5 replies to this topic

[vinaymanro]

CNET senior editor Natali Del Conte tests Microsoft's My Phone service to locate her lost phone. Basically she leaves her AT&T Pure (HTC Diamond 2) in a taxi deliberately, and then once back in her office logs into the My Phone service and uses its phone retrieval features to  try to get the phone back.

Unfortunately, the GPS couldn't provide an exact location of  the phone.
What did work was making the phone  display a message asking whomever found the device to return it (with  contact instructions).

Watch the video clip here.

Do you use the Microsoft MyPhone service? Have you used it to locate a lost phone?

[heroshima]

vinaymanro, on Dec 29 2009, 08:58, said:

CNET senior editor Natali Del Conte tests Microsoft's My Phone service to locate her lost phone. Basically she leaves her AT&T Pure (HTC Diamond 2) in a taxi deliberately, and then once back in her office logs into the My Phone service and uses its phone retrieval features to  try to get the phone back.

Unfortunately, the GPS couldn't provide an exact location of  the phone.
What did work was making the phone  display a message asking whomever found the device to return it (with  contact instructions).

Watch the video clip here.

Do you use the Microsoft MyPhone service? Have you used it to locate a lost phone?

Yes,  3 weeks ago, i left my touch pro2 at a friend's house after a hard night of drinking. I  realized the day after that the phone was gone so panic set in. I remembered my phone and logged in. I was able to find that the phone was on the front porch in a potted plant.  , NO idea how the plant got it but it was there.,  it saved me a lot of embarrassment at work and $400 bux.

[TRB01]

I haven't tried Microsoft's offering yet, but I have tried a free program called SmartPhoneTracker. I couldn't imagine paying money for a service like this, especially that atrocious $100 a year that apple offers for its iPhone. Just ridiculous! The program I linked can send its GPS location, snap and send a picture from the camera, and detect when the SIM has been replaced. So far I haven't used it to find my stolen phone, but I did loose it on Christmas while traveling to different family houses all night for xmas get-togethers. Turns out I left it in my aunts car, as shown on the GoogleMaps link it sent me >.<. It can't do some of the stuff that Windows Mobile one can (the one used in the video). I would certainly love the feature to have a customized message appear on the screen. I would especially love the be able to remotely erase the phone if I knew I couldn't get it back.

Edited by TRB01, 29 December 2009 - 03:47 PM.

[bitbrat]

check out remote tracker software available over at xda-devs - excellent system, free, and it already tracked my phone for me once successfully...

[heroshima]

Thers another good remote lock program out there. Made by Sprite called terminator. 19.99,  IF you have a HTC product you can get the whole suite for 1/2 price.  I was a beta tester for there virtual mobile product "now discontinued"  it was an all in one backup locator you name it program.   It was IMHO better at everything then what MS offers. Id be interested in knowing if any other company offers something similar.

TRB01, on Dec 29 2009, 10:46, said:

I haven't tried Microsoft's offering yet, but I have tried a free program called SmartPhoneTracker. I couldn't imagine paying money for a service like this, especially that atrocious $100 a year that apple offers for its iPhone. Just ridiculous! The program I linked can send its GPS location, snap and send a picture from the camera, and detect when the SIM has been replaced. So far I haven't used it to find my stolen phone, but I did loose it on Christmas while traveling to different family houses all night for xmas get-togethers. Turns out I left it in my aunts car, as shown on the GoogleMaps link it sent me >.<. It can't do some of the stuff that Windows Mobile one can (the one used in the video). I would certainly love the feature to have a customized message appear on the screen. I would especially love the be able to remotely erase the phone if I knew I couldn't get it back.

[timeline]

thanks for the ad.  how about some actual info on WHY it's so perfect?