Review: The App That Will Find My iPhone

The Apple’s MobileMe service has a great feature called Find My iPhone which allows it’s iOS owners to find their iOS devices after you either log into your MobileMe account from a browser or access it from the app itself on another iOS, the device can then be found.  The iOS device that was lost does not have to have or use this feature. The MobileMe Find My iPhone feature is something I really like.  Like everything else, it does have some limits. The feature has to be turned ON before you lose the phone or else you won’t have access afterwards.  If the iOS is hooked up to the Internet and turned on, that will be the only way to find it with the application.  If the last time you used your iPod Touch was a couple of days ago, then there is a good chance that the battery has run out. It also may not work if someone has taken or stolen the device and it is not in a location where WiFi is available. Of course, having this feature gives you a better chance than not of recovering your device than not. The iPhone is setup on a Cellular data network so the app should pretty much always work.

Someone having your information could be worse that just losing your phone

Although having your cell phone taken can be annoying, it can be devastating if someone gets ahold of the information on it. We may not even realize some of the information we may have stored on our devices. YOU are the prime subject of your phone. All of your information including your calendar, contacts and even your personal photos are stored here. If you use your iPhone to shop, you may have billing information stored here and even email’s and important passwords and apps that can cause a lot of alarm. Always protect your iPhone with a PIN number whether you have MobileMe or not. It may take a few minutes  than normal to access your phone but it is a much better solution than the alternative. The app itself (to get back on subject) can be accessed from any browser. It may sound odd, but Apple will not allow to access MobileMe form whatever iOs system you may be using. So now you have access to the feature for free with the app. You will sign in using your MobileMe information to gain access to the application. Now that you have the application, anything you have that is an iOS device with a Find My Phone app can use it. You can Display A Message to the desired device once it is found. This could include instructions on how to have it returned to you . If you think you may have lost the phone somewhere near you , the app allows mute to be turned off so you can hear it. It is also possible to lock your iOS with a completely new PIN number. One of the best features is the Remote Wipe feature which allows all of your information to be disposed of. The app will not stop deleting your information until it is all gone. There is always the chance that the device won’t be turned on or won’t have access to the Internet. So what happens then?  You won’t have a direct location of where it is but you can still use the other features that include the Display Message and sound and Remote Wipe feature. All of these features will work on your device as soon as it is started up again.

You can find this application at the App Store.

The Bottom Line

Even before this application was available and I was a MobileMe subscriber, I was happy with my iPhone. I would like to see some other features on the app even though I understand there has to be some limitations. Every user (even with a Family Pack) has to enter separate information to gain access to their device. There should be an option to give the Master Account user all the information for the other devices under him/her. It would also be helpful if the device wasn’t just wiped, but destroyed as well. I don’t like the thought of someone being able to use my phone even after it has been wiped. If the device was taken to an Apple store or even sync’d with its familiar computer, it would help the Wipe and Destroy cause. Altogether, when I compare MobileMe to AT&T’s Family Map, it is a much better deal.

You shouldn’t have to pay full price for MobileMe

I have never had to pay the retail price of MobileMe and I have been a customer from the beginning.  Renew your subscription using any type of retail packaging. Individual packs can be bought here for $68 (retail is $99) and a Family Pack can be purchased here for $98 (retail is $149).