A recent survey from GfK and British satellite manufacturer Inmarsat reported that 61% rated high quality inflight Wifi more important than inflight entertainment. The survey had 9000 respondents from 18 different countries. Thought to expand this question further and ask the Airliners.net community their take on whether WiFi is an essential factor when booking their next trip.

http://www.flightsinasia.com/articles/2422

I'm probably one of the few younger flyers who is perfectly fine with a reasonable selection of content on the IFE, a good flight map, and a window seat.
If WiFi was included for free, I'd take advantage of it, but I can't say I'm going to pay for it myself.

There are advantages to being "out of reach" at 30,000ft

The only Wi-Fi I've found worth the price is WN's. GoGo can be a real POS at times and the prices are hard to justify. I've never picked a flight solely on wifi, but if the prices were close and perhaps a little longer in length I would consider it. As of right now, the Delta Studio options are good enough to keep me occupied without wifi.

Certainly on a short haul flight I don't need it. On a longer flight I might occasionally use it if it's available, but if not it's no problem. I wouldn't pay for it anyway.

Some form of free personal entertainment is important. Wifi, IFE, or power. None of the three, window seat and book. I would rather have seat-back IFE over free WiFi content. I don't want to spend my flight holding, or trying to find room to place, my personal device. Nor do I want to use up the battery of said device.

So, to answer your question, when planning a trip, with pricing and scheduling equal, I will go for, in order;
seat-back IFE
FREE WiFi w/ power
Wifi w/power
power only flights

Not for me. Inflight wifi is a nice to have on longer flights, especially if it's free, but I don't consider it when choosing a flight. I'll usually have whatever I need already on my laptop if I feel like working on a flight.

I am on my cell phone, computer and tablet so much in my day-to-day life that I look as flying as a chance to take a break from my electronics. I enjoy getting a window seat and catching up on my sleep and hard copy books/magazines.

More often than not, WiFi would fall under a splurge/self-treat for me personally and wouldn't necessarily fall into the planning stage when booking, WiFi considerations or availability would only come after price of fare, convenience of schedule, the airline itself/loyalty program, preinstalled IFE options, or the cost of the WiFi service if applicable. Over this past summer I sampled DY's free intra-Europe Wifi, VX's $18 ViaSat on SFO-DCA on their A321neo, and AS's Free Chat, while in the past I used WN's $8/day WiFi.

Perhaps it had to do with how it wasn't late at night anymore compared to the previous time I used DY's WiFi but it was super-slow and I was never able to upload a picture to social media (whereas I accomplished this on a late-evening DY flight the year prior), and I felt it would've been better off if I'd never even tried using the WiFi for that purpose as it consumed a lot of time for what ended up coming to nothing. I suppose just browsing here and there or using IM apps would've been a better use of it.

Splurged on VX's ViaSat last month partly because AS Free Chat apparently wasn't available (but was on the return) and used the opportunity to browse or update social media and not so much do any work. Anything I'd consider work wouldn't require the necessity of WiFi (any files I need, I could send to Dropbox from my desktop before I leave home and my laptop would sync and download the files at home if not at SFO or any departing airport that has WiFi), and really that flight amounted to gloating to my friends that I was on pretty advanced WiFi that wasn't at all slow that I could do things that'd normally eat too much bandwidth. Another bonus was being able to switch WiFi connectivity devices by entering the transaction email in the web portal on the specific device, so ideally one person could buy a pass for two or more if they were willing to take turns. But no, I wouldn't call this a necessity for me.

AS's Free Chat says it works on Facebook Messenger, Apple iMessage, and WhatsApp, but after using the service I was getting notifications for other apps (such as Discord/Discordapp) and could even browse my social media feeds or send/receive tweets (including one such tweet from VX's twitter in reply to me that other apps and limited browsing was still possible on Free Chat). I suppose it was a bit like DY's WiFi in that uploading files or large files was not supported but it said so upfront rather than falling short of expectations. This combined with the Alaska-licensed free movies that at the time, recently became available on VX flights would probably be the most "economical" option where there's seatback IFE options as well as being able to remain connected.

So in essence, for me WiFi is welcomed but not so much a necessity (at least not as much as in-seat power, the VX flight I used AS free chat had inoperable powerports and they were still the 2007 model screens without the USB ports like the new ones). In some cases I've grown not to expect or rely on WiFi considering, say, how much it'd cost to have available on Norwegian's 787s, as their IFE selection in my opinion more than makes up for it.

No never paid for it. If its free sure I'll play around to waste time, but never have seen the value proposition in paying for such.

WiFi no, especially if I have to pay for it but it is nice to have, same with PTV's and BYOD entertainment.

I would consider in this day and age power-ports to be a must though.

Not a chance. Book and window seat is all I need.

I'm usually so far behind in emails that it's my chance to catch up when I fly! So yes, I need the wifi!

If it's free, I use it. If not, I won't. That's how easy it is for me. I don't mind being offline for a few hours but if I have the chance to connect, I'll do.

None of the Australian domestic airlines offer a wi-fi internet service. If any brought it in, I probably wouldn't bother with it, especially for ADL-MEL or ADL-SYD flights which are only 60-90 minutes generally. A window seat and some decent IFE (for Virgin/Qantas) or my tablet/phone with some TV shows stashed on them (for Jetstar/Tigerair) is sufficient for me. Plus it means more time to take photos and what not for any trip reports without being distracted by what's happening on the ground.

I have only made use of the free access on UA to briefly rebook my onward flight while onboard my delayed flight/ It was just as well I did because that flight had only a couple of seats.. I will make use of the paid BR WiFi at the end of the month ORD-TPE for the first time just to experience.

I use it on some short haul flights, especially if I'm on an MD out of MCI. If there is a seatback screen, not so much.

-Rowen

Have never paid for it so obviously never chose airlines based wifi access or not. Its simply not something I value enough.

It is still too expensive even to try it... I'm fine without it. Even i have my phone off on international trips, which are over 100 days a year. A break from reality for a while. I do use wifi when in the hotel, but that's all.

I'll use it if it's free as in the case with GoGo's Free 1 HR for T Mobile Customers.

Not really. Netflix now allows you to download your favorite shows in advance and I kind of enjoy not having to worry about anyone calling or texting me in the air.

I've paid for wifi a few times on flights and always felt it was a waste of money. I just don't use it. I'm constantly on my computer or phone when on the ground, but in the air it's like my brain just shuts off. I think the environment just feels so different from what I'm used to that I can't really do most of the things I'm used to doing.

I'd take wifi if it was free and I might check email or Facebook a couple times during a long flight, but that's about the extent of how much I care about it.

I also feel like it can be super slow after you've paid for it, making the whole experience frustrating. I'm with the group of "if it's free i'll fiddle with it" but I'm perfectly content to be out of reach and enjoy some good IFE content

Dead-tree IFE for me.

That said, I do enjoy live TV streaming to my device during the MLB postseason when most of the games are available on cable/broadcast. But I have yet to use the Internet in-flight.

Not really. I don't even crave for IFE, maybe I'll watch a movie in a long flight. I usually just close my eyes and get some of my music with my iPod. Also, if the plane doesn't have a power outlet, I'm probably gonna dry the battery before my arrival (I don't have a tablet).

Personally, no. I don't travel much for business anymore, so I don't really need WiFi.

All I need is a good seat,book glass of wine and I'm fine. Happy to be away from email or any other form of communication.

Absolutely not. I feel bad for the masses who must travel purely for business and are tied to a business schedule and must "endure" the airport and airline travel. I fly mainly for pleasure and "ticking" airlines and aircraft types and seeing new places. As such, the best inflight entertainment for me is what is outside the window. Day or night...doesn't matter.

Not really. I enjoy being disconnected from the grid while I'm taking a flight.

Generally no, but it is nice when the airline gives free access to their own site or app so you can easily check connecting gate info or terminal maps, or even a moving map of the flight if there isn't an in-seat map, so I can try to identify cities and landmarks below.

Otherwise, I'll only buy it if there is a sale or special. It is nice to have but I'm only willing to pay so much for it.

No, I do not consider it a necessity. I'm old fashioned and still prefer reading a book on the plane over surfing the net and having my row mates see everything I'm doing on my screen. However, perhaps the better question would be, "Is FUNCTIONAL wi-fi a necessity?" For far too many airlines, their wi fi is spotty, at best, especially over the deep oceans. I still recall the last two flights to and from the islands where United was selling wi fi to the passengers. It worked for about fifteen minutes - until the plane flew far enough from the coast and became nonfunctional. Imagine maybe fifty people complaining loudly to the FAs about being sold something that they now couldn't use, and having the FAs telling them that to get a refund, they would have to call United's corporate offices!

I realize that that's an anecdotal story, but I think it illustrates the problem. If wi fi is reliable, then I think many people will use it, particularly if they are business flyers. For them, it may be a necessity. If not, then what's the point? I'll stick with my book or look out the window and see the best show on Earth.

The last few flights I've had the flights were short, or I was feeling tired to bother using the wifi, or I had actually decided to hold a conversation with a fellow passenger for a while.

Having a window seat is usually good enough for me.

[threeid][/threeid]It's not something I have ever bothered to use even though I think there is no excuse for a sizable airline to not offer it. On my most recent trip didn't even bother to use the IFE. Just some music, the window, and Air Canada's Navi magazine. I never read a book while flying either, I can find other better places for reading books if I ever want to. The price itself isn't a problem considering how much one pays to even get on the plane, but I just wouldn't get my money's worth out of it. It's like paying for a buffet, I can never quite eat enough to make it worth it. Given a long enough flight, I would consider it.