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I had a Nexus S but lost it or it was stolen. I need to find it's IMEI. I don't have the box or documentation either.

I've checked exif data from photos taken with the phone.

What other potential sources are there for it's IMEI?

Johnny
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    If you don't have any papers you're SOL. Also without any proof that it's yours, nobody will give it back to you, if it's found. –  Jul 07 '12 at 12:19
  • As it happens my reasons for finding it aren't to get it back. The weird thing is the day I lost it my device list in google play didn't show it any more. Google claim this isn't possible and that devices can't be removed from your device list. I haven't used any other account and have made purchases from the play store too so I didn't imagine it. I've even remotely installed apps from that account. Google say I need the IMEI for them to investigate further. – Johnny Jul 07 '12 at 12:31
  • If you had facebook, maybe they know it? Many apps transfer this alongside with your other information, maybe you're lucky. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/06/technology/06iht-rawdata06.html?pagewanted=all Some smaller devs may really be helpful. – ce4 Jul 07 '12 at 13:45
  • Harder to get that Facebook data now. http://www.europe-v-facebook.org/EN/Get_your_Data_/get_your_data_.html – Johnny Jul 08 '12 at 10:06

4 Answers4

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Got it!

Sing into your Google Dashboard. Here scroll down to the section titled Android devices. You'll see a list of all devices associated with your account. Choose the one that you're looking for and click on the expander arrow. This will bring up a nice block of text that contains your IMEI and a last-seen time.

Screenshot

Screenshot

Flimm
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    +1 Nice one, didn't know about the "More data stored about this device"! Ps: I have log information going back one year! – Zuul Jul 30 '12 at 17:45
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If your phone is still on contract, you can contact the carrier, may be they will help you. However, without proper proof that you are the owner of the phone, I doubt they can do anything helpful.

So the first thing is to try if you can find some paper or receipt to prove you are the owner.

dumbfingers
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  • your carrier should be able to give you the IMEI of the phone, even if it is not under contract. If the device was on their network, they know the IMEI. This will not help get it back, but as stated, it will get you the IMEI. – Ryan Conrad Jul 07 '12 at 14:43
  • @RyanConrad yes, carrier would keep record of all the devices using their infrastructure, however, they might not just give it to you unless you can persuade them... – dumbfingers Jul 07 '12 at 22:58
  • +1 My carrier's online billing website and paper bills both list the model and IMEI of all the phones on my account (and the website shows all the phones I've ever had on the account). – GAThrawn Jul 10 '12 at 09:49
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Have you not thought about using Plan B and install it remotely, to email you back the coordinates. Even Locate My Droid is another option to find out if its nearby.

All of this a gamble - was there sufficient charge? did it have wifi? Furthermore, the sooner you apply that software the better result, as the minutes are counting, the chances of retrieving it back gets smaller.

t0mm13b
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    Honestly, all of these apps, like plan-b, locate my droid, and any thing that is going to help you find a stolen device are useless. If I were going to steal someone's phone, the first thing I would do after I grabbed the device, would be to pop the battery out. Then once I got to "the safe house", I would take out the sim, put the battery in, boot it to recovery mode and wipe it clean. If i cared about the info that is on the device (not just the sdcard), i would boot without the sim and remove any apps, etc. I think you get my point though... – Ryan Conrad Jul 07 '12 at 14:48
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    @RyanConrad not getting drawn into that debate as you'd be pretty surprised how thick some thieves can be...what would thieves know about rebooting, cwm, recovery, etc, just saying.... its the value of the handset not the inside of it.... ;) – t0mm13b Jul 07 '12 at 14:50
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    oh, i wasn't posting to debate either. but you pointing out that the device is the value, not the data, so a thief should know how to wipe it (well, I would think). And if that is the case, it makes it easier, because wiping will be done ASAP. You don't need cwm, or even a recovery to wipe a device either, it can be done right in the device settings. – Ryan Conrad Jul 07 '12 at 14:54
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    @RyanConrad what you stated in the reply to my answer, you coming up with what you'd do if you were to steal someone's phone, you're talking about yourself there! You have the knowledge, a thief would not have that knowledge! That's the point I am making! – t0mm13b Jul 07 '12 at 14:58
  • @t0mm13b What makes you think that he's not a thief? Or that I'm not one? I've met some people with pretty questionable ethics and background who know a lot about computers and portable electronics. –  Jul 30 '12 at 17:28
  • +1 That "Plan B" App is a killer, good to know (one never knows if Richard or Ryan come around) ;) – Zuul Jul 30 '12 at 17:46
  • @Ryan For your next theft: Don't just factory reset, but flash a new ROM you can trust. Many anti-theft solutions survive factory reset. – iOS Jul 31 '12 at 10:11
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    @Sachin: That's the reason why carriers insist on ensuring the bootloader is locked! And when/if the thief unlocks the bootloader, it wipes data upon reboot after a unlock...just sayin... – t0mm13b Jul 31 '12 at 13:14
  • @SachinShekhar putting the anti-theft stuff in /system would be a good idea, if you have root. BTW, i have never stolen anyone's phone, nor would I. – Ryan Conrad Jul 31 '12 at 13:53
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You could try the following idea but it's a long shot.

There is an app for Android called AndroidLost . The best part about it is that you can install it remotely, register it and then send a command from their site in order to get the status of your phone (including the imei code).

On their site are guides how to install the app, how to send commands to the phone and a lot more.

I'm not sure if it will work because even if you schedule an install command on google for the app, it will be installed only when wifi or networking is on.

I said it's a long shot because in 2 days a lot could have happened to that phone, including a reset, sim change and so on.

yohlulz
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