PCPro report a case where the new "Find My iPhone" function helped a man and his discretion to trace his stolen iPhone, and retrieve it from the thief who stole it.
Live Journal blogger Kevin Millar, aka happy waffle from Austin, Texas, explains in detail that he and some friends were in Chicago to attend Brick World, the world's largest Lego convention. "The other night, they had ended up in a pull bar in Uptown Chicago. It was so happy waffle later discovered that he had lost the phone - and that one of Barmer had found it and decided to keep it.
Fortunately for happy waffle he had only turned to find my new iPhone service. Even better, [one of his friends] had Sprint (yes, Sprint) USB dongle to allow him access to the Internet over 3G in his Mac Book Pro. Happy to try it jumped on me.com and click finds my iPhone link.
To make a long story short, the three were able after a few false starts, to zero on the balance that had made off with happy waffle’s iPhone. They had tried to send messages to ask for the iPhone that led it to call them and plan to return it, but thieving barman had only read the messages and ignored them. At one point, "Find My iPhone" feature on happy waffle’s iPhone seems to have been extinguished, but it later emerged that it had not.
Happy waffle and his discretion to be able to track the phone down to Medill Street
A little more "Find My iPhone" later, and were converging on the barman in a nearby street.
Happy waffle cried to the man they had identified, ask: "Are you there?" The barman, realizing he had been caught, ga iPhone without a fight.
Although this story turned out to have a happy end, and many would warn against such acts of vigilantism. A former resident of Chicago comment in writing to the blog post happy waffle that he is glad that you got your phone back. You’re lucky you do not get shot in the face. "