspots – is a user driven reporting system where anyone within the community is able to “Add a Spot.” When the user enters the information, they indicate if it’s free or on a charge basis. Pay as you go services are shown with a pink marker and a dollar sign. They have over 7300 spots in over 1800 cities and even a few café reviews, yet no hotspots in my area.
wififreespot.com is a little crude with no listings in my immediate area. The feature I do like is the quick lookup of companies (like Panera Bread), airports, hotel chains, RV parks, campgrounds and vacation rental properties that offer free Wi-Fi.
ilovefreewifi.com is a newer service (started in 2007). The owner of the site is still working out the bugs and functionality needs. Though the number of hot spots is not touted on this site, there are few major cities with a significant number of locations shown.
jiwire.com lists 200,000 Wi-Fi hotspots in 135 countries. There are nine locations listed in my immediate area with the provider/access specifics listed. None of these locations have been rated by users, making me wonder if the site is often used. JiWire is a Wi-Fi advertising network that delivers national- and local-targeted ads at Wi-Fi locations. So, you have to wonder about their motivation.
Do you have a favorite site for finding free Wi-Fi wherever you go? Tell us about it.
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Comments
17 Responses to “Wi-Fi on the go: what’s free and what’s not”
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I had a similar experience with McDonalds. I was really surprised that they charged to connect. My guess is that they contracted with some company to install in all of their franchises in exchange for the fees. Bummer huh?
Nice review of all the hot spots.
My local MC Donald’s has a “free wifi” sign in the window. For free you can connect to the site that sells you the per minute plan! It’s easier to just find a open network that someone forgot to firewall.
Side note- I found your site on DP
Nice list. I will use it when I need to find a free wifi area.
It really is true about what they say - you learn something new everyday. I have noticed that some of the restaurants have an internet cafe sort of area, but never realised that if you had your own computer, you would have to pay to use their connection. What a turn-off. However, it is very good to know that there are places where this is free. Great reviews of this by the way.
Thanks for the handy links…I was looking for something exactly like this for a while now!
thanks for this nice list of links… Another free WIFI!
I can’t believe McDonald’s charges for Wi-Fi access, Went in there the other days with my kid and I didn’t want anything and they said I had to get a large meal to get the WI-FI access… I thought it was so funny!
That is funny!
Customer: “Can I get a number 5 supersized”
Cashier: “Do you want Wi-fi access with that?”
A little off topic but I noticed the other day while in the Orlando airport (free Wi-fi) that I could view every computer that was connected to the system. I checked quickly and I could see peoples shared folders! Not knowing my own shared settings I got off-line before anyone could look at my files.
Take this as a warning to secure your files before using a shared connection!
This is cool! Can i have one too?
McDonald’s - I salute you!!
McDonald’s does rock for the fact that they’ve got yogurt parfaits, chicken mcnuggets, and wi-fi
bad news for me.. i live in mexico, and the only place where there is free access to wifi its my house and my school..
hope we can someday have wifi at least a the local mcdonalds…
good list thx.? willtry it…
Hmmm…a burger and wi-fi. Sounds pretty good to me. Thank you for sharing the hot spot info.
i love it i ove mc donalds
McDonald’s - cool guys