Wifi Hotspot with Samsung Galaxy3

Was looking for a way to access my phones sd card from the pc without having to use the cumbersome USB cable all the time.. in the process i also figured out how to turn the phone into a wifi hotspot :P
heres the 3 cool apps i found

before i go on, i need to mention that most of these solutions are for rooted androids and will not work if you havn't rooted yet. to know how i rooted mine read this earlier post.

First the cable-free sd card access:
this was important for me coz i occasionally develop stuff that i need to try out on my device.. also helps when i need to transfer large files like videos etc.. having a wifi tether works for most people when using syncing apps.. but those are mostly for media.

(continue below for more ..including pics) ...

so anyway, i found an app called Samba Filesharing.

once installed you just have to grant it Su access and then your ready to go!
switch on the device's wifi and from the menu select "enable"

you can also go into settings and set a username and password, coz well its going to be visible to all wifi devices :)

anyway once its enabled, just type "\android" in the explorer or the ip address it displays on the samba screen

if you set a username and password like i did you'll get this screen

login and tadaa! your in!


samba is a free app :cheers:
but takes up about 1.9MB of your phone's memory.. :awww: thats the only issue i have with it right now.

Now to the juicy stuff:
turning our eclair device into a Wifi Hotspot! The main goals for doing this is
(A) to be able to setup a wifi network whenever you like and
(B) to be able to use your phone's EDGE/GPRS/3g data connection to access the net from your laptop, psp or other "wifi only" device
Found two apps that did this well.. one of them should work for you.

first is Barnacle Wifi Tether,

This app comes with loads of customisable settings, which means that with enough patience and tinkering you can probably get it to work with any android(rooted) out there.

again the process is pretty streightforward..
start the app
go through the settings and add an SSID first, this will be your hotspot's name that will show up when you scan for wifi spots

next set the Wireless Encryption key(WEP only..no options for the more secure WEP PSK as far as i could tell)
and thats about it. if you scroll down a bit, you'l see the "Skip wpa_supplicant" option.. enabling this helps if your having connection issues, for now leave it alone

go back to the main screen and hit the big "start" button..
and voila you get this screen

on the pc you should be able to see the hotspot like so

double click it to use it
thats it.

Barnacle is a free app :cheers:
supports multiple devices connecting at a time
and takes up a measly 130kb :yes:

In case Barnacle does'nt work for your device, heres the alternative:
an app thats creatively named - Wireless Tether for Root Users

this app is dead simple to use, and seems to work for most people without any hassles as long as you don't mess with any settings
just tap the big ass wifi logo and it starts broadcasting!








its a 100% free app :cheers:
but takes up 401kb which is obviously why its my second favourite after Barnacle.


now all i got to do is go get a 3g connection :coffee: