very cool free app for retrieving lost/stolen phone

mkennedy

Just saw this cool freeware app called Mobile Justice for gps-enabled phones.

www.wmexperts.com/articles/mobile_justice_sms_your_phone.html

Basically if your phone is ever lost or stolen you just send an SMS to the lost handset and it will send you back an SMS with it's exact GPS co-ordinates.
(has to be a gps-enabled handset obviously).

It's a good freeware alternative to WIMP that I mentioned in a previous post.

I tried it and it works really well.

Also if a thief changes the sim the new sim number is automatically SMSed to you.
Very cool.

I think it's only available for Windows mobile though at the moment.

Anyway anyone with an expensive device should appreciate it.

Tracking down a thief to retrieve a stolen phone would be very satisfying i'm sure

tallus

|Cookies wrote: »

while the idea sounds good... would you really approach someone saying "you have my phone"?

I'd get the gardai to do it

whyulittle

mkennedy wrote: »

Also if a thief changes the sim the new sim number is automatically SMSed to you.

But sure how would your message get to your phone if the sim/number was changed??

Random

|Cookies wrote: »

somehow i dout they would go on a wild goose chase if you give them the GPS positions:D

Get the army ranger wing after them!

Gonna have to try this program out, if only for laughs

mkennedy

whyulittle wrote: »

But sure how would your message get to your phone if the sim/number was changed??

No that's the genius of it.

1) if the sim is changed, THE APP IMMEDIATELY DETECTS THE SIM CHANGE AND TEXTS YOU ABOUT THE SIM CHANGE AND GIVES YOU THE NEW NUMBER.(to a number nominated by you of course)

Then when you get the new sim number you just SMS it for the coordinates.

2) if there's no sim change it's just straightforward.
You just SMS the handset and get the GPS coordinates back to your nominated number.

So all you need to do is
1) set up a nominated number e.g gf's mobile etc to receive the SMSes and
2) set a password.
The app does the rest.

I tried it and it does work.

Even though it appears gimmicky it could come in useful if you lose a 600 euro device.
At least it's recoverable in the case of a MISLAID handset.

Dealing with a thief is admittedly another matter but I don't think it detracts from it's usefulness TBH.

mkennedy

Converting the gps co-ordinates to a real location is a simple matter.

I just put them into a satnav app and find the exact location.

Dunno what all the talk about wild-goose chases is TBH