There's a 50/50 Chance You'll Find Your Lost Smartphone

[JMcEntegart]

But the person who finds it will likely take a gander at all of your personal details and messages before giving it back.

There's a 50/50 Chance You'll Find Your Lost Smartphone : Read more

 

[g00fysmiley]

to be fair on the face book thing they might be looking for contact info. i've found a handful of phoens and returned em, once at a gas station i found a smartphone it was an iphone hit facebook then profile got the email and emailed em to say got your phone can meet ya and give it back, next time dont leave it on a gas station pump

 

[bak0n]

I'd be interested in knowing what the political views were of those that returned the phones vs. those that didn't. I'd guess there would be little difference but it would be interesting.

 

[trapper]

Locking your phone and expecting to get it back...not going to happen. At my last job my co-workers and myself would find 2-3 lost phones a week (retail) and I would open up the contacts list and check for a 'home' or such listing before going to see if there is an email registered to the phone. Putting a lock on that would lock me out from getting your contact information and I would then end up tossing it in a drawer of lost items and waiting to see if you came back to get it (maybe 1 in 4 would come back without a call/e-mail).

 

[bystander]

I imagine a lot of those who took a peek were just curious if they could look at the info or about it content and had no malicious intent. People are curious beings.

 

[alidan]

if i found a smart phone, i would buy some of that copper wire that blocks everything, and hold the phone in there till i decide what to do with it.

i make no attempt to hide im not the best person in the world... whether the person gets it back or not revolves around 2 things... how old are they, and what phone it is... as in can i wipe everything and disable cellphone connectivity hardware wise, put a new os on it and make it my new mp3 player/camera...

yea i know its a lost item... but you are talking about someone forgetting they had a 6-800$ item and just leaving it somewhere.

yea, i know, downvote and how dare i but i'm not making an excuse.

 

[Anomalyx]

[citation][nom]trapper[/nom]Locking your phone and expecting to get it back...not going to happen. At my last job my co-workers and myself would find 2-3 lost phones a week (retail) and I would open up the contacts list and check for a 'home' or such listing before going to see if there is an email registered to the phone. Putting a lock on that would lock me out from getting your contact information and I would then end up tossing it in a drawer of lost items and waiting to see if you came back to get it (maybe 1 in 4 would come back without a call/e-mail).[/citation]
There's a smart solution to that. Make your own phone background, with an "if found" contact, and also an "in case of emergency" contact or 2, so people can get the important info if needed.

 

[gm0n3y]

[citation][nom]Anomalyx[/nom]There's a smart solution to that. Make your own phone background, with an "if found" contact, and also an "in case of emergency" contact or 2, so people can get the important info if needed.[/citation]
That's actually a good idea. I find that if someone loses their phone, they usually just call it.

I'm personally surprised that only 50% of people would return a lost phone if they found it. I would think it would be closer to 90%. What are the people going to do with the phone if they don't return it? I've only returned a couple of phones, but I've returned probably 10 or so purses/wallets (just returned a wallet last week).

 

[aevm]

I found a Blackberry last summer in a parking lot. It wasn't locked, so I went to the list of contacts and called the first number on the list. It happened to be the owner's mother.

If you lock your phone, how is the finder supposed to contact you? A better idea IMO is to leave the phone unlocked and keep the sensitive stuff at home, encrypted on a PC.

And if you're the finder, do return it. You never know what might happen. The owner might be pretty and grateful

 

[house70]

It's like dropping your wallet in a cab or other public place; you'll probably get it back, but kiss the cash goodbye, if there was any in it.

 

[Kryan]

[citation][nom]bak0n[/nom]I'd be interested in knowing what the political views were of those that returned the phones vs. those that didn't. I'd guess there would be little difference but it would be interesting.[/citation]
I can't understand why ppl downvoted you. It was one of the orbital thoughts I had while reading this...although I admit I was thinking more of religion...
Atheist: "F*** YEAH! My new mp3 player"
Bible Basher: "Must return to owner, to ensure access to heaven!"
Scumbag Steve: "I'm going to write 'Blow me!' to all the girls in his phone book!!!

 

[NapoleonDK]

I found a phone a few summers ago, just a little samsung dumphone. Opened it up, went to contacts, found one that said "Home" and called it. I introduced myself and told them what happened, and the guy came to pick it up later that day.

 

[anti-painkilla]

Please please please. If you lock your phone have a contact number on the lock screen.

Otherwise we cannot go through your contacts to find someone to call. Also label a 'home' number.

I used to work in a supermarket, locks on phones are the worst. Means i have to carry your phone and wait for you to call. I dont lock my phone, if someone went through my photos, there isnt that much i wouldnt want to show anyone. I think my phone only knows my facebook password, and to be honest wouldnt mind if i lost that.

Phones go missing. Make it easy for them to return it and they might. Make it hard and they might give up.

 

[lpedraja2002]

[citation][nom]trapper[/nom]Locking your phone and expecting to get it back...not going to happen. At my last job my co-workers and myself would find 2-3 lost phones a week (retail) and I would open up the contacts list and check for a 'home' or such listing before going to see if there is an email registered to the phone. Putting a lock on that would lock me out from getting your contact information and I would then end up tossing it in a drawer of lost items and waiting to see if you came back to get it (maybe 1 in 4 would come back without a call/e-mail).[/citation]

I too have experienced this, I once found a new Samsung Galaxy outside the supermarket but since it was locked I couldn't find any contact number so I left it in the lost and found in the supermarket but doubt it was ever found. After this experience I was looking for ways to prevent this and found an app on my windows phone called "This Phones Is Mine!" which basically lets you make a wallpaper for the lockscreen where you can type contact info in case the phone is lock, so they won't be able to access your phone but still have enough detail so they can return it.

 

[Marco925]

[citation][nom]bak0n[/nom]I'd be interested in knowing what the political views were of those that returned the phones vs. those that didn't. I'd guess there would be little difference but it would be interesting.[/citation]
as much as people like to politicise lots, i dont think there would be a connection between political views and generosity.

Though it's childish to think "my party is more ethical than yours"

 

[Uberragen21]

I found a phone once and returned it to the owner. How ungrateful the SOB was! He lost it during a drunken New Years party, I found it in the street and called the "home" contact to let the person know I had it and could get it back. He called back accusing me of stealing it and all sorts of stuff. Almost kicked his a** when he came by to pick up his phone. Never again, in the trash that sh*t goes.

 

[livebriand]

Fyi, about lock screens - I don't know if other phones have this, but my Samsung dumbphone has a 'ICE' menu (in case of emergency) that you can open while the phone is locked, allowing you to access up to 3 contacts I specified and 3 short messages. I set it to show my home phone and a message with my email address.

 

[may1]

On one occasion, I found an HTC Wildfire while in the toilet. Had a look at the front screen, it was some porn video. The rest was history.

 

[GhosT94]

[citation][nom]Anomalyx[/nom]There's a smart solution to that. Make your own phone background, with an "if found" contact, and also an "in case of emergency" contact or 2, so people can get the important info if needed.[/citation]
without all that put it in your pocket until the owner calls it