How does project fi find hotspots, I don't see unsecured hot spots walking down the s

[malabo]

How does project fi find hotspots to log on to, I don't find many unsecured hotspots outside of the usual restaurants. Does fi have access to things like xfinity hotspots that are accessed through private routers or something.if they don't have something like that I don't see how they could save their users much money

 

[JeffMD]

They save money for people who can live with a WiFi based phone. It does not work the same way as a cellular. It uses public open nets and your personal private net.

 

[paperwastage]

They save money for people who can live with a WiFi based phone. It does not work the same way as a cellular. It uses public open nets and your personal private net.

read OP again

https://www.reddit.com/r/ProjectFi/comments/3grsq6/editable_map_of_project_fi_wifi_spots/

no one knows yet. a few theories

They're not standard SSIDs because they're not run by Google at all. From my understanding they're hotspots that Google has connected to in the past that are fast, reliable, and don't have captive portals. So you know how the Google Maps cars drive around and scan WiFi, which is then matched to a known GPS location for the vehicle to allow general location information on your phone without having a GPS lock? Those same WiFi readings are checked for speed and reliability as well as ensuring they don't have a captive portal requiring you to "agree" to term.

https://support.google.com/fi/answe...&vid=1-635750415957772838-3815459593152161080

If you can't secure your network, you can modify your SSID to indicate that you don't want Wi-Fi Assistant to connect users to your network.
You can opt out by changing the SSID (name) of your WiFi access point (your wireless network name) so that it ends with “_nomap”.

 

[malabo]

read OP again

https://www.reddit.com/r/ProjectFi/comments/3grsq6/editable_map_of_project_fi_wifi_spots/

no one knows yet. a few theories



https://support.google.com/fi/answe...&vid=1-635750415957772838-3815459593152161080

so obviously they are doing something other than just connecting users to publicly available hotspots otherwise you wouldn't need Google, YOU could just get a flip phone and an iPod and invent your own project fi lifestyle.

The bottom line is that project fi is somehow going to do better connecting you to Wi-Fi than you would be able to do yourself with an iPod and looking for public hotspots yourself...right????

 

[malabo]

read OP again

https://www.reddit.com/r/ProjectFi/comments/3grsq6/editable_map_of_project_fi_wifi_spots/

no one knows yet. a few theories



https://support.google.com/fi/answe...&vid=1-635750415957772838-3815459593152161080

Does the last quote mean ANY network is fair game except the ones that have opted out?

 

[vi edit]

The bottom line is that project fi is somehow going to do better connecting you to Wi-Fi than you would be able to do yourself with an iPod and looking for public hotspots yourself...right????

Upshot of Fi connecting for you is that it's seemless (don't need to do anything) and it sets up an encrypted tunnel over that AP. If you connect on your own it won't encrypt.