Had to cut up a dead tree that fell at the back of our property. Had my phone in my shirt pocket because I had set and alarm for when I needed to go back up to the house. Realized I hadn't heard the alarm, went to check my phone and it was gone. It had come out twice and noticed it, should have put it in a different pocket. Regardless, it's gone. Of course I always keep it on vibrate so calling it is of little help unless I'm right on top of it. Looked for over an hour in the roughly 300 x 50 area it should be in. Red case should stand out, and it shouldn't be under anything,. Can't use find my iPhone because I can't get into my Apple account without the phone. A password reset takes 4 days and by then the battery will be long dead. My son and I looked for over an hour tonight. Used a rake after cutting down the taller grass with the weed whacker. Near full moon so hoping to see it light up really isn't helping either.
All my contacts and calendar are gone with it. Not backed up and I have resisted paying Apple for extra storage so it could be. Live and learn I guess.
So now to find a decent used phone, get it set up with my number and start working on rebuilding crap. I thought tech was supposed to make our life easier.
__________________________ Writing the next chapter that I've been looking forward to.
May 27, 2026, 10:19 PM
rizzle
Metal detector would find it.
May 27, 2026, 10:25 PM
Redleg06
Maybe try going out after dark, calling it and looking for the light from the screen when the call comes in?
"Cedat Fortuna Peritis"
May 28, 2026, 12:40 AM
tsmccull
On the off chance it landed with the reflective side up, maybe try shining a very bright flashlight beam parallel to the ground after dark and see if you can spot a reflection?
May 28, 2026, 12:53 AM
Ripley
Maybe you set it up on something so it wouldn't end up on the ground?
Set the controls for the heart of the Sun.
May 28, 2026, 07:47 AM
Appliance Brad
quote:
Originally posted by Redleg06: Maybe try going out after dark, calling it and looking for the light from the screen when the call comes in?
Tried that the first night but with an almost full moon, not helpful
Probably will give a metal detector a shot.
Mowing the area has about a 99.9% of finding it but I doubt the screen protector will help much
__________________________ Writing the next chapter that I've been looking forward to.
May 28, 2026, 07:52 AM
Pipe Smoker
quote:
Originally posted by Appliance Brad: <snip> All my contacts and calendar are gone with it. Not backed up and I have resisted paying Apple for extra storage so it could be. <snip> I thought tech was supposed to make our life easier.
Hope you find that lost phone!
I’m using ~6GB of my 50GB iCloud storage.
Serious about crackers.
May 28, 2026, 08:28 AM
YooperSigs
I keep a cheap TracPhone on standby just in case I lose or damage my primary phone.
End of Earth: 2 Miles Upper Peninsula: 4 Miles
May 28, 2026, 09:26 AM
h2oys
AB, Do you have the "find my" app activated on both your and your spouses phone?
If yes, you could probably find your phone using your spouses phone.
May 28, 2026, 09:52 AM
V-Tail
Locking the barn after the hors1e is stolen -- I use these holsters. They are great! Wear like iron, high quality, American company, made in U.S.A., affordable prices.
If they don't have a size listed for your phone in the case that you use, they will make one to order for you, no extra charge. They show instructions for measuring.
Originally posted by h2oys: AB, Do you have the "find my" app activated on both your and your spouses phone?
If yes, you could probably find your phone using your spouses phone.
this!!! there is a find button that will walk you right to the phone. If you dont find it I would recomend that you get the find my app. its handy for finding your spouse anywhere
May 28, 2026, 11:19 AM
Pipe Smoker
^^^^^^ Hey Siri, find my wife!
Serious about crackers.
May 28, 2026, 04:33 PM
HRK
If you have an apple watch it will find the phone easy, and it will tell you how far in feet you are from it, sort of a tech version of "you're getting colder, colder, hotter, hotter
Good luck, finding it, what were you doing with the cut up tree, back of a pickup, maybe it's in there, if it's on vibrate you might hear it when you call..
Can you log into your apple account on an iPad or pc and see if you can locate it that way.
May 28, 2026, 08:36 PM
Appliance Brad
Find My not set up on our phones. And I can't get into my Apple account without my phone. At least not for 3 more days. No Apple watch. And the only Bluetooth paired to it is our 2 vehicles.
Yea, I'm O So Screwed.
__________________________ Writing the next chapter that I've been looking forward to.
May 28, 2026, 08:53 PM
rizzle
May 29, 2026, 06:21 AM
irreverent
quote:
Originally posted by Appliance Brad: Find My not set up on our phones. And I can't get into my Apple account without my phone. At least not for 3 more days. No Apple watch. And the only Bluetooth paired to it is our 2 vehicles.
Yea, I'm O So Screwed.
The Find My app has been invaluable to me, and I am not joking about that. Is it possible that you could take your vehicle that is paired to it out to this area and see about just trying to dial somebody? Or if it links up before the battery is out? I know when my husband approaches my car his phone will link up. Of course the risk is that you run it over.
__________________________
"Trust, but verify."
May 29, 2026, 08:45 AM
Fly-Sig
There are about 3 million versions of lanyards for phones. I have 2 different types. One is like a long necklace, the other is coiled. They attach using a little (but strong) tab that slides into the case. Very cheap, too.
For times when dropping the phone would be really bad, or pickpockets are around, the lanyards are superb insurance.
May 29, 2026, 08:52 AM
Rey HRH
It’s a quite regular occurrence in my house. My wife says daily. I do have a couple of things going for me: I wear an iwatch because like you I always have my iPhone on vibrate and the watch notifies me of incoming calls or emails.
I press the button “Find my phone” and it plays a sound on the phone despite it being on vibrate.
I set up Find My on both of our iPhones.
Lastly, I do pay the $1.99 a month for the cloud backup. It’s pretty cheap insurance when you think about it.
I wouldn’t lose hope of finding it. Some pretty good suggestions have been given already. Good luck.
"It did not really matter what we expected from life, but rather what life expected from us. We needed to stop asking about the meaning of life, and instead to think of ourselves as those who were being questioned by life – daily and hourly. Our answer must consist not in talk and meditation, but in right action and in right conduct. Life ultimately means taking the responsibility to find the right answer to its problems and to fulfill the tasks which it constantly sets for each individual." Viktor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning, 1946.
May 29, 2026, 08:57 AM
SpinZone
Is there room for a SIGforum shoot there? One of us is sure to step on it.
“We truly live in a wondrous age of stupid.” - 83v45magna
"I think it's important that people understand free speech doesn't mean free from consequences societally or politically or culturally." -Pranjit Kalita, founder and CIO of Birkoa Capital Management
May 29, 2026, 03:53 PM
whanson_wi
Every phone case I've ever seen is black. I need one that's blaze orange with a bunch of tritium vials embedded in it.
=== I would like to apologize to anyone I have *not* offended. Please be patient. I will get to you shortly.