
Smartphones can do almost anything, except when you cannot find them. Lawyers have a tendency to stack files, papers, books, and cups of coffee all over their desk—leaving lots of good hiding places for a smartphone.
If you cannot find your phone, here are some easy ways to find it. Disclaimer: losing my phone was not the inspiration for this post.
Use a website to call your phone
Maybe you are embarrassed to ask your co-worker to call your phone. Maybe you do not like talking to other people. Maybe you are the only person in your office at the moment. Regardless of the reason, there are plenty of ways to call your phone.
You can try out this nifty website, cleverly named icantfindmyphone. The site will call your phone and when you answer, tell you that you found your phone. The site claims that is for entertainment purposes and will not result in any spam.
If you have a Skype or Google Voice number, you can also call your phone from your computer. Trust me, it can be quite handy.
Track your phone
If you have an iPhone and a MobileMe account, you can search for your phone through the “find my phone” feature on your MobileMe site. You can send a message to your phone or play a sound. You can remotely lock your phone. Best of all, you can wipe your phone remotely.
Be sure to give it a minute to work. I was just informed that I am apparently in the middle of the Mississippi river, but my location has now been updated to our office which overlooks the river.
Google’s Android operating system also seems to have a variety of applications that allow you to track your phone. If you have used one of them, I would love to hear about it.