SMARTPHONE SPECIAL ....5 ways Android has made finding your lost smartphone easier

5 ways Android has made finding your lost smartphone easier

The tech giant also lets you remotely wipe the smartphone data, ring it and show its last known location on a map, taking the stress out of the search

Over the years, Google has introduced a lot of tools and features that enhance the security features of Android, and at the same time offer seamless user experience. In 2013, Google introduced Device Manager service which helps in locating lost devices. Then last year, the company released some more features for the same and named it as Find My Device.

The Find My Device feature is defaultenabled on Android devices running on KitKat and above. Any Android smartphone or device must have a working internet connection and Google sign-in with location enabled for the feature to work.

The company says Android users found the Find My Device feature quite useful. Taking feedback, the tech giant introduced some new features to both the app and website for better user experience. 

Check them out:

‘Find my device’ app can now display last known location

In case you lost your phone and it is not connected to the internet and it cannot display the current location, then Find My Device will display the last known location from the Google Maps location history. Users will also have the ability to launch Maps’ location timeline from the Find My Device app so they can retrace their steps.

You can now check the last connected WiFi access point in ‘Find my device’ app

The app will display the last connected WiFi access point. This will enable users to determine the location of their lost device even if the location can’t be reported.

‘Find my device’ app now also displays the battery level of the lost smartphone

The Find My Device tool will also indicate the amount of battery left in the device. This will allow users to estimate the time they have to reach their smartphone.

You can now ring and lock the phone as well as erase the data from it remotely

It’s now easier for users with multiple devices to select the one they are looking for and perform common actions, such as ring, lock and erase.

Android Wear and Google Home smart speakers too can now help you find your lost smartphone

Users can find their watch with their phone and their phone with their watch (as long as both devices have location enabled) or ask their Google Home to find their device by saying, ‘Ok Google, where is my phone?’.

— TOI TECH