Mobile phone tracking for a young teen.

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

I assume these things exist legally, but a google search pops up a load of spy apps.
I was wondering if there was just something that me and my daughter could put on our phones to find out where each other was at all times (or at least where each others phones are).
She doesn't always hear her phone ring and ladies don't generally have pockets (insane) so vibrate isn't always an option.

I don't want anything intrusive, it's really so I don't have to worry, or I can tell that she has returned to the house and I don't have to ring and check (I work at the end of the garden in a office unconnected to the house.

Like I said, I had a look on line, but everything seemed to focus on spyware and recording calls. Just wondered if there was anything U75 users already use and could recommend.

 

[platinumsage]

Google's location history or Find My iPhone.

 

[strung out]

It's built in to iPhones using the Find My feature: Find friends and share your location with Find My

Not sure about Android alternatives though.

 

[souljacker]

My Mrs uses Life360 to track the kids. Google family link also works ok for android devices.

 

[mx wcfc]

My wife and (adult) daughter mutually use the iPhone "where's my phone" thing.

It's useful for knowing when mrs mx leaves work, so I know when to put the dinner on.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

It's built in to iPhones using the Find My feature: Find friends and share your location with Find My

Not sure about Android alternatives though.

My wife and (adult) daughter mutually use the iPhone "where's my phone" thing.

It's useful for knowing when mrs mx leaves work, so I know when to put the dinner on.

Just to clarify, we have androids not iPhones. Sorry.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

Google's location history

My Mrs uses Life360 to track the kids. Google family link also works ok for android devices.

Do I have to download something and connect / link to my daughters phone so we can see each other?

 

[Lazy Llama]

Do I have to download something and connect / link to my daughters phone so we can see each other?

Should just be available in Google Maps. Click your picture/avatar at the end of the search bar in Google Maps, select Location Sharing, then use the "New Share" balloon.

 

[Fruitloop]

Find my iPhone known as 'track my daddy' in this house

 

[souljacker]

Do I have to download something and connect / link to my daughters phone so we can see each other?

For life 360, yes. It's quite good though. Can ping you alerts when you're kids get home, that sort of thing. I think it has a panic button too if they get into any difficulties.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

Should just be available in Google Maps. Click your picture/avatar at the end of the search bar in Google Maps, select Location Sharing, then use the "New Share" balloon.

Oh my, is it that easy?
I wish I could try it right now, but obviously she has just gone out for the day.
Would we both need to keep google maps running all the time?

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

For life 360, yes. It's quite good though. Can ping you alerts when you're kids get home, that sort of thing. I think it has a panic button too if they get into any difficulties.

Is that free? Does it have to be running on both phones all the time to work?

 

[Lazy Llama]

Oh my, is it that easy?
I wish I could try it right now, but obviously she has just gone out for the day.
Would we both need to keep google maps running all the time?

Nope, it updates periodically anyway.
As far as I can tell, it updates more frequently if you're actively using the app, but background updates definitely happen.

 

[souljacker]

Is that free? Does it have to be running on both phones all the time to work?

Yes and yes but it runs in the background. You do need to allow it access to location at all times but that's because of the way Android permissions work rather than anything else.

I think you can pay money for it to get premium features but the free version works fine. The only issue it has is that it's not compatible with some old phones but they need to be really old.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

Brilliant, I'll check it out tonight.

 

[smmudge]

I do the sharing location on Google maps with my wife and it works just fine. We tried the Life360 app a couple of years ago but found it didn't really work for some reason, it would never update our location.

 

[skyscraper101]

I love find my feature on iOS. It's quite handy knowing when my Mum is home so I can call her. Or even when she's coming over, how far away she is so I can put the kettle on

 

[moomoo]

I couldn’t think of anything worse than someone tracking my phone.

 

[killer b]

I'm not sure how great it is to be able to check where people are at will tbh. I understand the good intentions and convenience behind services like this, but your parents not knowing where you are is a key developmental stage of being a teenager isn't it? You have to learn how to trust them at some point, and they have to learn about independence?

 

[AverageJoe]

My Mrs uses Life360 to track the kids. Google family link also works ok for android devices.

We use life 360 too. It works very well

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

I'm not sure how great it is to be able to check where people are at will tbh. I understand the good intentions and convenience behind services like this, but your parents not knowing where you are is a key developmental stage of being a teenager isn't it? You have to learn how to trust them at some point, and they have to learn about independence?

I was kind of hoping this would be that bridge.
We are currently at the stage where I want to know who she is with, where she is going and everyone's contact details.
This is so we don't have to check in all the time. I'm a dad, she's only 14, and has only just started going out on her own. If I call and can't get through, I am not yet at the stage where I won't immediately panic. All this wil soften over time.

 

[weltweit]

I like the idea, but 1) my sprog is now 22 so it isn't really necessary now and 2) he never could manage to keep the battery of his mobile charged up anyhow so there wasn't much point :/

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

I'm not sure how great it is to be able to check where people are at will tbh. I understand the good intentions and convenience behind services like this, but your parents not knowing where you are is a key developmental stage of being a teenager isn't it? You have to learn how to trust them at some point, and they have to learn about independence?

I was kind of hoping this would be that bridge.
We are currently at the stage where I want to know who she is with, where she is going and everyone's contact details.
This is so we don't have to check in all the time. I'm a dad, she's only 14, and has only just started going out on her own. If I call and can't get through, I am not yet at the stage where I won't immediately panic. All this wil soften over time.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

Ok something is not working.
We both have Google accounts and Google maps on our phones that both show we are logged in. We are both in each others contacts but both our phones say that the other doesn't have a Google account.

 

[RileyOBlimey]

It looks like Google has that function: Find & manage your child's location - Google For Families Help

See here: Google Family Link - Home

 

[souljacker]

I'm not sure how great it is to be able to check where people are at will tbh. I understand the good intentions and convenience behind services like this, but your parents not knowing where you are is a key developmental stage of being a teenager isn't it? You have to learn how to trust them at some point, and they have to learn about independence?

I agree. I'm pushing my wife to allow the eldest to switch it off, now that she's 14. She's old enough to have places to go that I don't need to know about.

Our 10yo will still have it and it is really useful to know she's got to and from school ok. But generally, it's not really something to support, tracking citizens all around the place. I don't use it and switch off location tracking on my phone for all apps.

 

[beesonthewhatnow]

I utterly loathe the idea of tracking kids.

 

[killer b]

I was kind of hoping this would be that bridge.
We are currently at the stage where I want to know who she is with, where she is going and everyone's contact details.
This is so we don't have to check in all the time. I'm a dad, she's only 14, and has only just started going out on her own. If I call and can't get through, I am not yet at the stage where I won't immediately panic. All this wil soften over time.

I dunno man - I think worrying when she's a bit late and then realising you've nothing really to worry about when she gets home safe and sound are probably how it softens. Embrace it. Feel the panic. It won't improve if you can just check every 5 minutes where she is.

 

[killer b]

She's old enough to have places to go that I don't need to know about.

it's important that she's able to go places you don't know about, I think.

 

[moomoo]

I know I’m really old but when my kids were this age I didn’t know where they were every minute of the day. They knew where they lived and came home eventually. I’m really glad this sort of thing wasn’t around then. I think I’d be a neurotic mess checking every 5 mins where they are. It’s just weird and certainly not healthy for you or the child IMO. She’s 14. She deserves some privacy, no?