Why You Should Learn To Disable The Wi-Fi Assist Feature On iOS 9

The release of iOS 9, the newest version of Apple’s iOS mobile operating system, has brought some new cool features. One of them is Wi-Fi Assist, a feature which is designed to automatically switch your iPhone to a cellular connection or mobile data connection as soon as your Wi-Fi signal gets disconnected or becomes too weak to be useful. 

In past versions of iOS, switching from your workplace’s or home’s Wi-Fi signal to a 3G, 4G, or 5G LTE connection takes considerable time. The result was that there was a noticeable delay in transition between connections, hardly making for a smooth, seamless Internet browsing experience for iPhone users. Even something as simple as stepping out of your patio can lead to frustrating moments of trying to regain your connection.

The Wi-Fi Assist feature takes care of that by facilitating the automatic switching between Wi-Fi to cellular, allowing users to basically continue viewing the latest viral video on YouTube via their iPhones uninterrupted while taking a stroll out on the front lawn. The feature is turned on by default on iOS 9. However, there is a very good reason why people should learn how to disable it.

It appears that as helpful as Wi-Fi Assist is to users who frequently surf the web using their iPhones, the feature can also be too eager in looking for available cellular connections on its own, eating up the user’s data allowance without people knowing it. The result is that mobile users often find themselves discovering they have used up more of their data than they usually do. This is particularly agonizing for those under limited data allowances who intend to make the most out of every byte in their plans.

Of course, the easiest solution in preventing this from happening is to simply disable the Wi-Fi Assist. To do this, iPhone users just need to launch their Settings app, and then go to the Mobile Data section, and scroll all the way down. In disabling the Wi-Fi Assist feature, they just need to switch off the corresponding toggle, which is labeled as “Wi-Fi Assist.”

Also, it should be noted that the list of mobile apps displayed in the Settings panel basically controls which of your mobile apps are permitted to make use of the Mobile Data connection any time. When you switch off one of the toggles, access to the Internet for the corresponding mobile app will be disabled as soon as your iPhone is beyond range of any Wi-Fi signal.