A few weeks ago, I couldn’t find my Motorola Droid. I searched my apartment and car high and low and it was no where to be found.
I eventually remembered having it when I played volleyball the night before and drove across town to go see if they had it. Fortunately, someone had found it and turned it in to the lost and found. It was probably a good place to lose my phone as most of the people there know each other and are generally pretty honest.
Then last week I was talking to my mom and she mentioned she misplaced her Droid (I convinced her over Christmas that if she was going to get a smartphone, the Droid was her best bet – she’s a former Verizon employee and would never touch anything AT&T so the iPhone was out as an option).
She wasn’t quite as fortunate as I was. She set it on top of her car and drove off (don’t ask me why it was there in the first place). She couldn’t figure out where it fell off and she eventually had to use her smartphone insurance, pay the $89 deductible and order a new Droid.
However, that got me to thinking there must be an app to track down and find a lost Android based phone.
As it turns out, there are several.
Probably the most popular is “Where’s My Droid.” I just installed it and tested it out myself and it’s pretty sweet if you’re forgetful and misplace your phone.
You can send a special code word via SMS to your cell phone and it will turn on the ringer even if it’s on vibrate or silent. I wish I’d have had that feature on my old Razr – I always had the ringer off and managed to misplace that thing every couple weeks it seemed.
It also has a special code word you can text (you can pick these words, by the way) to your phone that will activate the GPS and will text you back it’s location and a link so you can get directions to your phone via Google Maps.
There’s another fun app called Instamapper that also allows for remote activation where you can watch on a map where your phone is and if it’s moving. I have both installed. (This one also allows for remote tracking without the phone user knowing it’s on – it’ll run quietly in the background once setup if you like.)
Of course, this all implies the phone is on. If it’s powered off, you’re SOL.
So what can you do if you’re phone is off or has been turned off.
You can use an app like Wavesecure that will lock down your phone should it ever get stolen. It will contact a friend (who you can specify when you setup your account) if your phone is stolen and allows you to remotely lock down your phone so that it can’t be used until the unlock pin code is entered.
And it has one feature that makes this a killer app. Smartphones have access to a ton of your personal information (I’d much rather someone steal my wallet than phone – they can do less damage with my wallet) – that information is worth far more than the price of the phone.
However, with Wavesecure, you can remotely wipe the the data on your phone and memory card so that least your private personal data can stay safe even if your phone can’t be recovered. (Just remember to do regular backups of your phone – MyBackup Pro is what I recommend – the 30 day trial is free and $4.99 after that, but well worth the small investment – I spent that much on coffee this morning.)
I also like to make it easy for people to get in touch with me so they can give my phone back to me.
While I know that high end smartphones like the Droid and Nexus One are certainly attractive to thieves, I give people the benefit of the doubt and just assume that I misplaced or dropped the phone and that someone found it and would be more than happy to give it back if they could get in touch with me.
One App that makes that simple is to install the “Contact Owner” app on your phone. It’s a very simple app that will display your name on the unlock screen of your phone, an alternate phone number and email address for anyone who finds your phone to contact.
I actually have my Google Voice number set as my contact number. Even when it forwards back to my cell phone, I can still see the call log and will get any text messages sent to that contact number without needing my phone to access them. Also, if they leave a voicemail, I can check it online – no phone required.
So there you have it, some apps to keep track of your phone if you’re as forgetful as I am.
Any that I missed? Have any you feel I should have mentioned – post in the comments and let me know.
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I personally use Prey for Android. I been watching the project closely (preyproject.com) and really like what they’re doing. WaveSecure looks good but a bit of overkill to me — the buddies thingy is not a good solution IMHO.
If you do happen to be the victim of a stolen Droid, I would report the Droid theft on http://www.stolen-property.com/
It’s a online database of stolen property and is free for both victims and searchers of stolen property to use around the world.
my droid was stolen along with a couple thousand $ in golf clubs my wallet @ least $250.00 cash and very dangerous medication I was at a golf course when 2 guys drove off in our cart unloaded everything into a truck and took off they got it on video the only link to my stuff is my phone verizon knows where it is but wont tell without a subeona from law enforcement and law enforcement (myrtle beach) doesnt think its that serious is there anything i can do without these apps already installed
Let’s say my “wheres my droid” apps and my account on that phone was deleted and my phone was returned to its factory settings can I still track it?
If not is there a app or something I can get so I can prevent it from happening again on my new droid?
If those apps have been removed, you won’t be able to track the phone any longer. If you suspect your phone has been stolen, your best chance of getting it back is to activate remote tracking apps like “where’s my droid” as soon as possible because if your phone is wiped, you’re SOL.