Jason Howell/ZDNET ZDNET s key takeaways Notify when left behind appears in Google s Find Hub. It notifies you when registered devices are left at an unsaved location. The feature is limited right now, but it s a welcome update. A much-needed update “Notify when left behind” is rolling out to Google’s Find My hub. The feature sends a notification when a registered device is separated from your phone, except when you leave it at your house.
Also: 7 Galaxy settings I always change to boost my battery life According to 9to5Google , this feature was first previewed in October, with the notification available for Chipolo trackers and Moto Tag . More from ZDNET Trending Now I tested the RedMagic 12 Pro – and it’s the fastest Android I’ve ever seen 11/03/2026 I tried replacing Claude Code with a local AI stack that’s completely free – how it went 11/06/2026 I tried local AI on HP’s Omnibook Ultra – it’s a private, powerful beast with zero token fees 11/06/2026 This feature is not yet available for other peripherals such as headphones.
I tried to see if my Sony WH-1000XM6 headphones or Google Pixel Buds Pro 2 have it they don’t. Hopefully, support is on the way. In the meantime, here’s what we know. Notify finally comes to Android “Notify when left behind” is my all-time favorite device tracking feature on iOS. Any device set up on my Find My network is compatible with this feature, including my MacBook Air, AirPods Pro 3, and Apple Watch, three devices I often take out of the house and have indeed left behind once or twice.
Also: Google s Pixel Tag tracker has a big advantage over AirTags If these devices are separated from my phone in an unsaved location, I’ll get a notification of which device I left and where. In iOS, you can customize which locations are “safe,” and won’t notify you if you leave them there. On Android, this feature is currently limited to only notifying you when a device is left at a location other than the home address registered to your Google account.
Hopefully, location customization is on the horizon. How to enable the feature Right now, this feature appears to be limited to specific Bluetooth trackers. Photos shared by 9to5Google show compatible trackers have a Notify when left behind tab at the bottom of their menu in the Find Hub, so it s expected that future supported devices will operate the same way.
9to5Google reports that previous updates to Google Play Services indicated this feature’s existence. According to 9to5Google, “Notify when left behind” should be a feature that users can enable when registering a new device with their Find Hub. Also: I m an Apple Maps fan, but I switch to Google Maps for these 3 tasks Once Google matures and fully rolls out this feature, there should be a setting inside the Find Hub to enable these notifications on every device in your hub.
Android’s advantage over Apple Android s breadth of compatibility with third-party manufacturers is its most significant advantage over Apple. Regarding device tracking, you can add Sony headphones, Motorola trackers, and Samsung Galaxy smartwatches to the same Find Hub. Also: Apple has a Bluetooth problem, and Android is taking advantage However, my Beats headphones that appear in my Find My hub are not currently supported by this new feature.
If Google can expand this feature to all Fast Pair-compatible devices, such as Bluetooth trackers, headphones, smartwatches, laptops, and more, it’ll be easier for consumers to keep tabs on their ever-growing armory of devices. Show Comments Log In to Comment Log Out Community Guidelines Please accept cookies to view the comments powered by Disqus.
Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. Jada Jones Editor Jada Jones is a journalist based outside of Atlanta, Georgia. She graduated from Georgia State University with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism. Jada is ZDNET s audio editor and regularly reviews the latest flagship headphones, earbuds, speakers, soundbars, and more.