It sucks when your phone is stolen. It’s even worse when you have no way to find said phone. iPhone users have been able to use Apple’s iCloud service to find stolen phones for a while, but there’s been no official comparable service from Google yet. That all changes later this month.
Google today announced the impending launch of the Android Device Manager. It’s a new feature for Android phones running version 2.2 and up that works very much like Apple’s iCloud when it comes to finding lost phones. It will locate your phone and give you a few options, like wiping the device, in the case of it being purloined by some nefarious ne’er-do-well.
Here are all the features coming to Android Device Manager when it launches later this month:
Locate and ring your misplaced device
If you ended up dropping your phone between those couch cushions, Android Device Manager lets you quickly ring your phone at maximum volume so you can find it, even it’s been silenced. And in the event that your phone or tablet is out of earshot (say, at that restaurant you left it at last night), you can locate it on a map in real time.Protecting your personal information and data
While losing your phone can be stressful, Android Device Manager can help you keep your data from ending up in the wrong hands. If your phone can’t be recovered, or has been stolen, you can quickly and securely erase all of the data on your device.
To repeat, Android Device Manager will be available on all devices running Android 2.2 and up later this month. Google notes that you will also need to be signed into you your Google Account to use it.