Alright, lets start. Have you or someone you know ever lost an Android phone or tablet without having pre-installed one of those tracking apps?
Then you should dedicate the next ten minutes of your spare time reading this because chances are your odds of finding your phone will be greatly increased! This could be your chance to get a hold of your lost device, so grab a drink and pay attention.
Many recovery apps have been developed and are made available on the Google Play Store. Tons of folks rely on these apps to locate their misplaced or lost phones.
Unfortunately the majority of people only come to that realization when it is too late! By then, chances are it is too late Learn How to track your Android phone or tablet after the matter (lost or stolen scenario) Don't flip out just yet, there’s still hope for your phone to find its way back to you! There are a few methods of remotely handling and tracking your phone regardless of not having installed recovery apps. Let's check out the various techniques that will help you get back in touch with your device. 
Step 1: Locate the lost Android device with Google’s Android Device Manager (ADM)
Requirements:
• Device is connected with accessible Google account. • Device has access to the internet. (Wi-Fi counts) • ADM must be allowed to locate your device (turned on by default). This can changed in the Google Settings app. • Allowed ADM to lock your device and erase its data (turned off by default). ADM is Google's proprietary tracking tool developed for your Android. You don't need an installed app to be able to track your device: we think that's brilliant! The only requirement is that your phone or tablet get logged into your Google account and connected to the internet. From here, simply visit your ADM while logged into your Google account. Once the site is loaded it will automatically try to track down your phone. Make sure the right Android device is selected in the event that you have multiple devices.
In one of Google's recent updates, some of the ADM features have been integrated into their search result page. This means that you’re able to quickly locate any registered Android device right from the search results. By using the search phrase “where is my phone”, Google displays a little map above the search results in which it will try to find your phone. Once you find your phone, we suggest you "make it ring" by utilizing the function found at the bottom corner.
Although this really should boost your odds at finding your phone some of the features are reserved for the paid for clients of Android Device Manager.
Using ADM allows you to track down your phone, make it ring and actually delete all the data if necessary. The down side of all this is that you can't remotely use your camera but we think Google will keep adding and introducing more powerful features. This can all be accomplished from a friend’s Android phone if not CPU or laptop is present to track it. Just download the Android Device Manager app instead of using the mobile browser. Simply download it from the Google Play Store. You can sign in using the guest mode and your Google account credentials. Now you should be able to track your lost device, let it ring or wipe its data. 
Are you still not able to locate your phone? This can happen for several reasons. At this point, let's hope that the device is simply not connected to the internet or is not booted. If that is the case, keep trying, chances are it will connect to Google’s services at one point in time.
It’s possible that the thief has disconnected your device from your Google Account. If that happens, neither Android Device Manager nor any other tracking tool will be able to locate the device, since it’s necessary to be logged into your Google Account. DON'T worry there is always the "LAST RESORT" method we will explore later on in the article. 
Step 2: Remotely control and track down your device with Android Lost
UPDATE: Due to Android recent API updates, Android Lost cannot be activated remotely on devices running Android 3.0 or higher so keep this in mind!
Requirements: • Device is connected to your Google account. • Device is connected to the internet. • You’re not running Android 3.0 or higher (important). This is a more complicated way to track your phone. Essentially, you will need to send your lost phone an SMS in order to enable the Android Lost app. You are probably thinking "Right, how the hell do I install an app on a phone I don't have in my possession. Believe it or not, this is actually a piece of cake and can be accomplished via Google's Play Store. Head on over to the installation button located on the Android Lost app its self. The remote installation process of Android Lost is very straightforward and only requires that your phone is still connected with your Google account. However, if theft is the case, hope the person has not yet disconnected your account from the phone. That is why it is important to keep checking to see if the phone ever connects to the internet to take advantage of that window of opportunity. So here’s a recap if what to do: Step One: Install the Android Lost remotely as soon as possible! Get Android lost installed remotely from the Play Store. Keep in mind the phone needs to be connected to your account in order for this method to work. Remember that this method works only if the phone is still connected to the Google account. 
Step Two: Activate Android Lost (won’t work on Android 3.0+)
If the phone is simply misplaced then all you need to do is launch the app. Hope this is the case and that it has not been stolen which is always frustrating.
Okay, remotely registering your device via text message can be done by sending the following instruction SMS “androidlost register” to your phone. This SMS can be sent from any phone. This will trigger Android Lost to register itself using your Google account credentials. If you own a tablet, text might not be a viable option. If that is the case go ahead and install “Android Lost Jumpstart” before you install the actual Android Lost app. We also recommend checking out the free app "TextMe" from the Google Play Store. This will help "jump start" the registration process when Android Lost is being installed remotely. 
Step Three: Log in to the Android Lost website
Get on over to the Android Lost website and be sure to sign on in to your Google account using your lost phones credentials. After doing that, you should have access to all remote control features such as the following: • Read the latest SMS on your phone • Force phone to play a loud alarm with a flashing screen. Perfect if you misplaced your device. • Get the location of your device • Lock and unlock your phone • Wipe your entire phone so no private data falls into the wrong hands • Erase the SD card • Use the camera to make pictures (front or rear camera) to get a nice shot of the nice person who took your device. • And more Keep in mind that it could actually take a while for the registration process to take effect. Android Lost is one of those great life savers! I must say that having the opportunity to install and register this tool remotely tends to make it very powerful in case you lose your device! Unfortunately, the only unfavorable thing I experienced is that the notification of a new app called ‘Android Lost’ might inform a potential thief about what’s going on. Also, activating Android Lost is only capable of being done on Android Versions older than 3.0. Remember to never go get your phone from a stranger alone! Always bring a friend and tell the police if you think there might be any risk. 
Step 3: Plan B is the Android Lost remedy for devices operating Android 2.0 – 2.3
Requirements: • Device is connected with your Google account. • Device has access to 3G or Wi-Fi. If Android Lost is not working out for you and you’re cellphone is still operating an older edition of Android (2.0 up to 2.3) you might as well give Plan B from Lockout a try. Install the app directly from the Play Store to your device and, if successful, Plan B will send your device’s location to your Gmail address. Plan B sends you update notifications containing the location of your lost device every 10 minutes. Darn neat isn’t it! Additionally you can use any other mobile phone to send out a SMS with “locate” to your phone to get the location via mail. Keep in mind this app only works with Android 2.0-2.3 and has not been updated in a while so we can't guarantee it will work. 
Step 4: Use Google Maps Location History – now renamed ‘Timeline’ – to track your lost Android phone (even if it’s turned off!)
Requirements:
• Device is connected with your Google account. • Device has access to the 3g or Wi-Fi. • Location Reporting and Location History need to be activated on your device (can be done in the Google Settings app on your device). Update: Google thoroughly overhauled the interface and user experience of its Location History tool. This includes giving it a new name – Your Timeline that puts the focus of Timeline on helping you keep track of the places you visited (bad news for thieves!) Your Timeline literally reveals you the names of the spots you had been to (e.g. shopping malls, restos, parks …). Thanks to the much better naming of your previous recorded spots, locating a lost mobile phone has turn into a much easier thing. Stay with us if you want to learn how to get the most of your Google Timeline in order to help you get your phone back. Unlike Android Device Manager, Timeline's purpose isn't actually intended to locate your lost phone. You can use your location information for countless alternative things such as looking up previous travel routes or last night’s bar hop'n frenzy. There is no doubt this is another great method of finding your phone. 
Here is what should be done. Be sure to pick the proper day from the calendar in Your Timeline. On the left sidebar, you can see a complete timeline of that day including the names all recorded locations. The right hand side should visualize the whole thing in an easy to understand map format.
Keep in mind that Your Timeline works by collecting data from cellular tower IDs and WI-FI hotspot so the accuracy may vary depending on your given location. So you might be thinking..."well, what if my phones battery died? Google might have actually saved your devices locations! This means chances are you have a nice location log to check out to help you locat your phone. If someone stole your phone, you could make out frequently visited locations, which might be the thief’s residence or place of work for instance. This gives you the upper hand when trying to locate it and might help you and the authorities to catch the person responsible for the theft. I suggest trying out the Android Device Manager or Android Lost first, since they’re able to use your device’s GPS and offer other useful 
Step 5: Use Samsung’s Find My Mobile to find your lost or misplaced phone.
Requirements:
• Device has access to the internet. • Must have a Samsung account and your device registered with it. • Find my mobile needs to be set up on your Samsung phone (enabling remote controls). If you have a Samsung device, you might be able to find your phone using Samsung’s own tracking service ‘Find my mobile’. For this to work, you need a Samsung account and registered your device before you lost it. So try to remember if you did that. 
Got it enabled? Great! Head over and sign in to the Find my mobile website. Check the left sidebar and make sure that your device is connected to your account. Now, all you need to do is selecting ‘Locate my device’ in the sidebar and click on the locate button. If your device is online and remote controls are enabled, you should see its approximate location. Find my mobile also allows you to do other things such as locking your device, letting it ring with a message and wiping its data.
Things you should do ASAP if you find your device or end up getting a new one
We received a lot of emails, tweets and comments the last months from people that found their phone thanks to this article. Unfortunately, the majority of the readers aren’t that lucky. Either way, if you found your phone or plan to buy a replacement, you should be well prepared before something like that happens again. Below are two fundamental steps you should take to quickly track down your device should you lose it again. 
Most important: Install a tracking app!
That’s a no-brainer. Having a tracking/anti-theft app on your phone greatly increases the chances of getting it back. There are a lot of different tracking apps but my absolute favorite is Cerberus. It offers a lot of features and is easy to set up. Some of the many options are location tracking, taking videos or pictures with both front or back camera, checking call logs, location history and wiping all data. You can get Cerberus one week for free, after which you can purchase a lifetime license for currently about 9$. It’s not a cheap price but it’s money well spent.
Activate Android Device Manager (ADM) and Location History
Make sure that both ADM and Location History are activated. Both tools can be a great help when you lose your device. With ADM you can track your device, make it ring and erase its data. Location history shows you the last recorded locations on a map. If someone stole it, then this could help you (and local authorities) to track down the thief’s home address, for example. To activate both services, select “Google Settings” in your app drawer. Select Security and make sure both options below “Android Device Manager” are enabled. Now, go one step back and select “Location”. Click on “Google Location History” and turn it on. Now you’re able to use ADM to track your device and Location History to see its last recorded locations. |
AuthorI have lost my phone more times than I can count. I have learnt the hard way and hope I can help you get your phone back! ArchivesCategories |
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