Anyone who has lost their mobile phone can simply call themselves to find it. But what to do when the device is muted? TECHBOOK shows how you can still find it!
Who does not know this: Annoyed searches in the trouser pocket and in the usual places are fruitless – the mobile phone is gone. Although we rarely don’t look at our cell phones, we do misplace them on a regular basis. In such cases, many people simply call themselves to find their phone by ringing. However, the smartphone is often set to silent or to the vibration alarm, so the cell phone does not ring when there is a call. TECHBOOK reveals how you can still find your Android smartphone or iPhone.
How to find your iPhone again
Go to the site on your PC or Mac icloud.com and sign in there with your Apple ID credentials. Alternatively, you can open the Find My iPhone app on another iPhone, iPad, or Mac. To find out where your phone is, then select Find iPhone. Your smartphone will then be located and you can see where your cell phone is on a map. If the display is not precise enough because the mobile phone is hidden in a crack in the sofa, you can also activate the ringing manually from outside. In fact, to ring an iPhone that is on silent or on vibrate, you can simply use the “Play Sound” option in the app. If the iPhone still has battery and is connected to the Internet, you can now hear it.
If the iPhone is no longer connected to the Internet, you can at least enable Lost Mode. This allows you to lock the device with a passcode and write a lost message with your phone number and contact details. You can also remove the payment data for Apple Pay with it. Therefore, if the iPhone is turned back on by a Finder, it cannot be used without your passcode. Newer iPhones usually only work with a code, Face ID or fingerprint sensor anyway. In addition, the location is then automatically activated in “Lost” mode. Worst case you can over Erase iPhone also remove all personal data on the device.
Also read: Apple opens device tracking for other manufacturers
With the Apple Watch or Siri
If you have an Apple Watch, it can also help you find your iPhone. To do this, go to the control center and select the blue icon to start ringing on the phone. You can also use the Apple Watch to light up your mobile phone – of course this only works if your iPhone is nearby. If you have activated the voice assistant Siri on the iPhone, you can start it with the words “Hey Siri”. Then use the timer function. If your cell phone is nearby, you can now hear it.
How to find your Android smartphone again
With Android devices, the location works similarly to the iPhone. To do this, simply go to the page Android.com/find and sign in with your Google account, which you also use for your smartphone. On the website you can now select the device you are looking for, whether smartphone, tablet or smartwatch, from the gallery. The device is then located and the last location is displayed on a map. The website now offers three options: Under Let it ring you can let your smartphone make a noise for five minutes – even if it is set to silent. However, this only works under one condition: the cell phone must be switched on and connected to the Internet.
But the website has two other advantages. If you still can’t find your smartphone and are concerned that you may have lost it, you can lock it with your password or PIN via “Lock” and display a lost message or phone number like on the iPhone. If necessary, you can also remove content from the device via “Delete”. But be careful: If you choose this step, you can no longer locate it with the services mentioned.
You can read more about this, as well as the video embedded below, in our report: Find and lock lost Android smartphones
What to do if the cell phone is stolen?
All search functions to find a lost smartphone are of course only of limited use if it has been stolen. As mentioned above, there are ways to lock the phone remotely. Do this as soon as possible!
It is also important to report the theft. If in doubt, you should have the IMEI number of your device ready. You can easily find out by simply typing *#06# type in the call app. Alternatively, you can also find the number in your settings under “Device information” (Android) or under “General” and “Info” (iOS).