Google recently rolled out the Find My Device Network to the masses, and this is probably one of the company’s biggest rollouts of the year. The new Find My Device Network allows you to locate your phone even if it’s not online. Well, if you have a Pixel 8, you can locate it on the Find My Device Network even hours after it’s been powered off.
This may sound impressive, but it wasn’t Google’s idea at first. This is a functionality that iPhone users have had for a little while, so Google is playing catch up to Apple. In any case, it’s still a nice feature to have. It’s impressive, but it’s also very limited. Only the Pixel 8 (Review) and Pixel 8 Pro (Review) can use this functionality. Google attributes this to “special hardware.”
You can locate the Pixel 8 using the Find My Device network hours it powers down
Bluetooth is the life’s blood of the Find My Device network. Devices communicate with one another using Bluetooth, and this is how you’re able to locate your devices. If your device is offline, other devices nearby will still be able to ping it using Bluetooth. So, the Find My Device network will be able to access those surrounding devices to get a bead on your device’s location.
While very convenient, Pixel 8 users now have the ability to utilize the network even when their phone is powered down. We’re not quite sure exactly what Google did, but we surmise that the company implemented a very low-powered Bluetooth solution that can remain powered on even when the phone is off. This way, the Pixel 8 can still ping other devices.
This is extremely convenient; we are all familiar with those times when we have to leave the house with our phone on 15% and try our hardest to stretch it throughout the day. Well, if you happen to lose your phone after it dies, you will still be able to use the Find My Device network.
Pixel 8 users are getting a notification with the text, “Find phone if the battery runs out. If this phone runs out of battery or is powered off, the Find My Device network can locate it for several hours.”
Will this functionality make it to other phones?
That’s a tough question. Obviously, we expect this functionality to make it to the new Pixel 9 series. We’ve little reason to doubt that the Pixel 8a will have this functionality. By the way, the Pixel 8a is official, and you can order it today. However, when it comes to other phones, it’s a little iffy.
Google did say that it is in talks with other manufacturers about implementing a feature like this to other phones. So, there’s a chance that it could make it to other devices, but we have no idea when or how widespread it will be. Hopefully, we see this functionality with devices going forward.
