Many a time I have sat in an airport lounge trying to get email on my iPhone using what appears to be open networks but really are paid for service gateways. Constantly having to go to settings and disconnect from the network to try another can be a laborious task.

The WiFinder app from Lars Bergstrom can put a stop to this by easily locating a free network for you.

WiFinder is a one-screen application that scans all of the local WiFi networks.

It determines if they’re locked (reporting which lock type to you) or if they’re open.

If they’re open, it attempts to associate with them and open up Google’s homepage. If it

gets a result, it checks to see if it was actually from Google or not - many “open” networks actually require authentication, and redirect you to a login page. If it is from the right server, then the status icon is updated with a green check mark. Otherwise, you’ll get either a red X (for redirected) or red - (for locked).

WiFinder is currently at Version 1.0 but Version 2 should hit the app store any day now and includes many new features which I am looking forward to. Most notably the ability to connect to an open network directly from the results screen.

WiFinder is available from the iTunes app store. iTunes Link