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Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Yahoo
Google killed the classic 'Find your phone' tools, but don't worry, they're still alive
Google's Find My Device has evolved into the more capable Find Hub, but remnants of ancient phone-finding tools still exist. The still-live "Find your phone" Google Account settings page now recommends you "try calling your phone," which probably won't help anyone. All phone-finding tools have moved to the Find Hub, making the Find your phone page's continued existence redundant. Change can be great, especially when it's something like Google's Find My Device evolving into the increasingly capable Find Hub. But even when a service makes positive progress, you'll occasionally find head-scratching oversights or half-measures, and those can be confusing or downright misleading. That's the case with Google's latest step in migrating its former phone-finding controls to the new, comprehensive Find Hub. Google axed the long-standing method of finding a lost smartphone and ported the functionality over to the new app and web page, but the remnants of the old way remain. Somewhat amusingly, while the "Find your phone" settings page still exists, it now offers a single piece of advice: "try calling" it (Source: 9to5Google). You won't find the Find My Device app anymore, either — but it's only been rebranded to Find Hub. Starting in August 2021, a simple Google Search for "I lost my phone" led to a popup result directly from Google. As long as you performed the search while logged into your account, a single click would start your phone's ringer, helping you or whoever was nearby to find it easily. That convenient popup vanished, but the first result from the aforementioned search query was — and is — still a link to the Google Account settings page entitled "Find your phone," and containing a locator map and button to activate the ringer. Clicking that link, or selecting "Find a lost device" within account settings, lands you on the Find your Phone page. You'll be looking at a list of devices linked to your account. Previously, clicking on a device immediately gave you the option to ring or locate it. Lower on the page, you could lock it, call it, sign out of Google on it, erase it, or contact your carrier about it. In other words, you had real, actionable options. The left is from six years ago, and the right from today. Screenshots courtesy of Abner Li / 9to5Google Not anymore. The page and links to it still exist, but the only prominent action recommended is a real doozy. The options to lock, locate, or erase a phone have disappeared, replaced by a simplistic solution: "Try calling your phone." If that isn't funny enough, the page advises users who can't remember their number to "ask a friend" or "use Contacts to look it up." It then helpfully points out that the device "will need to have Hangouts or a similar service" installed — and Google Hangouts has been dead for going on three years. Of course, lost Android device tracking is far from extinct. To find a lost phone, tablet, or other device with Android's gadget-finding technology built in, visit the ever-improving Google Find Hub. Other than directing you to your carrier's contact information, it does everything the original Find your phone page could do. Thankfully, this is not a classic case of Google pulling the plug on a promising service. But it is slightly ironic. You ask one of the world's leaders in data harvesting, digital mapping, Bluetooth tracking, and software implementing where you last set down your high-tech mobile device. It replies, "I don't know, have somebody try calling it. Maybe your friend." When that doesn't work, the confusingly still-alive page does let you sign out of the device with one click. But a one-sentence explainer and a link to the Find Hub would have saved at least a few Android users some confusion.
RTHK
05-05-2025
- Business
- RTHK
Microsoft to shut down Skype on May 5
Microsoft to shut down Skype on May 5 Skype will become the latest in a series of high-flying bets that Microsoft has mishandled, such as the Internet Explorer web browser and its Windows Phone. File photo: AFP Skype will ring for the last time on Monday as owner Microsoft retires the two-decade-old internet calling service that redefined how people connect across borders. Founded in 2003, Skype's audio and video calls quickly disrupted the landline industry in the early 2000s and made the company a household name boasting hundreds of millions of users at its peak. But the platform has struggled to keep up with easier-to-use and more reliable rivals such as Zoom and Slack in recent years. The decline was partly because Skype's underlying technology was not suited for the smartphone era. When the pandemic and work-from-home fuelled the need for online business calls, Microsoft batted for Teams by aggressively integrating it with other Office apps to tap corporate users. Skype will become the latest in a series of high-flying bets that Microsoft has mishandled, such as the Internet Explorer web browser and its Windows Phone. Other big tech firms have also struggled with online communication tools, with Google making several attempts through apps including Hangouts and Duo. Microsoft declined to share the latest user figures for Skype and said there would be no job cuts due to the move. It added that Teams has about 320 million monthly active users. When Microsoft bought Skype in 2011 for US$8.5 billion after outbidding Google and Facebook – its largest deal at the time – the service had around 150 million monthly users. By 2020, that number had fallen to roughly 23 million, despite a brief resurgence during the pandemic. (Reuters)
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Skype's final call set for May as Microsoft prioritizes Teams
(Reuters) -Skype will ring for the last time on May 5 as owner Microsoft retires the two-decade-old internet calling service that redefined how people connect across borders. Shutting down Skype will help Microsoft focus on its homegrown Teams service by simplifying its communication offerings, the software giant said on Friday. Founded in 2003, Skype's cheap audio and video calls quickly disrupted the landline industry in the early 2000s and made the company a household name boasting hundreds of millions of users at its peak. But the platform has struggled to keep up with easier-to-use and more reliable rivals such as Zoom and Salesforce's Slack in recent years. The decline was partly because Skype's underlying technology was not suited for the smartphone era. When the pandemic and work-from-home fueled the need for online business calls, Microsoft batted for Teams by aggressively integrating it with other Office apps to tap corporate users — once a major base for Skype. To ease the transition from the platform, its users will be able to log into Teams for free on any supported device using their existing credentials, with chats and contacts migrating automatically. With that, Skype will become the latest in a series of high-flying bets that Microsoft has mishandled, such as the Internet Explorer web browser and its Windows Phone. Other big tech firms have also struggled with online communication tools, with Google making several attempts through apps including Hangouts and Duo. It was not clear how many users or employees would be impacted by the move. Microsoft did not immediately respond to a request for the figure. When Microsoft bought Skype in 2011 for $8.5 billion after outbidding Google and Facebook — its largest deal at the time — the service had around 150 million monthly users; by 2020, that number had fallen to roughly 23 million, despite a brief resurgence during the pandemic. Microsoft said on Friday "Skype has been an integral part of shaping modern communications". "We are honored to have been part of the journey." Sign in to access your portfolio
Reuters
28-02-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Skype's final call set for May as Microsoft prioritizes Teams
Feb 28 (Reuters) - Skype will ring for the last time this May as owner Microsoft retires the two-decade-old internet calling service that redefined how people connect across borders. Shutting down Skype will help Microsoft (MSFT.O), opens new tab focus on its homegrown Teams service by simplifying its communication offerings, the software giant said on Friday. Founded in 2003, Skype's cheap audio and video calls quickly disrupted the landline industry in the early 2000s and made the company a household name boasting hundreds of millions of users at its peak. But the platform has struggled to keep up with easier-to-use and more reliable rivals such as Zoom and Salesforce's Slack in recent years. The decline was partly because Skype's underlying technology was not suited for the smartphone era. When the pandemic and work-from-home fueled the need for online business calls, Microsoft batted for Teams by aggressively integrating it with other Office apps to tap corporate users — once a major base for Skype. To ease the transition from the platform, its users will be able to log into Teams for free on any supported device using their existing credentials, with chats and contacts migrating automatically. With that, Skype will become the latest in a series of high-flying bets that Microsoft has mishandled, such as the Internet Explorer web browser and its Windows Phone. Other big tech firms have also struggled with online communication tools, with Google making several attempts through apps including Hangouts and Duo. When Microsoft bought Skype in 2011 for $8.5 billion after outbidding Google and Facebook — its largest deal at the time — the service had about 150 million monthly users; by 2020, that number had fallen to roughly 23 million, despite a brief resurgence during the pandemic. Microsoft said on Friday "Skype has been an integral part of shaping modern communications". "We are honored to have been part of the journey."
