Free Wi-Fi News

Good days for Free Wi-Fi

2010-02-02T10:15:00.000-08:00

Free Wi-Fi locations are getting more use than ever and more and more locations are popping up.

Barnes & Noble, Borders Books and McDonald's have recently added thousands of new locations by switching from paid to free Wi-Fi.

Over the Holiday's Google supported Free Wi-Fi at a number of airports, some of which have decided to continue the Free Wi-Fi on their own, most notably Boston and San Francisco.

The use of Wi-Fi-FreeSpots has grown due in large part to the proliferation of "smartphones". No longer is it just for laptop use. And the upcoming release of the iPad should increase usage as well.

All in all, good days for Free Wi-Fi.

As usual, many thanks to the users of the wififreespot.com web site who continue to send in new locations for addition to the site.

Never far from Free Wi-Fi in the USA

2009-08-09T17:07:00.000-07:00

Barnes and Noble recently announced that their 700 locations now have Free Wi-Fi.

Panera Bread has over 1100 locations with Free Wi-Fi.

Many Hotel chains that total thousands of locations offer free Wi-Fi.

Hundreds of big city and small town libraries have Free Wi-Fi.

Fast food chains like Krystal and others have hundreds of Free Wi-Fi locations.

Add in all the independent coffee shops, cafes, restaurants and more listed in the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory and a Free Wi-Fi location is pretty darn close no matter where you are in the USA, whether you're in your own neighborhood or just passing through someone else's.

More Free Wi-Fi

2009-06-13T05:02:00.000-07:00

Since the first of the year the weekly average of new location additions is about 200. That means there are 5,000 more Free Wi-Fi locations listed in the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory than just six months ago. Many thanks go out to the people who take the time to let me know of new locations they've found.

Most of the additions continue to be in the USA, but I'm sure access is growing in other parts of the world as well.

If you're traveling this Summer ( for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere ) you should find some kind of Free Wi-Fi access where you're going, even in some remote areas ( the local library might just have it ). Whenever you are connected, use the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory to look for locations in advance of your arrival in your next destination.

Happy Wi-Fi Holidays

2008-12-25T08:17:00.000-08:00

The year 2008 saw a continuing expansion of Free Wi-Fi locations in the USA and around the World. Throughout the year about 100 new locations were added to the Wi-Fi -FreeSpot Directory every week.

Although the general category of "cafes" still leads the count, public libraries saw a huge increase in the number of towns/cities offering free access.

One of the more interesting categories that has grown is hospitals. Many hospitals are starting to offer free access to patients and visitors.

I'd like to thank all the people who have visited the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory web site and especially those that have passed on information about new locations they've found in their travels or around the corner.

All the best,

James Sullivan

A busy Free WiFi Summer

2008-09-09T05:16:00.000-07:00

The Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory web site always gets more traffic in the Summer and this Summer, thanks to some mentions in the press, lots of new, first time visitors found the site as well.

The Summer has been very busy with new location additions to the Directory as well. A conservative guess would be 1500 new locations of all types have been added, just since the middle of June. I know I'm probably biased but I think the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory has the largest listing of Free Wi-Fi locations on the Internet, and for this I'd like to offer a grateful "Thank You!" to all the people who have taken the time to send in new locations, as well as those others who send in removal updates for locations that have unfortunately gone out of business.

From small town Libraries to the ever expanding number of Panera Bread locations it seems that in the USA one is never too far from a Free Wi-Fi connection. Pretty cool.

Debunking Online Free Wi-Fi Directory Criticisms

2008-07-27T11:07:00.000-07:00

A common criticism I read about online Free Wi-Fi Directories is that they are not current and not comprehensive. I guess these writers just don't know how hard it is to be current and comprehensive so I'd like to use my own experiences with the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory to shed a little light on the matter.

Plainly and simply, it is impossible to be completely current and comprehensive on any selected day.

It's a pretty big world out there in case they haven't noticed and the number of Free Wi-Fi locations changes on a daily basis. Somewhere, there are new businesses that open all the time, existing businesses decide to add Free Wi-Fi all the time and existing businesses go out of business all the time. It is an impossible task for anyone to keep an accurate track of it all.

I am extremely lucky that users of the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory take it upon themselves to alert me via e-mail about new locations and locations that no longer offer Free Wi-Fi or have gone out of business. Over the years, and still to this day, I get an average of over 100 e-mails a week with updates. Based on this input, and my own search for new locations, I update the site several times a week.

So, instead of criticism I'd like to see the writers give some credit to the Directories for the fact that they actually are able to provide lists of an amazing number of Free Wi-Fi locations in a wide range of locations around the world.

I'm sure the people looking for Free W-Fi locations appreciate whatever info is available.

The Free Wi-Fi Life

2008-05-29T08:47:00.000-07:00

The spread of Wi-Fi access is an amazing story. I think the spread of Free Wi-Fi access is even more amazing.

Internet access has become an integral part of a lot of people's lives. E-Mail, social networking, checking news and sports headlines, uploading and downloading photos, music and videos, playing online games, business communications, etc. - all activities that a lot of people from all generations and walks of life take part in daily.

It's not enough though to connect from work or home. People want to stay connected while they travel, while they have a cup of coffee, while they eat lunch, while they wait to get the car repaired, while they do laundry, while they just go about their daily routines - i.e. all the time.

What has been amazing is the willingness of business owners, libraries, and many other locations to help these people stay connected, and offer it for Free!

It's hard to come up with any other example of a "life enabling" resource that has had as great an impact on people's lives as Free Wi-Fi has had.

When we hit the road for business travel or for recreational pursuits or if we just walk down the street in our hometown it's likely that there will be a Free Wi-Fi signal available nearby if we want or need to use it.

I continue to add new Free Wi-Fi locations to the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory on a regular basis, so I'd like to thank all those location owners or operators for making Free Wi-Fi available and also thank the folks who tell me where they've found a new location for me to add.

Have a great Free Wi-Fi Summer!

2008-02-21T10:41:00.000-08:00

Starbucks Free Wi-Fi, - not really

Attention! - Another "clarification" - the latest being that it is two "continuous" hours, not two hours total per day, so if you sign off after 15 minutes, that's it, unless you have multiple accounts and go to different locations.

Starbucks has received tons of Free publicity over their "Free Wi-Fi" announcement. Too bad it's not as simple as it sounds. You have to "pay" a nominal amount for "limited" "Free" access, but of course if that's too frustrating, you can always choose to "pay" more for "unlimited" access.

Why didn't they just go all the way - Free Wi-Fi, For Everyone, All the Time. I think that's what their managers wanted all along.

A lot has been said about Starbucks getting more customer friendly and on the surface it sounds like they want Wi-Fi users to think they are, but in reality I don't think that's the case.

2008-02-12T17:20:00.000-08:00

Further update on Starbucks Free Wi-Fi

Again, from Glenn Fleishman at Wi-Fi Networking News

"Once you have the card, free Wi-Fi service is activated by a single purchase of any amount on the card each month."

2008-02-11T16:40:00.000-08:00

Starbucks Free Wi-Fi update.

From Glenn Fleishman of Wi-Fi Networking News

"No purchase is needed: you just need an active card, I confirmed with the company. Walk in, buy a $5 value card, activate it, and you�re on for two hours a day from then forward."

It's about time

2008-02-11T10:29:00.000-08:00

Free Wi-Fi at Starbucks - sort of - but definitely better than what it was.

Starbucks announced it is ending it's association with T-mobile and going with AT&T. The biggest change - Starbucks said Monday it will give customers that use its Starbucks purchase card two hours of free wireless access per day. After that, it's $3.99 for two hour increments. There are $19.99 monthly plans available too and those plans include access to AT&T's 70,000 hotspot network.

Sounds like you have to make a purchase using the card to get the Free Wi-Fi.

Stories I read were unclear about access for Starbucks customers who don't use a purchase card.

Rollout starts this Spring in the 7000 company owned stores and should be completed by year's end.

AT&T also is giving Starbucks' more than 100,000 U.S. employees free wireless accounts.

Is it really Free Wi-Fi?

2007-12-03T05:33:00.000-08:00

Recently I added the JD Wetherspoon pubs across the UK as locations for Free Wi-Fi to the Wi-Fi-Freespot Directory. They have over 600 locations that offer 30 minutes of "Free" access with a drink or food order. When you order ask for a voucher and you'll get the access code. Subsequent 30 minute blocks of free access can be had with more drink or food orders.

Some might argue that this is not true Free Wi-Fi. The actual access time is Free but you have to pay to get it. In most locations, other than Libraries, a purchase might be made voluntarily, either because you were intending to make a purchase anyway or that you felt it would be nice to make a purchase as a means of saying thank you for the Free Wi-Fi.

Requiring a purchase before being granted access is another kettle of fish, as they say. The Wetherspoon pubs are not the only locations doing things this way, but luckily they are in the minority. I guess it is a way to pay for the amenity of Free Wi-Fi but I question whether it is the best way. Granted, the pubs are in business to sell drinks and food and I guess they feel they are either using Free Wi-Fi as a lure for more business or as a reward for purchases, but there are other ways to pay for infrastructure costs. Jiwire and others offer ad supported platforms that should be considered for those looking to pay for their network expenditures, rather than requiring a direct payment from customers.

Anyway, I'll keep the Wetherspoon listing in the Directory. It may end up being the only Free Wi-Fi available in some areas, and that's better than none.

Panera Bread - limited access

2007-11-02T14:16:00.000-07:00

I recently received an e-mail alerting me to a clarification in Panera Bread's "unlimited" access. It seems that some Free Wi-Fi single users in some locations have tied up a table for four for long periods of time. Hence, Panera Bread has decided to limit access to 30 minutes at the "peak" times around 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM. I'm not sure if this an across the board corporate policy or if it is left up to the discretion of individual franchise owners.

Mac or PC, Paid or Free Wi-Fi?

2007-07-17T14:33:00.000-07:00

Mac or PC, Paid or Free Wi-Fi?

There's a post on tuaw.com that asks "Do more Mac users hang out at coffee houses?". The poster says it's about 50/50 where he hangs out. Most of the comments say it's even higher where they hang out. Interestingly though, about 90% of them seem to hang out at Free Wi-Fi locations.

Read the post here.

The Summer of Free Wi-Fi

2007-05-23T15:38:00.000-07:00

The Summer of Free Wi-Fi

Probably not as culturally significant as 1967's Summer of Love, but if you're headed to San Francisco this Summer, or just about any place in the USA for that matter, you're sure to find lots of locations with Free Wi-Fi along the way.

In the last year over 4000 new locations have been added to the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory at http://www.wififreespot.com and new addition requests continue to come in daily.

So, it's not too big a stretch to say that Free Wi-Fi is just about everywhere in the USA these days. Big cities, small towns and places in between, cafes, coffee shops, libraries, RV Parks and campgrounds, highway rest areas, town squares, city parks, hotels and motels, laundromats, car repair centers, fast food and other restaurants, ice cream parlors and many more.

If you're headed to Europe or other parts of the World this Summer you'll find more Free Wi-Fi locations as well, especially in the big cities.

What are you waiting for? Pack up the laptop and hit the road.

NY State Thruway Travel Plazas have Free Wi-Fi

2007-03-01T14:43:00.000-08:00

All 27 Travel Plazas now have Free Wi-Fi.

You'll find a link to the location list on the New York page in the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory.

http://www.wififreespot.com

Free Wi-Fi at Airports - Check the connection!

2007-01-21T07:11:00.000-08:00

A recent article in Computerworld highlights a problem with connecting to ad-hoc networks calling themselves Free Wi-Fi, particularly at Airports. These ad-hoc connections are actually connecting to a nearby computer, rather than an access point's infrastructure network of any "official" Free Wi-Fi provider in the airport.

Connecting via another computer could allow that computer to access your files and do other nefarious activities unless you have the proper security settings activated on your Windows XP or Vista computer.

Read the article here.

Free Wi-Fi Park and Surf Zones

2007-01-01T10:57:00.000-08:00

Free Wi-Fi Park and Surf Zones

Happy New Year.

As a follow-up to the previous post about Park and Surf Zones where road warriors can connect from their cars, a recent submission to the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory is perfect. In Fairfax, Iowa you can connect to Free Wi-Fi from your car at the Fairfax State Savings Bank ATM Kiosk on Highway 151. There are lots of banks with stand-alone ATMs in the parking lots of malls and other places accessible to cars. Imagine if they offered the service of Free Wi-Fi in addition to the standard banking services.

I'm also noticing that more Burger King and Wendy's locations are offering Free Wi-Fi that I imagine is accessible from the parking lot. McDonald's still offers fee based access in most locations but some individual franchise owners do offer Free Wi-Fi. A restaurant management company in CT recently submitted their 4 McDonald's locations with Free Wi-Fi.

2006-12-29T07:06:00.000-08:00

Park and Surf Free Wi-Fi?

Techdirt Wireless led me to a story about Wi-Fi "leeches" ( not a very flattering word ). It seems that some proprietors of businesses that offer Free Wi-Fi don't like it when people stay outside and connect from cars without making a purchase. It's usually travelling business people making a quick check of e-mail. The article suggests that some locations, especially motels, should welcome the chance to use Free Wi-Fi access as a way to encourage brand loyalty. The article ends with an interesting idea:
"Proprietors can choose to become frustrated chasing road weary traveling Wi-Fi leeches from their properties or view it as a marketing opportunity. Best Western does not appear to have advertised or publicized their widespread convenient and free Internet access. This gives a market savvy competitor a chance to capture some publicity if one of these chains was to create a branded drive-in Wi-Fi zone catered to these new aged road warriors. Install it in part of the existing parking lot, perhaps marking and marketing this special space. Welcome users who may become interested in spending a night there. Turn the leeching relationship into a symbiotic one."

Park and Surf Zones sounds good to me.

Read the full article.

2006-12-16T17:22:00.000-08:00

Free Wi-Fi grows and grows

First, my apologies for the lack of posts, no excuses.

My observations, my readings and the number of new Free Wi-Fi locations I add every week point to the continued growth of Free Wi-Fi in 2006. I have thousands of listings in the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory and have been consistently adding 50-100 new locations every week, thanks to the e-mails I get from Free Wi-Fi users around the World.

I've been traveling quite a bit this year and every motel/hotel choice I made was based on the availability of Free Wi-Fi. Luckily, there were usually many to choose from on the road from California to Maine and Massachusetts to Louisiana. Just about all of the national chains of motels offer free Wi-Fi but many of the independently owned ones do too. So, not only can you look for the best price for a night's sleep you can probably get Free Wi-Fi too.

When price became the determining factor and there was no Free Wi-Fi available, coffeeshops and libraries (thank you Maine libraries) were where I found Free Wi-Fi. There were very few travel days without a Free Wi-Fi connection.

Not only do I want to say thanks to all the e-mailers for telling me about new locations they've found but I want to give the biggest thanks to all the coffeeshop/cafe/restaurant and other small business owners who give their regular customers and us walk-ins Free Wi-Fi. It might be "good business" but it's also just a nice thing to do. And also a thank you to Librarians and their Library boards/committees for supporting their communities with Free Wi-Fi.

Predictions for Free Wi-Fi in 2007?

More locations and happy users.

2006-04-25T08:48:00.000-07:00

Motel Wi-Fi for travelers

On a recent drive from CA to New Orleans on I-10 I saw many billboards advertising Free High Speed Internet at motels/inns/suites. Free Wi-Fi seems to have become an important amenity to promote to travelers. Once you pull off the highway you'll also find that many older, independently owned motels also offer Free Wi-Fi, not just the national chains. Perfect for the "budget" traveler - a bed, a shower and Free Wi-Fi.

2006-03-24T16:11:00.000-08:00

$250 fine for accessing open network

Techdirt Wireless had a story today about someone in Illinois being fined for accessing the open network of a non-profit agency from his car.

".....the first person in Winnebago County to be charged with remotely accessing another computer system without the owner�s approval. He pleaded guilty Tuesday to the charge and was fined $250 and sentenced to one year of court supervision."

Read the full story
http://rrstar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060323/NEWS0107/103230036/1011

Read the original post at Techdirt Wireless
http://news.techdirt.com/news/wireless/article/6557

2006-03-24T10:09:00.000-08:00

Wal-Mart and Free Wi-Fi

Wal-Mart just opened a new Supercenter in Plano, Texas and it has Wi-Fi in the Coffee Shop.

Here's more info - www.walmartfacts.com/newsdesk/article.aspx?id=1749

The story doesn't say it's Free but I did get an e-mail from a customer in Plano saying it is Free. He said the store also has a public-access Windows system for those without their own laptops.

2006-03-05T11:01:00.000-08:00

More Free Wi-Fi locations

As more and more people hear about the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory I get more e-mails from people telling me about new locations to add at http://www.wififreespot.com

Since early January I've added around 500 new locations.

California continues to be the State with the most listings but that's not surprising, it's a big State. Delaware and Rhode Island have the fewest but that's because they're the smallest States.

There's no way to know of every location that offers Free Wi-Fi but thanks to the many e-mails I get I update the site daily with new locations.

I continue to hear about USA locations primarily but I've recently added locations in Canada, Sri Lanka, Australia, Vietnam, and Puerto Rico. Outside of the usual categories of coffee shops and cafes, libraries continue to be the fastest growing segment. In addition, more RV Parks are adding Free Wi-Fi to their list of amenities and many vacation rental condo and home owners are now offering Free Wi-Fi to renters. In addition to the general State and Country pages, the Wi-Fi-FreeSpot Directory has specialty pages that list RV Parks, Vacation Rental Properties, Hotels and Airports with Free Wi-Fi. Whether you're looking for Free Wi-Fi around the corner or across the World be sure to check out http://www.wififreespot.com

2006-01-13T12:09:00.000-08:00

Running a business from a Free Wi-Fi location

Here's a great story about Delicious Monster software using a Zoka Coffee location in Seattle as their office.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/255532_macdelicious13.html