Short tutorial on how to locate your device on google maps, in case of lost device or in case of emergency. (kids, family, co workers, in the great outdoors …)
1. Make sure are logged in in google on the device you want track.
And preferably log in with a separate account than your primary google account, for safety issues. (Spyware, etc)
Normally when login to the Google store your Account is automatically added. If not you can add an account under Android –> Settings -> Accounts
Make sure you turn on Location Tracking (blue slider in the upper right corner)
Google history: if you switch this on you can get a history of all locations your device has been. I disabled this because I only wan’t to know it’s current location.
2. Go to your google account page to locate your device
- Go to myaccount.google.com and log in with the same google ID as on your device.
- Click on security and scroll down to the devices area. There you will see a list of all your devices connected to Google under your specific account.
- Click on “Find a lost or Stolen Phone”
- In the next screen you can choose which device you want to locate.
- Click on Locate next to your selected device.
- A google maps opens with the location of your device.
There you have several actions to take concerning your device if necessary.
In the upper left corner you see some devices greyed out, this is where you can switch between the location of your different devices, logged in under the same google id.
Important to know is that on devices with a screen you can see when location tracking is enabled.
And now that you now the hard way to get to this screen, this is the shortcut: www.google.com/android/find
We are also working on realtime tracking option right from your smartphone or computer, that’s coming soon.
Thanks to Marc – ON3PHP for pointing me to this solution