Make HTCSense work on all handsets, please?

Name: Make HTCSense work on all handsets, please?
Brand: Make
Rating: 4.3 (1 reviews)

Abe Olandres February 8, 2011 · 2 min read

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So I lost my HTC HD7 last night at a restaurant. I’m a forgetful person and have lost a lot of gadgets thru the years but this one I didn’t want to just let go.

First, I know that the HD7 was just in my car or I (unknowingly) brought it to the dinner table in the restaurant. Since the phone wasn’t in the car when I got back, the restaurant was the only remaining suspect.

When I went back to ask the waiter, they said there was nothing left at my dinner table (which was among the outside tables). However, he mentioned hearing a ringing tone several times but could not figure out where it’s coming.

So we searched for it again while I rang up the phone. Indeed there was a faint ringing tone and since it was in the evening and the garden area was dark, it was hard to pinpoint where the sound was coming.

About 10 more minutes and I found the phone — it was conspicuously hidden in one of the cement ledges that surrounds a row of plants and was covered with a rubber mat. Wow, somebody picked it up and actually hid it several meters from where I left the handset. Had it been on silent mode or was low on battery, I don’t think I had any chance of finding it again.

Well, unless my HD7 is supported by HTCSense.com, I would have been able to use the remote GPS locator on the website. Tried it before with my HTC Desire HD (disclosure: HTC gave it to me). Last time I lost a phone was back in February last year with my one-month old Google Nexus One.

So here’s my plea to HTC — please make HTCSense work on all your handsets, whether its Android or Windows Phone 7 or even your very own HomeBrew OS. Would have made a huge different and a gadget savior if this happens to someone else.

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Abe Olandres

Editor-in-chief

Abe is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of YugaTech with over 20 years of experience in the technology industry. He is one of the pioneers of blogging in the country and considered by many as the Father of Tech Blogging in the Philippines. He is also a technology consultant, a tech columnist with several national publications, resource speaker and mentor/advisor to several start-up companies.

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75 Comments

Jacobato · 15 years ago

While I agree some form of technology intervention should be available when gadgets are forgotten somewhere or lost, this consumer behavior shows how spoiled we have become a tech customers. And don’t get me wrong Mr. Yuga – I am a forgetful person too. Let us keep trying in earnest to be less forgetful – that might be the easiest solution here. There already is technology that sounds off an alarm when you are 8-10 feet (can be configured) away from your gadget (used by some photographers to keep in stock of their expensive gears). But there is no technology that will help people really take seriously the task of not being forgetful. Yes we are all busy people. Unfortunately, not all of us can afford a platoon of secret service agents and our own Air Force One where we can forget anything and still get it back the next day or sooner.

alwin · 15 years ago

lucky you! but i agree, htc sense should be enabled in all HTC phones. unfair para sa mga users like me who only have magic. good thing there are alternative apps from the android market. wavesecure and where’s my droid does the job well!

Suplado · 15 years ago

besides from htcsense, you can also find the same features at windows live site. i guess this is available for all windows phone units. i already tried it. worked like a charm. wower!

just browsing · 15 years ago

i think htc sense wouldnt work with wp7,microsoft doesnt allow customization to their OS, maybe just the live tiles in the homescreen

Hope with the recent tieup between nokia and Microsoft, such gps feature would be added…but by nokia….heard they received above oem rights..right to customize

drifter · 15 years ago

If you have an android, there are some nice alternative apps like this in the market.

try Prey (http://preyproject.com)
or the simple Where’s my droid app(http://sites.google.com/site/alienmanfc6/wheresmyandroid)

Jonaflormicfren · 15 years ago

Thanks for this available gadget in the market that will partially solve some problem in technology. http://daniojr.blogspot.com/

gaia · 15 years ago

Cant make it work properly with my desire z. Nasa africa daw ung fone ko….hehe…. i sent an email to htc, said they were doing some upgrades…..

Jon · 15 years ago

@Calvin

Walang delay yung pag wipe? I mean, almost instant ba? Kasi I tried locking my phone remotely, minsan instant, minsan minutes, and my golly! Hours. Buti naalala ko pa yung lock code na nilagay ko. HAHA.

Pag nauso na unlimited data connection sa phones, I mas magiging useful ang mga tracking apps for us.

turds · 15 years ago

anong say mo dito?

track and protect for android and symbian

https://www.trackandprotect.com/

may bayad nga lang per command.

Calvin · 15 years ago

Kala ko nawala na. tsk tsk tsk. nagiging forgetful dahil sa chicks? :P

@jon,
Ako i tried remote wiping on the htc desire z and gumana naman sya. pero you’re right kelangan may active data connection ka which i don’t normally do. mahirap naman umasa sa WiFi palagi to do those remote stuff.

H · 15 years ago

lucky you, you still found your phone. lost my 3gs at a restaurant too. when i tried to call it, wala na, unattended. buti sau di pa inoff. i wish i could wipe out all data and pics on my 3gs remotely. hirap naman magreport sa ntc na stolen. sa quezon city lang ba talaga? na-report ko na sa globe kasi postpaid. sabi ma-lolock daw yun. pero marami akong nakikitang nag-uunlock. gusto ko sana pahirapan man lang ang nakakuha. grrr.

Suplado · 15 years ago

cheap ka din daw according to HTC @ realjarley. haha!

realjarley · 15 years ago

Ughh, HTC phones, cheap! I like Samsung better!

vince · 15 years ago

I’m also forgetful. thats why my phone is tied to a carabiner which is clipped to the belt loops of my jeans

Jfd0 · 15 years ago

You can do this with several Android apps without having HTC Sense.

You can actually locate the phone via GPS through any computer on any Android device as long as you have the Lookout Mobile Security Android app. It’s a free app and all you need to do is to register. You can even make your phone “scream” through that app just to find it.

Or you can use the Phonefinder Android app and just text a code to your lost phone’s phone number and it will send your lost phone’s GPS location and coordinates on Google map.

It works as long as the GPS on your phone is on :)

fred · 15 years ago

Sana hanggang sa entry level phones magkaroon din ng ganiyang features.

kitsantiago · 15 years ago

sir abe, ano gamit mong cp now? me iphone 4 kdn? ano mas magandang gamitin or handset for u? htc hd 7 or ip4? thanks sa feedback.

jamby · 15 years ago

kung ibang tao ang nkapulot/kumuha, other than the waiter, di na itatago pa kung saan, diretso na sa bulsa,..

i suspect the waiters since, di nya cguro pwede itago directly sa bulsa nya at bka makapkapan sila sa loob ng resto ng sarili nilang sekyu or manager…kaya inilagay anywhere outside the resto at babalikan na lang pag off nya….

karissa · 15 years ago

Buti na lang you got your phone back.

If you’re using HTC android phones, there’s this really cool apps called “Where’s my Droid”
When you have this installed in your phone and it went missing and on silent mode.
You just have to text your phone with the line, wheres my droid (all caps). and your phone would ring to its loudest.
I just haven’t tried it if your phone is off.

It’s quite helpful though.

Andre · 15 years ago

u know GPS only works well outside, so you cant find it inside a building :)
you have to wait till theyre outside

phone prices phlippines · 15 years ago

salamat naman sir nakita mo. napakamahal at ganda ng CP na yan. Sayang naman kung mawawala

pupuboy · 15 years ago

sir abe good thing you were able to recover your precious phone otherwise you will be hunted by sleepless nights… whehehehe ;)

elmerlovesoreo · 15 years ago

Good to hear that you found it. I really thought you lost such a wonderful phone :)

tipler · 15 years ago

Might want to try wavesecure https://www.wavesecure.com/

Picked it up free during beta and its uninstall and sim change protection is pretty good. IMO, better than gps location, although it has that too.

kuplet · 15 years ago

HTC Desire user here. It doesnt work on my phone as well. Sigh*

Jon · 15 years ago

I would not count on HTCSense.com to reliably find my phone. At best, it is very inconsistent. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. Right now, with GPS enabled and with an active data connection, and with HTCSense autosync, HTCSense says my phone is somewhere near some South African sea. It would take several refreshes (if you are lucky) to get the right location down to the city level at best.

I also tried letting my phone ring, but it does not work all the time as well. Locking the phone does not work reliably too. I haven’t tried wiping my phone yet though.

Right now, HTCSense is quite buggy. Until this one is fixed, I would not recommend it. I believe there are quite a number of alternatives. Not sure about WP7 though. Good thing you got your phone back.

Abiel · 15 years ago

Haha… I guess they realized that the customer was Abes of Yugatech, so they just “directly” returned the phone rather than getting a bad publicity!

Benchmark33 · 15 years ago

Thank goodness you found your phone…

Well I hope soon, a company (like an insurance company) can provide consumers this kind of technology to all gadgets where they will install a small GPS tracking device in your gadget, say a phone then you can track it anywhere even if it was stolen….not only in HTC phone :-)

Hmmm probably there is already a company doing doing in other country….

Greg · 15 years ago

Most likely one of the staff found it. If it were a customer, why hide it at all? He or she can leave with the phone immediately. It would also be helpful to eat in restaurants where there is CCTV.