How do you find a lost Zoleo? It depends on if you are still connected to your device via your phone app, and have just momentarily misplaced it, or if you have lost the device or had it stolen, and are no longer in your phone’s range of the device.
Related: Check out my review of the Zoleo Satellite Communication Device, once you’re done with this article.
How do you find a Zoleo that you momentarily misplaced when using it?
In order to find your Zoleo that you momentarily lost track of, out in the field, you need to have the Zoleo app, and have the app connected to your device (before you’ve lost it). This means the device also has to be operating, and cannot be powered off.
- open the app and select the settings option in the lower right hand corner of app’s main page
- select the My Connected Zoleo Device option in the menu
- select Find My Device
- the Zoleo device will make an alerting sound, with two rapidly alternating tones, and will flash red LED lights
- try to be quiet, and tell others to also be quiet, as this alerting tone is not really that loud. It’s not even as loud as a cell phone ring tone on max volume
- once you find your Zoleo device, again select the Find My Device option, to stop the Zoleo device’s alerting sound and LED lighting
How can you locate a Zoleo that has been stolen?
Your Zoleo device has a unique IMEI number that you have attached to your account.
If the thief powers on your Zoleo and presses the check-in button, the device will alert your contacts of its location on a map, along with its coordinates. So if you have a way to let your contacts know that you’re looking for your device, and to let you know if they get a check-in message, you may be able to track down your device if it’s close by. If you’re near cell service, you too might get a check-in and location share + message.
Same deal with the location share +, except this time your contacts will get a breadcrumb trail of where your device is. The perfect scenario here is that you can see them headed to a trailhead, and can have a park ranger waiting there to check the device’s IMEI number on its back if they spot the person with it. Probably a long shot, but at least you can dream.
Your best bet is if they hit the SOS button and your device starts pinging out its location to emergency services. Your SOS contacts will be notified, and if you have a way to contact them before emergency services does, they can let them know you’re okay, but the person that activated SOS has your Zoleo and you would like to have it retrieved when search and rescue finds them.
Can a thief sign up for a Zoleo account with your Zoleo device?
Since your device’s IMEI number is already attached to your account, likely a thief will not be able to use that device with their account. You would have to disconnect your device from your account before they could attach it to theirs.
However you can always contact Zoleo customer support to see if they’ve seen anyone try to set up an account with your device’s IMEI number.
Related: Check out my article on how one person can lend their Zoleo device to a second person, as it goes over the steps in disconnecting the Zoleo from one account and applying it to another one.
Can you track down a lost Zoleo that’s not powered up and on?
No, you won’t be able to track down a lost Zoleo that’s permanently off. There’s no way of communicating with it, via cell towers or satellite.
You’re only hope at that point is if someone finds it and tries to return it to you, by contacting Zoleo, or by powering up the device, and purposefully sharing a location to pick it up at.
Further Reading
Thanks for checking out my article on how to find a lost Zoleo. Check out my Hiking Navigation & Communication page for more Zoleo related articles, including comparing the Zoleo to the upcoming Motorola Defy, which comes in at a lower price point, and my Zoleo Plans Explained article, which goes over all you need to know about what you get with the Zoleo.
See ya out there….