I lost my phone a couple of weeks ago. It wasn’t on silent, but it was on the lowest volume level – even worse than silent because it didn’t even vibrate when called.  We had to resort to waiting until dark and hoping that we’d see it when it lit up.  Great idea, but didn’t work since the phone was buried under clothes in the laundry!

Enter the free app Android Lost, available from the Google Play Store. It can do everything but wash your dishes, including:

Features:
* read sent and received SMS messages
* wipe phone
* lock phone
* erase SD card
* locate by GPS or network
* start alarm with flashing screen
* send SMS from web page
* message popup
* forward calls
* remote install
* phone status: battery, imei, etc.
* remote SMS alarm
* remote SMS lock and unlock
* remote SMS erase SD card
* remote SMS wipe phone
* remote SMS APN control
* start/stop GPS
* start/stop WIFI
* hide from launcher
* email when SIM card is changed
* get call list
* take picture with front camera
* take picture with rear camera
* make your phone speak with text-to-speech
* SMS message command
* SMS speak command
* lock timeout
* restore settings on boot
* record sound from microphone
* start and stop data connection from SMS
* start and stop WIFI connection from SMS
* content browser prototype

I’d originally tried “Where’s My Droid“, another free app, but it didn’t work for me. In theory. you text your magic phrase to your phone (from a friend’s cellphone) and it will make your phone ring, screen and/or light up. But I lost my phone in my house earlier and have about 9 text messages with the magic phrase and it didn’t do a single thing. Then I went and tried Android Lost and fell in love.  What a great app!

The Apple equivalent free software is Find my Iphone, available from the Itunes app store.