Click to Skip Ad
Closing in...

‘Find My Device’ is Google’s new app to find your lost phone

Published May 17th, 2017 1:17PM EDT
Google Find My Device
Image: YouTube

If you buy through a BGR link, we may earn an affiliate commission, helping support our expert product labs.

Moments before the start of the Google I/O developer conference, Google put its new device-finding app up on the Google Play Store. It’s named “Find My Device,” which is going to draw a few comparisons to Apple’s famous “Find My iPhone” feature.

The new app is more than just a name, though. It has received a serious visual overhaul, with a new 3-D map that looks much more 2017. Devices are listed like tabs across the top of the app, which makes it easier to find your smartwatch in case it just slipped off your wrist.

The core functions of the app remain the same: you can see a device on the map, provided it’s online, or see the last known location. Provided the device is connected to the internet, you can make it play a sound, lock it, or put it into a “lost device” mode to make it easier to retrieve.

The app is obviously designed for use on a friend’s Android device, or for using on your own phone to find a lost tablet or watch. If you’re trying to find a device from a PC web browser, you’re still much better off typing “find my phone” into Google, and using the built-in interface to ping it.

The app is available to download right now in the Google Play Store, although we’re expecting to here a little more about the redesign at Google’s event today.

Chris Mills
Chris Mills News Editor

Chris Mills has been a news editor and writer for over 15 years, starting at Future Publishing, Gawker Media, and then BGR. He studied at McGill University in Quebec, Canada.