Apple said on Monday that it will offer the "Find My iPhone" feature of Mobileme to iOS 4.2 users at no cost.
"Find My iPhone" was previously available as part of Apple"s MobileMe subscription package. MobileMe offers consumers an @me.com email address with push email, contacts and calendar support for Apple"s range of mobile devices. The "Find My iPhone" service allows users to track, lock and wipe their devices remotely. iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad users can all login to Apple"s MobileMe site at me.com to track their devices. The MobileMe site allows users to also display a message on the device or play a sound.
The announcement of the free feature came as Apple is set to release iOS 4.2 for iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch. Apple briefly mentioned the free service change as part of the iOS announcement:
"The Find My iPhone (or iPad or iPod touch) feature is now free to use without a MobileMe℠ subscription and helps you locate your missing device.* The Find My iPhone app is a free download on the App Store℠ and lets users easily locate a missing device on a map and have it display a message or play a sound. Users can even remotely lock or wipe data from a lost device to protect privacy."
Find My iPhone will be available to iPhone 4, iPad and fourth-generation iPod Touch owners starting today.