How to automatically enable WLAN when an app requests location info?

Question

I currently have WLAN enabled all the time for triangulation, even when I'm not near an access point I can use. Is there any way to automatically enable it whenever an app requests location information, like it is done with the GPS?

Answer 1

As far as I know this is not possible. IMHO, it contradicts Google's incentive to have an as best as possible geolocation service.

Some background information:

• Google maintains a huge database for its geolocation service ("Access coarse location" permission). It consists of:

  • Wifi access point mappings: Wifi MAC address resolve to a geo location
  • Cell tower mapping: Cell tower id's resolve to a geo location
• This database is "community" crowd-sourced by the huge Android user base, aka. everyone that has Google's location service enabled (see below)
• Google is interested to have a high quality database, i.e. convince you to opt in to allowing your phone to be part of the crowd-sourcing
• Hence: If you want to use 'coarse location' services from Google you opt in to constant data mining as long as it's enabled

PS:

• Disabling Wifi cuts you only off from one of the possible information sources. Having Cell tower id's will still give you coarse location, but with lower accuracy
• Some may recall the Skyhook vs. Google dispute where Google seemingly pressured Motorola and Samsung to prefer Google's own geolocation service over that of Skyhook (out of fear for loosing part of the crowdsourcing community if those two big players would have used the 3rd party Skyhook service). Source: TheVerge