Battery life on our Android devices is something that we're always looking for ways to improve. Google has been working to minimize the battery consumption in Android but there is still a lot left to be desired. Every little way of giving a device a couple extra hours of battery life can come in handy.

Wi-Fi connectivity, for example, is usually enabled all the time, even when the device is not in the network range. XDA Forum Member Xenon O came up with the interesting idea of creating an application that can save some battery life by disabling the Wi-Fi when it's not needed and enhancing its security.

The application, dubbed WiFi Better Battery, checks whether the device is in range of the network and automatically turns the Wi-Fi connectivity on or off. The app can determine both when the network is temporarily down or the device is out of range. This should prevent the device from getting disconnected when the signal is low. WiFi Better Battery also offers a MAC checking feature, which helps keep your passwords safe. By default, Android only checks the name of the network and tries to connect when the name matches. During the attempt, a password is sent and likely collected by a malicious router. MAC checking ensures that this doesn't happen, and that the device is connecting only to trusted networks.

WiFi Better Battery is a nice tool for potentially increasing battery life, and also quite useful in enhancing your device's security. You can download the app by visiting its forum thread.