Four easy-to-use wireless management and security tools that cost under $2
Wi-Fi stumblers are handy when checking for channel usage, signal strength, security status, and detecting rogue access points, in situations where enterprise-level tools aren’t necessary. We recently reviewed stumblers for your PC or laptop. Here’s a look at a few Wi-Fi stumblers for your Android smartphone or tablet, which makes it even more convenient for quick and simple wireless checks. Read a story version of this.
Meraki WiFi Stumbler (Free)
This is one of the most basic Wi-Fi stumblers, but can still be useful for simple channel and signal checks for access points in the 2.4GHz band. Once you open it, you’ll find a small bar graph showing how many access points are detected per channel (1 – 11 only), which can quickly help you identify possible channel overlapping. It also displays in numerical values how many SSIDs and access points are detected. You’ll also find a SSID list, displaying the channel(s), signal (RSSI in dB), security type, and any detected access point vendor.
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Meraki WiFi Stumbler
On the bottom of the app you’ll find a convenient Email Results button. Tap it and it will automatically summarize the scan results in the body of a message and also attach a CSV document, which includes the relevant details and the GPS coordinates as well.
Wifi Analyzer (Free)
This is a more advanced Wi-Fi stumbler, giving you multiple ways to view the access point details. In addition to the common 2.4-GHz band, it also supports the 5-GHz band on supported devices. Though by default it’s AD-supported, you can actually hide the ADs for a week at a time via the Settings.
Though by default it only shows WPA or WPA2, you can make it show full security methods via the Settings. Then you can distinguish between the PSK and EAP modes of WPA/WPA2 and the TKIP and CCMP encryption types. If you’re connected to an access point, you’ll also see the details (SSID, MAC, and IP) on top of the AP list screen.
The time graph screen shows a line graph displaying the access point signals over time in negative dBm values, which you can also filter to show only selected access points. The channel rating screen gives you recommendations on channel usage, basically showing which ones have the least signals. The signal meter screen can help you find a selected access point with a visual signal meter and sound effect.
Wifi Tracker ($1.56)
Designed for larger wireless surveys, audits, or war drives, this stumbler logs the Wi-Fi details and GPS location info for you to export a variety of ways. It can produce and send a KML file for Google Earth viewing, CVS file for Kismet or spreadsheet viewing, and can even upload real-time to WiGLE.net or your own web server.
WLANController WiFi Scanner ($0.99)
This Wi-Fi stumbler is designed for larger wireless surveys, audits, war drives, and basic rogue AP detection of the 2.4 GHz and (on supported devices) 5 GHz bands. The app serves as a sensor/client for a cloud-based distributed Wi-Fi scanning solution, so no results are shown on the device itself. You must sign up for their free or paid service to view the scan results online.