Your iPhone and iPad are wireless communication devices that use either Wi-Fi or cellular connections to maintain a continuous flow of data to and from the device. But wouldn’t it be nice if Apple gave users more control over their handset’s network parameters?
Those looking to obtain more fine-grained control over their iPhone or iPad’s wireless networking may take a liking to a newly released jailbreak tweak called SmartNetwork by iOS developer Elias Sfeir. As the name implies, this tweak offers a suite of features that let you manage your handset’s connections more effectively.
As Sfeir notes in the tweak’s depiction, SmartNetwork is actually divided into two parts: 1) an app that lets you view and share previously-used Wi-Fi passwords with others; and 2) a tweak with options for augmenting your wireless experience.
Starting with the app portion, you’ll find a new app icon on your Home screen after installation that you can launch to view all previously connected Wi-Fi networks and any applicable passwords for using them:
Here, you can tap to view more and share those passwords with others, which makes network sharing even easier:
As for the tweak portion of SmartNetwork, it offers a plethora of benefits that can be found in the Settings app after installation:
Here, you can:
- Boost your Wi-Fi signal beyond Apple’s stock threshold
- Disable the use of cellular data in the background
- Turn off cellular data when you lock your iPhone and enable it again when you unlock it
- Turn off Wi-Fi when you lock your iPhone and enable it again when you unlock it
- Disable cellular data when Low Power Mode is turned on
- Get notifications when your handset connects to a Wi-Fi network
- Turn off cellular data when on SpringBoard and enable it again when launching apps
- Automatically switch to cellular data when Wi-Fi signal gets too low
- Automatically turn off cellular data when Wi-Fi is connected
- Configure safe Wi-Fi
- Configure apps that you want to receive notifications for when using cellular data
- Configure apps that you want to receive notifications for when using Wi-Fi
- Configure apps that won’t launch when you’re connected to cellular data
The developer includes an Apply Changes at the bottom of the preference pane for saving any changes you make on demand.
The tweak seems to offer a lot of functionality for those looking to better manage their network usage. What’s more is anyone who buys SmartNetwork from the Packix repository for $1.99 gets Sfeir’s SmartBattery tweak for 50% off. SmartNetwork supports jailbroken iOS 10, 11, 12, and 13 devices.
Will you be augmenting your handset’s networking capabilities with SmartNetwork? Discuss why or why not in the comments section below.