Track Droid without phone service?

[Sanman99]

Hello. This is my first thread on the forum.
I am about to receive a Droid Incredible in the mail. The reason I am buying it is that I just got my iPod Touch stolen. I am going to to use the Droid Incredible without service like the iPod Touch. I have seen tracking apps like WaveSecure and some "Defense...." app. I am almost possitive they only use 3G and GPS to track and wipe the device.

Another option is blacklisting the ESN, but that doesn't really solve much, because they can still use the device.

The person who steals it might try to activate it. Could I track it that way?


Main question
Is there anything I can do to track my Droid Incredible without paying for service? Like, an app that uses wifi or something?
Or is there a way to activate it for service after I lost it and then use GPS and 3G to track it down?

 

[takeshi]

I wouldn't rely on something that needed WiFi to help you locate the device. As it is, device recovery is sketchy even with easily attainable GPS fixes and a carrier network readily available for communication.

You'd need to check for apps that don't rely on SMS or the carrier network to help you locate the device. It's a specific and unusual set of parameters. Good luck with it.

 

[UncleMike]

The device should be able to figure out its location without having service, but without some kind of connection it won't be able to report that information to you. SMS and MMS won't work over Wifi, so you're limited to email for reporting the information, and your Wifi connectivity will be limited to known networks (including those that the thief might connect to after stealing your device).

If you're really concerned about it, you could activate the Incredible on Page Plus. The minimum cost would be $10 every 17 weeks, but it would give you the ability to send an SMS with the location info. I have an LG Ally on Page Plus and have a location profile setup using Tasker and it works fine - no data or Wifi required.