AirTag in my car keeps ringing randomly when i enter the car

[fanta]

I have an airtag in my car. Sometimes, when i come to the car, i can hear the airag it ringing a few times after i enter the car - without me doing anything to the airtag at that moment or previously.

I was thinking that it might be the battery but i'm not getting any battery hints + the airtag is only just half a year old.

does anybody have an idea why this might be happening?

 

[Feek]

Mine does this occasionally and it's the same, no low battery and it all seems fine. I've decided that it's just the AirTag welcoming me into the car and saying hello.

 

[Cruncher]

same for me. Sometimes when I dingle around the key a bit it realize that my phone is nearby and then stops.

 

[addamas]

Just remove speaker in it
Someone made this great tutorial.

 

[waw74]

the AirTags will ring if they sense motion, and haven't seen the owners phone for a while. So until they do a location update, and your phone responds back (or however it works, apple is purposefully a bit vague, to prevent people from finding work arounds), the tags will think you're not around.
Just a guess, but they probably ring only when it's been a while since you last drove.


This would also apply to someone who stole your car, they would be able to hear the ringing. If you can figure out where the ring was coming from, they could also and disable the tag. I'd move it to were you can't hear the ring, or disable the speaker as above.

 

[anselpela]

It's beeping because the usage pattern matches that of person-tracking aka stalking behavior and not the intended usage of AirTag. AirTag is not meant to be attached to things that are outside of the personal possession of the owner. They are not for tracking vehicles or pets or anything that isn't constantly with you. Despite that, people seem to use them for these things a lot.

 

[redheeler]

It's beeping because the usage pattern matches that of person-tracking aka stalking behavior and not the intended usage of AirTag. AirTag is not meant to be attached to things that are outside of the personal possession of the owner. They are not for tracking vehicles or pets or anything that isn't constantly with you. Despite that, people seem to use them for these things a lot.

If they're not meant to track possessions that can leave your person to become lost, and not meant to deter theft of a car, bicycle, etc., then what exactly are they meant for?

I was given an AirTag for my birthday a year ago and have yet to take it out of the package precisely because I have no idea of the answer to this question.

 

[anselpela]

If they're not meant to track possessions that can leave your person to become lost, and not meant to deter theft of a car, bicycle, etc., then what exactly are they meant for?

I was given an AirTag for my birthday a year ago and have yet to take it out of the package precisely because I have no idea of the answer to this question.

Keys? Backpacks? Wallets? Purses? Briefcases? Do I really need to list for you what "personal possessions" are?

 

[redheeler]

Keys? Backpacks? Wallets? Purses? Briefcases? Do I really need to list for you what "personal possessions" are?

So AirTag isn't for items I'm likely to lose, it's for items I'm not likely to lose because they're always attached to me, meaning I'd sense their absence immediately...

 

[Coffee50]

So AirTag isn't for items I'm likely to lose, it's for items I'm not likely to lose because they're always attached to me, meaning I'd sense their absence immediately...

It is for items that could get lost / misplaced. In a general sense things likes keys, luggage, backpacks, wallets etc. do get left behind (or in the case of luggage "lost")

I know people who have misplaced keys inside their own house. They were left in a pants or jacket pocket, in the clothes hamper, etc.

Obviously there are people who are very perceptive / organized so they'd be more aware. There are just as many people (or more) who leave or misplace things. It seems so unlikely that a person wouldn't notice, but it happens.

A look at any "Lost & Found" section at a mall, theme park, hotel, movie theater, etc. shows there are a TON of lost and forgotten items.

I lost my car keys at at AMC once. It was during a cooler season, so I wore a jacket & at some point during the movie my keys fell out of my jacket pocket (Reclining seats + loud movie explosions apparently made it easy for them to fall out of my pocket with me knowing it). By the time I got to my car I realized I didn't have them, but we had made a few stops at other shops, so in a panic, we had to retrace our steps.

For me, it's more of a (cheap) additional level of protection. I always put AirTags in my luggage when I travel, so if my luggage gets left behind / lost. It makes it easier to show the airline rep where it is (And it definitely works in those regards)

My goal is to NOT have to use AirTags (because that means I misplaced something) but I have them in the event I need them.

 

[redheeler]

It is for items that could get lost / misplaced. In a general sense things likes keys, luggage, backpacks, wallets etc. do get left behind (or in the case of luggage "lost")

I know people who have misplaced keys inside their own house. They were left in a pants or jacket pocket, in the clothes hamper, etc.

Obviously there are people who are very perceptive / organized so they'd be more aware. There are just as many people (or more) who leave or misplace things. It seems so unlikely that a person wouldn't notice, but it happens.

A look at any "Lost & Found" section at a mall, theme park, hotel, movie theater, etc. shows there are a TON of lost and forgotten items.

I lost my car keys at at AMC once. It was during a cooler season, so I wore a jacket & at some point during the movie my keys fell out of my jacket pocket (Reclining seats + loud movie explosions apparently made it easy for them to fall out of my pocket with me knowing it). By the time I got to my car I realized I didn't have them, but we had made a few stops at other shops, so in a panic, we had to retrace our steps.

For me, it's more of a (cheap) additional level of protection. I always put AirTags in my luggage when I travel, so if my luggage gets left behind / lost. It makes it easier to show the airline rep where it is (And it definitely works in those regards)

My goal is to NOT have to use AirTags (because that means I misplaced something) but I have them in the event I need them.

Putting it in luggage is definitely a smart idea. Not sure if luggage counts in their definition of "personal possessions" that never leave your person, with the possible exception of carry-ons.

Though I agree, even if just talking about the carry-on/personal item it's a good use case. Surprisingly easy to lose, e.g. a camera at the airport. That's happened to me before.

 

[anselpela]

So AirTag isn't for items I'm likely to lose, it's for items I'm not likely to lose because they're always attached to me, meaning I'd sense their absence immediately...

Right, because people never lose their keys. Or any of the aforementioned items.

 

[anselpela]

Putting it in luggage is definitely a smart idea. Not sure if luggage counts in their definition of "personal possessions" that never leave your person, with the possible exception of carry-ons.

Though I agree, even if just talking about the carry-on/personal item it's a good use case. Surprisingly easy to lose, e.g. a camera at the airport. That's happened to me before.

Checked luggage definitely does not match Apple's designed use for AirTags, but is a wise thing to use them for anyway. No one really cares if an AirTag inside a checked bag occasionally beeps. Though it becomes an issue if its traveling in close proximity to someone else with an iPhone, because then the tracking alerts start to happen.

My parents insist on keeping an AirTag on their dog's collar, because he's a runner, and every time I watch him for a few days, the tag will beep on and off, because its away from its original owner. And if I take the dog for a walk, I get the stalking alerts, because its "moving" with me.

 

[redheeler]

No one really cares if an AirTag inside a checked bag occasionally beeps.

Until that one baggage handler who calls the police to report hearing a bomb timer inside a bag 🙃

At least the beeping inside the car carries a lower risk of that

(edit: The environments baggage handlers work in are loud enough that they likely won't be able to hear it, luckily for anyone trying this)

 

[redheeler]

My parents insist on keeping an AirTag on their dog's collar, because he's a runner, and every time I watch him for a few days, the tag will beep on and off, because its away from its original owner. And if I take the dog for a walk, I get the stalking alerts, because its "moving" with me.

Can you pair an AirTag to multiple people's phones? Seems like that would solve this issue as you're a trusted person.

But if Apple's intended usage for AirTag is really as limited as you make it seem then there probably isn't a way to do this.

I'd care a lot more about losing my dog than losing my keys regardless what the intended usage of the AirTag is...

 

[anselpela]

Can you pair an AirTag to multiple people's phones?

Nope. Not even with family sharing, and that is definitely on purpose, to discourage the kinds of use that is not intended.

I'd care a lot more about losing my dog than losing my keys regardless what the intended usage of the AirTag is...

Hence why people ignore it and use them anyway. But people shouldn't be confused when their usage triggers the protection features that are built in.

 

[anselpela]

Until that one baggage handler who calls the police to report hearing a bomb timer inside a bag 🙃

At least the beeping inside the car carries a lower risk of that

(edit: The environments baggage handlers work in are loud enough that they likely won't be able to hear it, luckily for anyone trying this)

Hahah. Not sure if you would hear an AirTag buried inside a suit case as the tone is very very quiet. But I'd worry about that scenario just the same. There have been many stories of people tracking their lost luggage with AirTags when the airline either has no idea where the bag is, or has given false information about its location.

 

[CC91UK]

I recently got an AirTag as a free gift and have it in my car - I noticed the chimes as well. I know Maps gives you the location of your parked car but I'm assuming an AirTag is more precise. A couple of years ago (before I had an iPhone) I struggled to find my car in a multi-storey car park, and I'm hoping that if this happens again the AirTag will help me find which floor I parked on!

 

[jdavid_rp]

I would think the beeping is not related to the owner getting into the car but that the owner has been away from the car for a long period of time. You could test it getting into the car without any FindMy compatible device and check if it beeps and if it keeps beeping after a while.

Technically is one of the anti stalking features