Google's 'Find My Device' Will Finally Roll Out to Android Phones. Here's Why It Was Delayed. Both Android and Apple iOS users will receive unknown tracker alerts on the Find My Device network.
By Sherin Shibu
Key Takeaways
- Google is introducing a Find My Device network on Android devices.
- The company teamed up with Apple last year to develop a joint industry standard to tackle unwanted tracking.
The Google Android equivalent of Apple's Find My network has officially arrived.
Google published a blog post on Monday revealing the new, crowdsourced Find My Device network that can help Android users find their devices, including phones and tablets, even offline.
The network includes over a billion devices, according to Google, and started rolling out to Android users in the U.S. and Canada on Monday on devices running Android 9+. Google plans a global rollout.
Google Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro Android phones. Photo by ED JONES/AFP via Getty Images
Next month, users will be able to tap into the Find My Device network to locate tracker tags, which can be attached to easily misplaced items like their keys or luggage. Google will start supporting Bluetooth tags from Chipolo and Pebblebee in May, with additional support for tags from companies such as Motorola and Eufy later this year.
The Find My Device network also works with Google Nest smart home devices by showing users how close their lost devices are to any Google smart home products.
The network matches Apple's AirTag technology by allowing users to share tagged devices with friends and family.
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Google's Find My network was a long time coming — the company first revealed plans for the feature last year. Apple announced its Find My network for iOS in 2019.
"We took our time when designing the new Find My Device," Google acknowledged in the blog post but stated that it used the time to consider data security and user safety while using the network.
Google and Apple teamed up in May 2023 on a cross-platform standard to alert users if they were being tracked — without them knowing,
Google's release on Monday incorporated the joint industry standard developed by the two tech giants, which means that both Android and iPhones will now get notifications about unknown trackers traveling with them.
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