How Not to Lose Your Smartphone

August 31, 2012

Today we’re going to cover how NOT to lose your smart phone. And if you DO lose your smart phone, we’re going to tell you what you can do to get it back using the internet. That’s pretty cool, so we’re going to save that for last. But first, you may be asking yourself: why would an online marketing guy feature such topic?

The answer is this: I'm a selfish bastard.

Google Searches on Mobile devices are projected to soon surpass those done on personal computers. So if you’ve lost your smart phone, that means you won’t be using it to find our client’s products and services. We can’t have THAT now, Can we.

OK, that's not true. We’re doing this for one reason, and one reason only... WE CARE. But before we tell you how to recover your lost phone, let’s cover how to avoid losing the damn thing in the first place.

Some of these are pretty obvious and you probably already do ‘em by default. I’m mentioning them because while they are common sense, I personally have failed to follow common sense in several cases, and as a result, have lost my smart phone. So as we review them, you can feel superior and laugh at my expense. Hopefully though, one of these tips weill be useful to you in some way, so let’s proceed:

1. Keep the phone with you in the same place every time. All the time. Don’t switch up. Don’t change from your right pants pocket to your left pants pocket, from your purse to your glove compartment, etc.
2. Some people swear by those leather cell phone carrier thingies you attach to your belt. I don’t, because they have a tendancy to fall off your belt. I just keep the in the carrying case in the front pocket of my trousers.
3. Do a cell phone check before you leave anywhere. Just like you probably already do with your keys and wallet. But if you, like me, keep the phone in the front pocket of your trousers, do a quick tap check before you leave anywhere.
4. Buy a cell phone battery charger for your car. They’ve come way down in price and it forces you to fasten the phone to the car proper. Keeping the phone in your lap as you’re driving is a bad idea, as this is an excellent way to give your phone a scenic tour of wherever the hell it is you last got out of your car. You don’t want to be doing that.

But what if you DID do that...

And now you can't remember where your phone could possibly be. Now, modern smartphones have GPS receivers bult in. You can install an app today so that if you lose your phone in the future, you can go online and get its current address and location plotted on a map. I use mylookout.com. You log in to the site, and hit the FIND BINOCULARS BUTTON. It should be pointed out this button won’t help you find your binoculars. But it will pinpoint where your phone is.

Where it really comes in handy is when I’ve left the phone somewhere in my own house, and can’t find it. You hit another button in the My Lookout site and your cell phone will start shrieking. This is a free service.

iPhone also offer apps for this, and they vary in price and quality. Find the best reviewed one and get it. It’s a LOT cheaper than having to replace your phone. But again, this is proactive stuff. What do you do if you never installed such an app, and have lost your phone. Well believe it or not, there is a plan B for Android users that you can install after the fact. The service is called, cleverly enought, PLAN B.

You log in to the google store from your laptop or pc. Enter your phone number and the app will report its location.

And that, is pretty nifty.

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