What to do if you Lose your Smartphone

[jsalt]

We had a bit of a scare in our little group last year when one of the guys suddenly realised he didn’t have his smartphone on him. He searched everything, not there. We tried phoning it, no sound. He went back to where he had recently gone into a shop. They didn’t have it. To cut a long story short, he found it at the last place he had taken a photo with it, face down in the dust on the side of the path. I am sure this has come up on the forum before, but technology is always changing, so I’ll ask it again. If he hadn’t found it, what are the steps one should take to try and recover it, not knowing if it has been forgotten somewhere, lost or stolen?

 

[Robo]

I'm not that much of a techie.......but I would suggest.

Set up 'find my phone' app or similar.
use something like a tile mate
https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B01MF9VQOP/?tag=casaivar02-20

Though it would need to be attached to the phone and sync'd with another phone. So you can find the lost phone

I'm sure others will have much better ideas though........

 

[Nomad Pack]

Tie a string around the phone and keep it attached to something.
When you lose it you can just pull on the string...

 

[peregrina2000]

Don’t know if this is any better or simper than find my phone, but there is an app called “find my friends” and everyone in the group can sign up and authorize connections and then anyone in the group will be able to tell where anyone’s phone is. (Which is usually the same as finding out where the person is, which may be helpful for a group).

 

[jsalt]

Tie a string around the phone and keep it attached to something.
When you lose it you can just pull on the string...

I used to keep it in a little pouch around my neck, but one day it got caught in the car door when I slammed the door shut, and wrecked it big time. Cost me a lot of money to get it repaired!

 

[David Tallan]

I had a similar experience on my birthday this year between Barcelos and Casa da Fernanda. I saw a nice stone picnic table by a fountain by the side of the road and I thought it would be a good place for a rest and snack. It turned out the fountain wasn't working, but I stopped there anyway and was catching up on things on my phone. Then I walked on, had a brief chat with a couple of pilgrims, walked on again, reached for my phone to take a picture - and it wasn't there! It had been maybe 15 minutes since I left the table. I wasn't worried. My phone was fingerprint locked and who would take someone's phone in rural Portugal? So I walked quickly back to the table but it wasn't there, either! I looked all around. No luck.

Oh well, I thought. Someone has picked it up to turn it in to the police or bring it to the next albergue. I will head on to Casa da Fernanda and enlist the aid of the hospitalera (or hospitalero). Which I did. He was sure no one would turn it in to the police, but he did drive me back there, have a look around, and knock on some doors to see if someone had turned it in locally. The other thing he did was repeatedly use his phone to call it to see if whoever had it would answer. No luck with either. He was ready to give up.

So was I. I was lying in bed, pretty depressed. My plane tickets, guidebook, camera, connections to home and others, all were on that phone. Without it I couldn't access Gmail (2 factor authentication - when I went on the CF I brought a paper with some backup codes but I had forgot to this time). Despite being in the wonderful Casa da Fernanda my birthday was looking pretty bleak. But then i remembered the Samaung "find my phone' site i had registered with. I borrowed someone else's phone and went to the site and found my phone.

With this information, I revitalized the hospitalero and he set off to retrieve it. It turned out that a local farmer (a friend to the Casa Fernanda team, it turned out) had been driving by the stone table on his tractor, seen the phone, and picked it up. He hadn't answered when it was ringing either because he was out in the fields or was intimidated by the new technology and waiting for his kids to get home and deal with it (I heard both stories). Four hours after I lost it, my phone was returned to me to my great relief.

Lessons learned:
Register for a "Find my phone" site/app before you start your camino.
If you have 2 factor authentication using your phone, make sure you have backup authentication alternatives in case you lose your phone.
If you lose your phone tactics are:
- check with local establishments to see if it has been turned in
- borrow someone's phone and call it
- borrow someone's smart phone or computer and use the "find my phone" to find it.

 

[Camino Chrissy]

David, I hope your birthday will prove to be a happier one this year!

Jill, thanks for starting this thread. I'd never really thought about this before and being a non-techy I wasn't aware of some of these ways to find a phone. I'll have to have hubby set me up for this April when I walk again.

 

[David Tallan]

David, I hope your birthday will prove to be a happier one this year!

Jill, thanks for starting this thread. I'd never really thought about this before and being a non-techy I wasn't aware of some of these ways to find a phone. I'll have to have hubby set me up for this April when I walk again.

Unlikely. Last birthday was on the Camino, at Casa da Fernanda no less. I don't expect to be that fortunate this year. It'll probably be a few years until I have a birthday on the Camino again.

 

[Camino Chrissy]

That's a bummer, David. My birthday is in April and since 2015 I have always been on a camino. Since I'm not at home on my birthday, I pretend it never happened, so I am 4 years younger!

 

[willydp]

Nice app, but you need your phone location activated all the time which is high battery consuming.

 

[trecile]

I changed my lock screen on my phone to show my email contact information, and emergency contact phone number, so that I could be reached if my phone was lost, or my husband could be contacted if I was incapacitated.

 

[Nomad Pack]

So what would be the most common item lost by the medieval pilgrim? I've lost my walking stick many times...

 

[Camino Chrissy]

Same thing as you!...only in their case according to pictures, a gourdful of water, vino, or food!

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

I haven't used this and I'm not going to describe it but this tracker or others like it can be useful in finding lost items.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tile_(company)

 

[tomnorth]

I always recommend using whatever find my phone app works on your brand. On an iOS device you can have it set to report the last location before the device went offline. This is helpful in case the battery runs out. The other thing I always recommend is to use a lock code

 

[jsalt]

I'm not going to describe it

Please describe it! I clicked on the link and read the info, but it means absolutely nothing to me (I am seriously technologically challenged). In simple English, how does Tile work to find a lost smartphone that may be several kilometres away? It looks very complicated to me.

 

[Trude]

I suggest a flip cover with a note written inside iIF FOUND PLEASE EMAIL .............. works for me a united airlines cleaner found mine on a plane and told me where I could pick it up. United denied having it until I showed them the email. Needless to say they suddenly found my IPhone.

 

[jsalt]

The other thing I always recommend is to use a lock code

If the phone has been stolen, and the thief replaces the sim card, can they still not use the phone if there is a lock code on the device? (Just checking.)

 

[tomnorth]

If the phone has been stolen, and the thief replaces the sim card, can they still not use the phone if there is a lock code on the device? (Just checking.)

The SIM card has nothing to do with the device security, only the cellular provider. The lock code would still be in force.

 

[Deleted member 67185]

On iPhones, and maybe on others, there is a backup function to Cloud storage which will store all of the stuff that is a headache and heartache to lose: photos, contacts, calendar and appointments, etc. So if worst comes to worst, it is relatively easy to download all of that stuff to a replacement phone.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

Please describe it! I clicked on the link and read the info, but it means absolutely nothing to me (I am seriously technologically challenged). In simple English, how does Tile work to find a lost smartphone that may be several kilometres away? It looks very complicated to me.

The Tile website has a horrible usability problem and rather than you there for help try https://securitybaron.com/bluetooth-tracker-reviews/tile/

Still, while that describes how to find Tiles attached to things you own it doesn't say how to find your lost phone. When you use the Tile website to get the answer to the question they require a login.

Maybe I'll check for more later but Tile seems to want you not to know anything (well maybe in that 18 second video they have they tell all.)

 

[William Marques]

AFAIK, having given my son a set for Christmas, the Tile system is great for locating lost keys etc with a Tile attached from your phone. It only works the other way around to locate your phone from a Tile if it is within Bluetooth range - not far.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

Here is something on how to find your phone with the Tile app if you are out of Bluetooth range (that is if your Tile gizmo is too far away from your phone to cause the phone to ring):
https://www.howtogeek.com/301673/how-to-find-your-phone-from-the-web-with-tile/

 

[onwayhome]

The SIM card has nothing to do with the device security, only the cellular provider. The lock code would still be in force.

The SIM card has nothing to do with the device security, only the cellular provider. The lock code would still be in force.

To secure a phone I'd suggest also setting a SIM lock, which is separate to the phone lock and very easy to do in the settings menu. This prevents anyone getting access to your account by simply taking out the SIM card and putting it in another phone.

 

[Paladina]

What to do if you lose your smart phone? Enjoy each day of blissful disconnection!

 

[OLDBIKERIDER]

In 2016 I left mine in the taxi on the way to the airport in Paris. Thanks to Google all my photos were in the cloud. After an hour or so fretting I relaxed and continued my trip to Istanbul and then home without it, content to be 'in the moment.' Easier to type now than it was to live it then, but I am still a happy camper with a newer phone and a story to tell.

 

[Shippers]

I left a mobile phone in a hotel room in Lugo in September whilst on the Primitivo. The manager found it and phoned some people whose numbers were stored (it was unlocked) to let me know. For some reason she was unhappy about posting it to the UK even though I said I would pay. In the end I told her to just destroy it.

I would recommend taking a cheap pay as you go phone. If you lose it it's not the end of the world. Theft on the camino is rare but it does happen. An expensive smart phone is one less thing to worry about especially when you are in the shower. Loss of a £10 phone is not a big deal.

The problem with a smart phone is that you are always attached to the outside world through social media and all the current affairs feeds. Sometimes it's good to leave all that behind. This isn't just a cheap holiday after all - it's a lot more than that. Yes the maps are handy and it can be good for finding accommodation etc, etc. But it can be a pain if you have to keep it with you day and night.

There's my two penneth for what it's worth.

Simon.

 

[jsalt]

The problem with a smart phone is that you are always attached to the outside world through social media and all the current affairs feeds. Sometimes it's good to leave all that behind.

That is so true, and I am totally with you there, although I, personally, am not on any social media whatsoever, of any kind. And I am usually off the grid on camino.

But, my smartphone takes some pretty good photos.

And I have the Kindle app installed with some really good books.

And I use the international roaming facility occasionally (sh*t happens).

I am on Whatsapp so I can let my husband know I am still alive.

I am on Whatsapp to connect with camino buddies walking parallel with me.

I have MapsMe installed which I can use offline to get me back to where I’m supposed to be (instead of being temporarily lost).

I can translate the menu with my Spanish food dictionary.

I use booking.com occasionally to book a bed in a nice hotel in the next town because I really need my own space and can’t do an albergue tonight thing.

The light saves me carrying the extra weight of a torch/flashlight.

And all my maps and guidebooks are on my smartphone.

So, yeah, I really don’t need it, but it would be a bit of a bummer to lose it, being so small and all that.

 

[Rick of Rick and Peg]

This morning I watched a YouTube video on ThioJoe's channel, "13 Android Settings You Should Change Now!
" (YouTube id: 8nDMool7FxU) and a number of the settings deal with things brought up in this thread.

He also has another video, "13 iPhone Settings You Should Change Now!" (YouTube id: 6TkqMVeVVa0) that I haven't watched but may deal with equivalent settings for iPhones.

 

[Shippers]

Yep - I take all of the points you make on board. Maybe it's madness to not take a smartphone.

You have: maps and guidebooks; more e-books than you can ever read; radio (even your local station back home); music; streaming video; camera; notebook to jot down thoughts and reflections; torch; compass; GPS (people at home can track your progress); translator (you can speak into the phone in english and it will print out the spanish text translation which you can then hold up to the face of the spaniard you are having a (sort of) conversation with); hotel and flight booking; flight e-tickets; e-banking with contactless payments; online shopping if you are bored; checking house CCTV security; work related activity; daily newspapers.

The more I think about it it's crazy, almost irresponsible, not to take one. The next stage will be an electronic credential that you hold over electronic devices along the way until they beep. The GPS will detect your arrival at Santiago and automatically e-mail you a certificate without the hassle of queuing for a paper one. Down the line, for added security and peace of mind, you might be able to get one with a built in taser.

Joking aside, the smartpone can replace 2kg worth of other items, all in one small package. The trouble is that after a while the phone owns you and not vice versa. The turning point for me was when I was at a small railway station with about 25 other people waiting for a train. It was a lovely summer's morning and the birds were singing. Nobody spoke and everyone was engrossed in some fascinating virtual other life. Either that or watching Youtube videos of accidents or commenting on a picture of somebody's dinner.

I am ex-military and something that shocks me now is that many young soldiers can't point north. They can look at a device and give you an 8 figure grid reference of their current location but they can;t point north. In my day you could blindfold someone, spin them around 3 times and they could still point roughly north. This is such a basic and fundamental military skill. The device has been allowed to intersperse itself very subtly between the human and the natural world. Interaction with the world is done via this monitored conduit with services provided before you even think that you need them. The device provides information and demands responses but again, very subtly, over years, it starts to change the way people think and the way they interact with the real world. Those of us that reached maturity before the internet haven't been completely brainwashed, although to the younger generation we can come across as simple minded fools from another world (maybe there's some truth in that).

Another example that came up in a conversation with a friend who is a university lecturer. He has observed that many students are so reliant on smart phones that they can't bear to be separated from them and surreptitiously monitor them throughout lectures. In a way that is to be expected and nobody is surprised by it anymore, rude as it is. What is interesting is that many have lost all confidence in their own judgement and have to double check everything all of the time. Facts, spelling, bus times, popularity rating. But sometimes you don't need to know exactly where you are. Keep walking roughly west by the sun, watch out for red arrows, follow people in the distance with backpacks, ask a local. If all else fails and you are utterly lost discretely get a map out and pretend to be admiring the view (it's a male thing).

Sorry, I've got carried away. Too much time on my hands. Must head off for another Camino soon. I'll be taking my phone with me which I can assure everyone is not a status symbol or designer accessory. I think it runs on coal.

Regards, Simon.

 

[Camino Chrissy]

Hi Simon, I agree with the majority of what you are saying and I too used to get annoyed seeing people constantly on their phones in public as it seemed so rude. A number of years ago I decided to let those feelings go, realizing it's never going to go backward to what it used to be. My phone is now 5 years old and also runs on coal. When it finally bites the dust and I'm forced to replace it, having a staus symbol nor designer accessory will not be on my mind.

 

[David Tallan]

All this reading and writing, no one can remember anything any more. We should get rid of literacy and have people memorize 15,000 line epic poems once again. Then we wouldn't need cameras and address books and any of that foofera. People would just remember their Caminos. No one pays attention to what we lose when we adopt these newfangled technologies.

 

[Shippers]

I think I get your point .

I have no problem with address books and journals (ones you write in using a pen that you fill from a bottle).

However, I can see how for some people a smartphone provides a psychological handrail and emotional prop at difficult times.

 

[William Marques]

When I was a small boy we had to memorise the collect for the week before we were allowed out. It was just a method to keep us off the streets and playgrounds and served no good purpose but to put me off formal church services. I cannot support David's suggestion that we start along those lines again.

 

[David Tallan]

When I was a small boy we had to memorise the collect for the week before we were allowed out. It was just a method to keep us off the streets and playgrounds and served no good purpose but to put me off formal church services. I cannot support David's suggestion that we start along those lines again.

The problem wasn't with the memorization, but what you were required to memorize. If you had a few exciting 15,000 line epic poems under your belt, I'm sure you could have memorized the collects in no time flat and been quickly busy getting into trouble on the streets.

But my point really is that people have been complaining that new technologies cause great losses for about as long as we've had them. People really were complaining about the loss of memory when written language started to be adopted. I'm sure when fire was tamed, people said that digestive systems and jaw muscles would go soft. We just didn't have the technology to record their complaints. Once a technology is no longer new, however, the losses never seem so bad compared to the gains.