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Everyone claims it won’t happen, right up until the time it does. It’s not that you’re a bad parent or an unobservant pet owner, it’s that they’re quick. And sneaky. Sometimes you get distracted, and it only takes a second. I once lost my sister’s kids while writing up a purchase for someone at a garage sale: One minute they were next to me, the next they were gone. I got lucky and they had just gone to the back yard to play, but I can’t imagine the panic had we been in a busy public place rather than our own front yard.

Findster wants to be your new peace of mind. It’s a GPS locator just like so many others you’ve seen, but with a major difference: No monthly fee! It comes with two primary devices (one each for you and whoever you want to keep tabs on) which are connected wirelessly. All you need to keep track of your loved one is the Findster app on your phone, and you never have to worry about losing them again. It also comes with a base station which will allow you to track them even if you’re not with them, as long as they stay within its range. The complete package consists of a portable charger, parent/guardian module, child or pet module, base station and smartphone app (Android and iOS).

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Findster is pretty small, which makes it easily attached to a pet’s collar or a belt or bag strap (there are two different models depending on if you need it for people or animals). In addition to providing a GPS location for your loved one, Findster also tracks movement so you can know even if you were looking elsewhere that your child has fallen off the swings, or your dog has jumped over the fence. By tracking movements, it also lets you know how much exercise your child or pet is getting even when you’re not around.

Standard range of coverage is 0.62 miles (1 km), but if you need a greater range, just add more base stations. Of course, you’ll have to get permission to place them in areas that are not your property, but in theory you could put a base station at your house, in the park, and at your child’s school so you’re never out of reach should something happen. You can set up virtual fences and security routes and keep track if they wander out of bounds, and not only can you monitor more than one Findster at a time, more than one person can monitor any given Findster as well.

[vimeo http://vimeo.com/94951342]

Findster is currently seeking funding on IndieGogo, where a pledge of at least $89.00 US will get you one guardian module, one kids’ or pets’ module, and one charging module (add $12 to ship within Europe, and $20 to ship elsewhere in the world). They’re even offering a deal where for every person you convince to pledge, they’ll refund $10.00 to you (up to the cost of your pledge). There are about three weeks left in the campaign, and they’re only about $4,000.00 from reaching their goal. Assuming that happens, shipment is slated for April 2015.

Source: Findster

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