The UK’s largest public access wi-fi provider, The Cloud, has launched an Android version of its FastConnect app, which makes it easier to connect  to The Cloud’s more than 4,800 wi-fi hotspots. The Cloud launched the Android app after it saw the number of Android users on its network boom over the past 12 months. The iPhone version of the app has had half a million downloads since it was launched in 2009.

The free app simplifies customers’ access to The Cloud’s wi-fi network, meaning that users only have to register once to be automatically connected to any of its hotspots across the UK when they are in range, in locations such as PizzaExpress, Pret a Manger, Eat, McDonalds, Wetherspoons and Punch Taverns. The app also comes with an integrated map, to help  customers find their closest hotspot.

“In the past couple of years, we’ve seen an explosion in the number of consumer devices using wi-fi, with traffic across our network growing rapidly,” says The Cloud managing director, Steve Nicholson. “While we’ve offered FastConnect for iPhones since 2009, the huge growth we’ve seen in Android users over the past year meant that we had to make sure we had an app specially designed to help them make the most of our nationwide network of hotspots. Like iPhone users, owners of Android devices are increasingly unwilling to put up with the compromises often required with 3G, particularly as they seek to enjoy more rich video content on the move. This app will take the hassle out of enjoying better quality mobile connectivity.”

According to Kantar Worldpanel ComTech, Android now powers nearly half of all the smartphones sold in the UK, and is the most popular mobile operating system in the UK, the US, Germany, France, Japan and Australia.