treat others the way you would want to be treated.

Im sure that people don't lose things on purpose. Way to take the initiative geek!

It depends on the gadget that I found. If it was a Blackberry, I'd make the effort to return it to the owner because I'm sure he/she needs the data on it. If it's just a cell phone or a camera, I'd turn it into the lost and found depending on where I am. Keep it for myself? Karma is going to bite me in the ass for that one.

Ive done it before. In college my friends and I found a cell phone in front of our dorm and we ended up calling the owners mother to find out what dorm she lived in so we could get it back to her. Its always good to do something nice.

Camera? I don't know, I mean, I wouldn't keep it or anything, but that seems like a lot of work, and I honestly don't think I'd be into it. I'd find someone to turn it in to.

But a cell phone, sure, I'd try to return it.

I would definately try to find the person that lost something. I would hope that someone would return something that I lost.

I've returned 2 cell phones in the past to their owners, I did the same thing.. call the recent person, or text someone they texted. I've also had mine returned to me once, not after the lucky finder prank Texted(?) every boy in my phone book, telling them that I wanted them to do me up the butt. They deleted all the outgoing text messages, but when I got my phone back, i got plenty of calls. Once I lost my phone and never got it back, which is why I suppose I'll always try to find the rightful owner. And oh yeah, once even a cab driver drove to my house the next morning to drop off my phone that I had left in his car the previous night. Yay boston!

Haha FitnFab those are great stories! I have also lost/had my things stolen and it SUCKS! I would never intentionally do that to someone---it's STEALING even if you find it! I mean, it is much easier to reunite a person with a cell phone then a camera--but bring it to the desk/bar/etc of where it was found and HOPE the person goes back there! Once my brother lost his cell phone and the woman who found it would answer the calls from my dad's number and say "HI DAD" and demanded money for the phones return...we just had the phone turned off so she couldn't use it and that ends up helping no one!

The phone was super cheap and really dirty.. But I thought, a phone is a phone is a phone.. Expensive or not, its still full of numbers, etc.

FITnFAB that's too funny!! Not surprisingly, the guy told me not to answer the phone in case crazy ex-girlfriends called. Less drama I guess...

i had this happen on christmas eve! i dropped my phone while i was getting into my car, and didnt realize until i was at home. i called it (about a million times) and a teenaged couple answered and waited where they were for me to get it.

DEF, I would...and I DID!

i have actually done this twice for phones left on the curb outside my house, its a great feeling. and i only wish someone had done this for me when i had left mine in a cab....

yes if i could easily find its owner

When I worked at a theme park here in SoCal, I found a LOT of cell phones. And with the exception of the ones that were fished out of the river - I worked to get them back to their owners, even before taking them to the Park's lost & found.

I'd never keep someone's cell/PDA. That's just bad karma.

I actually found a wallet once and did some research to find it's owner. He was so happy to see it.
Therefore, I would do the same thing if I found someone's cell phone. For a camera, it might be harder to return but if I can I will try.

Of course I would. I was with my oldest when she lost hers. Then I got a call. It seems that the person who found it started calling people in her phone to see if they could track her! We were so happy and it shows that there are some good people out there.

With Craigslist, theres practically no excuse not to at least try and make an effort to reunite the lost item with its owner. I've found cell phones and once I found a camera and just turned it in. I think now I would probably upload a pic to craigslist and see if anyone could identify it. I think I'll search the craigslist lost and found now for fun!

Of course I would!!!
I would want mine to be returned...

I'd return it, I wouldn't feel right keeping something that didn't belong to me.

I've helped reunite a lost cell phone with its owner. It was nice =)

A cell phone, I would definitely try to return -- like you mentioned, it's easy to call people on the recently called list, or wait for the owner to call. I once left my cell phone at a store and didn't even realize, and the store owner called the two numbers listed as my emergency contacts in my address book, and was able to get in touch with me that way. I'd certainly return the favor to someone else -- otherwise, I would have been driving all over town trying to retrace where I had been that day.
A camera might be a little trickier. If there was a blatantly obvious picture, like a couple standing outside a hotel, I would call the hotel to see if any guests had lost a camera, but I probably wouldn't waste a ton of energy trying to find clues and track them down.

Yep, I've done that already. It was at a St. Patrick' Day parade, and while I tried to figure out who owned the phone, calling previously dialed numbers, the owner called her phone. She was at a nearby bar and gave me a huge bear hug when we finally met up. I think the bar losing of the phone and the excitement at finding it.

Cell phone for sure...its not very hard to do

I'm not sure how a camera or other gadget would work though

I would definitely try to return something like that to its rightful owner. I have no business keeping it. And like you said, cell phones are now filled with as much information as a wallet would be. I'd hope someone would do the same for me, or at least try to.

Of course---be it cellphones or other stuff. It still is under the golden rule "If you want the same thing happening to you, you do the same thing". Or in this case, if you don't want your stuff to be returned to you when you lose them, then don't return the lost stuff you found."

Cellphones, definitely!

Cameras are a little trickier. If I can figure it out easily, I would return it too... I guess it would be a good idea to put an address sticker on mine somewhere.

Geez... where were all of you when I lost my last phone? I lost my pink razr at a bar and ended up calling it over and over again until eventually it starting going straight to voicemail, someone had it and turned it off. I was pissed to lose all of my numbers and pictures, but it was a good excuse to finally get a blackberry.

I would never purposely keep something that didn't belong to me. I've returned lost cell phones and I've had a cellphone that had my entire life in it including pictures of my kids, stolen. So I know how it feels to lose something like that.

i'd return a cellphone becuase it's easy to track down the owner with. the camera... ehh not so much. i mean if it had a name and number i'd return it but if it's untraceable.. oh well! how am i supposed to find the owner anyway?

I was reunited with my beloved cell phone after it fell out of my purse on NYE. Luckily I was at a private party (at a bar) and hoped that the person who found my phone would either know me... or feel more compelled to return it to someone who's obvs a friend-of-a-friend. While it must have shut off when it dropped, I sent it a text message with my other phone number pleading for its safe return!

Of course I'd try to track down the owner. I'd feel way too guilty if I didn't. I've returned several wallets over the summers I spent at a golf course, and I Monday I lost my cell phone in a taxi. It's not an expensive one, and it's on a calling card, so it wouldn't have cost me much, but I still felt naked without it. The cab driver found it, and called me to arrange a drop off.

I most definitely would - if I was in that situation, I'd be SO thankful if someone returned my lost belonging to me, especially if it was a camera or a phone. It's so great to know that there are lots of nice people out there like you all who would do the same!

I definitely would try to reunite a lost phone with it's owner. I know I was totally lost without my phone. That's a long story, where my phone end up in (3) pieces in the street. So I guess no one could've reunited me with my phone. But had it been intact I would hope the person who found it would attempt to get it back to me.

i have returned countless cell phones to their owners... calling 'home' or their most recent call. karma pays off too, as one time my cell phone was returned after i lost it skiing, the family mailed it to me from another state!

i would want someone to return my stuff

I have returned lost cells and phones and I would hope that
others would do the same!

I found a phone at the movies (a black razr) but the screen was all messed up and when I went through the phone it turned out to belong to this kid. I called the mom and they lived near me and I gave it back to them and then the woman called me saying I switched her phone! turns out someone found the phone first, switched their messed up screen with a brand new one and left theirs with the sim card! I told the lady, if I found the phone, why would i return it effed up?

some people.

one time I found a disposable camera at disney world placed on a rock. I couldnt exactly find the owner and I used it and when we developed the film, it belonged to some little kids who were taking pictures of cars! I still have the car pics

Definitely!!! I found a cell phone in the restroom last month at Bloomingdales in Manhattan. The owner was still in the store and she was REALLY HAPPY to have her phone back.

It's sad to me how many people chose no, 5%. What's up with that?

Absolutley! Photos are precious to people and phones have so much info on them...losing one is like losing part of your brain these days.

i would return a phone but a with some other gadget it may be hard to find the owner so as long as its not running up someone else's bill i might keep it

I've lost a wallet and had it returned to me (with $700 cash inside!), and I returned a money clip with $300 in it. I know how it feels to lose something like that, and I know how much I appreciated getting it back. Damn straight I'd return it.

I found two phones in school and both times I called the parents (which is to me the most reliable person to call) and told them that they can find their phone at the whatever classroom I would be at or if the class was over to look for it at the lost & found.
A camera, Mp3 player, DS, etc... Sadly I would just leave at the lost & found because I really don't have the time to look their rightful owner... :S

somebody once did it for me, so now I always return the favor

a cell phone i would return, its so easy you just call people, but a camera would be a different story, how would you find the person who it belonged too... just look at pictures and walk around town looking for someone in the picture? i think that would be a little harder.. i mean it all depends on WHERE you found the camera if it was in a bar im sure you could find the person, but if its out on a street or something the chances of you finding the right person are going to be pretty slim

Wow all the way back to Sydney! Kudos to them.

I would surely try to return an item, I've lost my cell phone before and it was never returned.

I left my brand new bright pink Nikon Coolpix camera in a NYC cab about 2 weeks ago, and I know I'll never see it again. Sigh.

I've also left my wallet on the train up here, but someone miraculously returned it! I guess I need to take a picture of my business card and keep it on my next camera, in hopes that someone will return it...

I have done this for several different things (cell phones, wallets, keys, etc) and I always try to find the owner. I don't remember ever losing mine, but my bf did and we called it and he got it back. Karma indeed. Also, y friend and I found a wallet at work, so we turned it in to security. The next day security called us down & the girl had given us a $25 giftcard to the coffee place. We didn't even look to see what was in it (I just checked her id to see if we knew her) but it must have been important.

that is a really good idea s0sarasaid!

I would definitely try to find the owner. Even when I find single earrings on the street, I post them on the Lost and Found section of Craig's List.

I actually just did this about a month ago. I didn't call anyone though, someone called before I could. The owner lived down the block from me.