I lost my Sprint PCS phone - why can't they tell me where it is?

[TJN23]

So last night I accidently left my Sprint phone on a bus, and they said it could be at any number of a handful of bus station's lost and found places.

The phone was powered on, and the LOCATION feature is enabled - doesn't this allow Sprint to tell where the phone is at all times? Is this just for emergencies? Are they not allowed to give that info out over the phone, or is it just not possible?

Thanks,

Tim

 

[MazerRackham]

What?

 

[notfred]

You really think sprint is going to get some guys out in trucks with triangulation equipment so that they can avoid having you buy a new phone from them?

 

[woowoo]

Yes sprint knows were it is
No
They wont tell you

 

[Jeff7181]

What do you think they are? On-Star? 😀

*EDIT* hehe... little On-Star story. My brother got like a month or two free when he bought a new GMC truck. So we're driving... kinda bored... and I asked if he's ever used On-Star and he said no... so I'm like, just get directions to some place you know and see if they're accurate. So he's like "I have a better idea." And we pull over into a Wendy's parking lot... he pushes the On-Star button and talks to an operator and he's like "I'm not familiar with the area and I'm looking for a place to eat... like, I dunno... a Wendy's or something." So the operator tells him to hang on, and a few seconds go by and he's like "Uhhh, sir, there's a Wendy's less than 100 feet from you." So my brother is like "Huh... there is isn't there, it was behind me, I didn't see it." LOL... yeah I know, kinda dumb and childish, but it was more entertaining than listening to whatever Howard Stern was talking about at the moment.

 

[andrewjm]

those phones dont really have gps chips in them...

and the only way to see where the phone is, is to triangulate it, which they would never do for just a lost phone....


if someone calls in a terrorist threat from your phone, they will find it though 😉

 

[NutBucket]

Originally posted by: notfred
You really think sprint is going to get some guys out in trucks with triangulation equipment so that they can avoid having you buy a new phone from them?

It has nothing to do with triangulation. Every cell phone today has E911. This allows emergency personell to locate you via either triangulation from cell phone towers or GPS. Sprint phones have GPS built into them. In theory they should be able to find your phone.

 

[Shockwave]

Originally posted by: NutBucket

Originally posted by: notfred
You really think sprint is going to get some guys out in trucks with triangulation equipment so that they can avoid having you buy a new phone from them?

It has nothing to do with triangulation. Every cell phone today has E911. This allows emergency personell to locate you via either triangulation from cell phone towers or GPS. Sprint phones have GPS built into them. In theory they should be able to find your phone.

True, except you say they dont use triagluation but then turn around and say they use triangulation.
You = teh dumbass 😛

 

[NutBucket]

Originally posted by: Shockwave

Originally posted by: NutBucket

Originally posted by: notfred
You really think sprint is going to get some guys out in trucks with triangulation equipment so that they can avoid having you buy a new phone from them?

It has nothing to do with triangulation. Every cell phone today has E911. This allows emergency personell to locate you via either triangulation from cell phone towers or GPS. Sprint phones have GPS built into them. In theory they should be able to find your phone.

True, except you say they dont use triagluation but then turn around and say they use triangulation.
You = teh dumbass 😛

Well, no trucks so no ET style triangulation. (I think it was ET). Besides, I said some use tower triangulation. That's mainly GSM carriers. Sprint uses in-handset GPS so 😛 to you!😉

 

[Jzero]

Originally posted by: Shockwave

Originally posted by: NutBucket

Originally posted by: notfred
You really think sprint is going to get some guys out in trucks with triangulation equipment so that they can avoid having you buy a new phone from them?

It has nothing to do with triangulation. Every cell phone today has E911. This allows emergency personell to locate you via either triangulation from cell phone towers or GPS. Sprint phones have GPS built into them. In theory they should be able to find your phone.

True, except you say they dont use triagluation but then turn around and say they use triangulation.
You = teh dumbass 😛

He specified trangulation from cell towers, as opposed to the end of Pump Up The Volume.

 

[andrewjm]

Sprint's "GPS" functions aren't GS at all, because they don't use the GPS Satellite system. SprintPCS's location tracking is based entirely on the towers.

 

[NutBucket]

Originally posted by: andrewjm
Sprint's "GPS" functions aren't GS at all, because they don't use the GPS Satellite system. SprintPCS's location tracking is based entirely on the towers.

Actually if you look at Sprint's website most every phone lists this as a feature, "Features an embedded Global Positioning System (GPS) ship necessary for utilizing E911 emergency location services, where available."

Is it just my thinking or could someone get sued if it wasn't as advertised.......

 

[MikeyIs4Dcats]

it is part of their ability to locate it, but their contract and privacy terms won't allow them to tell you unless it is an emergency requested by authorities, at least thats what they told my gf...

 

[NutBucket]

Originally posted by: MikeyIs4Dcats
it is part of their ability to locate it, but their contract and privacy terms won't allow them to tell you unless it is an emergency requested by authorities, at least thats what they told my gf...

Makes sense. They claim tho by year's end they'll be releasing the appropriate API to developers so they can write software to utilize the hardware.

 

[Scarpozzi]

Originally posted by: Shockwave

Originally posted by: NutBucket

Originally posted by: notfred
You really think sprint is going to get some guys out in trucks with triangulation equipment so that they can avoid having you buy a new phone from them?

It has nothing to do with triangulation. Every cell phone today has E911. This allows emergency personell to locate you via either triangulation from cell phone towers or GPS. Sprint phones have GPS built into them. In theory they should be able to find your phone.

True, except you say they dont use triagluation but then turn around and say they use triangulation.
You = teh dumbass 😛

pwned.

 

[NutBucket]

Originally posted by: Scarpozzi

Originally posted by: Shockwave

Originally posted by: NutBucket

Originally posted by: notfred
You really think sprint is going to get some guys out in trucks with triangulation equipment so that they can avoid having you buy a new phone from them?

It has nothing to do with triangulation. Every cell phone today has E911. This allows emergency personell to locate you via either triangulation from cell phone towers or GPS. Sprint phones have GPS built into them. In theory they should be able to find your phone.

True, except you say they dont use triagluation but then turn around and say they use triangulation.
You = teh dumbass 😛

pwned.

Read my post after that one😉

 

[Shockwave]

Originally posted by: NutBucket

Originally posted by: Shockwave

Originally posted by: NutBucket

Originally posted by: notfred
You really think sprint is going to get some guys out in trucks with triangulation equipment so that they can avoid having you buy a new phone from them?

It has nothing to do with triangulation. Every cell phone today has E911. This allows emergency personell to locate you via either triangulation from cell phone towers or GPS. Sprint phones have GPS built into them. In theory they should be able to find your phone.

True, except you say they dont use triagluation but then turn around and say they use triangulation.
You = teh dumbass 😛

Well, no trucks so no ET style triangulation. (I think it was ET). Besides, I said some use tower triangulation. That's mainly GSM carriers. Sprint uses in-handset GPS so 😛 to you!😉

Well, triangulation is traingulation, be it from towers or trucks. 😉 😛

 

[Trey22]

Call it... repeatedly, until someone picks up and offer them a reward.

 

[Hav0k99]

better yet text message it with a reward note.

 

[vshah]

Originally posted by: Shockwave

Originally posted by: NutBucket<BR>

Originally posted by: Shockwave<BR>

Originally posted by: NutBucket<BR>

Originally posted by: notfred<BR>You really think sprint is going to get some guys out in trucks with triangulation equipment so that they can avoid having you buy a new phone from them?

<BR><BR>It has nothing to do with triangulation. Every cell phone today has E911. This allows emergency personell to locate you via either triangulation from cell phone towers or GPS. Sprint phones have GPS built into them. In theory they should be able to find your phone.

<BR><BR>True, except you say they dont use triagluation but then turn around and say they use triangulation.<BR>You = teh dumbass 😛

<BR><BR>Well, no trucks so no ET style triangulation. (I think it was ET). Besides, I said some use tower triangulation. That's mainly GSM carriers. Sprint uses in-handset GPS so 😛 to you!😉

<BR><BR>Well, triangulation is traingulation, be it from towers or trucks. 😉 😛

actually its triangulation 😀

 

[dmurray14]

OK first of all, it IS triangulation that sprint uses, though it IS GPS as well. They use a system where all the cell towers have a gps on board and the phone has special circuitry to help triangulate the location. They do this mostly to reduce load on the phone, as it is the towers that are doing the processing to find out where the phone is.

And, that sucks you lost your phone, man. I have a VGA1000 for sale if you want it...

Dan