Last time, I wrote about Siri alternatives for your Android phone. This time, I want to talk about security for your investment. That is, keeping track of exactly where your phone is and how to find it should you lose it or it happens to "walk away" in someone else's pocket.
Turns out, there are many options for finding and recovering your baby, but as I did the research I kept finding users were referring again and again to a certain app for the Android phone that helped them to retrieve their phone from all manner of places and, failing that, they were able to wipe the lost phone's memory of potentially expensive data (credit card numbers, addesses, etc.) contained within the device.
Called "Where's my Droid?", this free app sits quietly hidden on your phone until needed. There are a couple of scenarios available that would make this app invaluable:
- One reviewer stated she couldn't find her phone anywhere in her house although she knew it wasn't stolen or seriously lost as she had just used it a few hours before- she had simply misplaced it somewhere nearby, but searching the usual areas turned up nothing and she had set it to silent so calling the device did no good. She went on the Where's my Droid? website, entered her phone number and "told" the phone via text commands to start ringing at it highest volume. The app turned the ringer back on to "loud" and started to sound off. She soon found it under some dirty socks in the laundryroom.
- Another reviewer left his on the roof of his car and drove off. After arriving home, he remembered, much to his horror, what he had done. He went on the website, told the phone to locate itself (he texted "GPS my droid") and within seconds, the phone responded with a Google map of its current location 15 miles away. He drove to that address and found the phone on the side of the road, a little scratched, but still working.
- One particulary relieved user said she had only purchased her Android phone that afternoon and had promptly lost it two hours later. She had no information on the phone at all and had installed no apps either (not even the Where's my Droid? app). She was devastated. But a friend simply went to the WMD? website, gave the WMD? site her friend's cell number and installed the app remotely from her house. They were then able to see the phone was at a restaurant she had visited that evening. They locked the phone remotely and sent a message to be displayed on the screen with her friend's cell number and a request to call. The restaurant did (the busboy found it under a table) and they were able to pick up the phone within a few minutes.
Did I mention this app was free? Also, despite the name, the app works with almost all Android phones. It also has the amazing ability to track its location even if someone steals it and replaces your sim card with an entirely different one. You can also lock the theif out of the phone and demand, via the now locked screen, that your phone be returned.
Or, just call the cops and enjoy a little justice Android style.
Find the Where's my Droid? site here and download the app at the Andoid Market app store located here where more than 68,000 reviewers rated it the best app of its kind. Lifehacker also reviewed the app at their website here.
Now, where did I put that phone...? While I look, enjoy this video demonstration via Lifehacker.com:
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| Dude- Where's my Droid? (source: wheresmydroid.com) |
Called "Where's my Droid?", this free app sits quietly hidden on your phone until needed. There are a couple of scenarios available that would make this app invaluable:
- One reviewer stated she couldn't find her phone anywhere in her house although she knew it wasn't stolen or seriously lost as she had just used it a few hours before- she had simply misplaced it somewhere nearby, but searching the usual areas turned up nothing and she had set it to silent so calling the device did no good. She went on the Where's my Droid? website, entered her phone number and "told" the phone via text commands to start ringing at it highest volume. The app turned the ringer back on to "loud" and started to sound off. She soon found it under some dirty socks in the laundryroom.
- Another reviewer left his on the roof of his car and drove off. After arriving home, he remembered, much to his horror, what he had done. He went on the website, told the phone to locate itself (he texted "GPS my droid") and within seconds, the phone responded with a Google map of its current location 15 miles away. He drove to that address and found the phone on the side of the road, a little scratched, but still working.
- One particulary relieved user said she had only purchased her Android phone that afternoon and had promptly lost it two hours later. She had no information on the phone at all and had installed no apps either (not even the Where's my Droid? app). She was devastated. But a friend simply went to the WMD? website, gave the WMD? site her friend's cell number and installed the app remotely from her house. They were then able to see the phone was at a restaurant she had visited that evening. They locked the phone remotely and sent a message to be displayed on the screen with her friend's cell number and a request to call. The restaurant did (the busboy found it under a table) and they were able to pick up the phone within a few minutes.
Did I mention this app was free? Also, despite the name, the app works with almost all Android phones. It also has the amazing ability to track its location even if someone steals it and replaces your sim card with an entirely different one. You can also lock the theif out of the phone and demand, via the now locked screen, that your phone be returned.
Or, just call the cops and enjoy a little justice Android style.
Find the Where's my Droid? site here and download the app at the Andoid Market app store located here where more than 68,000 reviewers rated it the best app of its kind. Lifehacker also reviewed the app at their website here.
Now, where did I put that phone...? While I look, enjoy this video demonstration via Lifehacker.com:
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