Android updates its ‘Find my device’ feature. These are the news

In recent years, device location features from Apple, Google, and Samsung have made it easier than ever to find a lost phone. You can often open a map on your PC or other device and see exactly where it is. In addition to seeing where it has gone, you can make it make a sound and even block or delete it remotely.

Now, the function ‘Find my device‘ which is part of Android has received a major update, its new key features put it on par with the app Find My from Apple. It is complete and gives you more possibilities to locate your phone, or any other type of device that the network now supports.

Find your phone even without battery

You can locate your gadgets lost.

Courtesy: David Nield

Find my device in its original form it was launched in 2013. It means that if your Android is enrolled in the service, it alerts you of its location on a regular basis, allowing you to quickly find it on the map, assuming you have another device to log in with. Over time, the capabilities of this feature have been expanded to include a select number of smartwatches Wear OS, wireless headphones and other accessories.

All of that basic functionality remains, but the new and improved feature Find my devicewhich went live in the United States in April 2024 and in the rest of the world in the following months, brings some notable improvements. For starters, it now works with devices that are offline, so you can find your phone even if it doesn’t have internet. Brilliant!

Even the smartphones turned off or without battery can be located for “several hours” after they were turned off. However, this only applies to certain devices, including Google’s Pixel 8 and Pixel 9 series.; the phone requires a hardware specialized device that allows a low-power Bluetooth signal to be broadcast, even if the phone itself is not turned on.

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Multiple device compatibility

Third-party trackers, including those from Pebblebee, now support Find My Device.

Courtesy: Pebblebee

Another improvement that comes with the update of Find my device is compatibility with multiple gadgets from different manufacturers, such as the latest trackers from Chipolo and Pebblebee. This update also means that you will be alerted via an on-screen message if someone is trying to track your location without you knowing.