AirTag Includes U1 Chip for 'Precision Finding' Feature

[Rafagon]

handy if you lose something like your keys somewhere in your home.

As I already mentioned in a previous post, the ability to detect not just "left" or "right" but also "above" and "below" will be crucial. I live on the fourth floor of a four-story building, and if I leave my keys at my friend's place on the second floor, it could tell me "your keys are 10 feet to your right" but if it fails to include the crucial message "and 20 feet below you", then that "10 feet to your right" will be pretty useless.

Here's another example: a mountain-climber loses his or her keys when they're 700 feet up and then realizes that his or her keys are missing when they're 900 feet up. Sure, the keys might be 70 feet to their left, but without mentioning that they're also 200 feet below, the AirTags are going to be pretty useless.

As humans, we move in three dimensions, not just two. I hope Apple took this into consideration.

 

[FireFish]

shh. Listen carefully;

you can actually hear the nail hitting the coffin over at Tile.

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

Can I just interject here and say something no one seems to be talking about!! The airtag IF stolen, will alert the thieve if he has an iPhone that there is a tag tracking him. So he can dispose of it and keep my wallet. How is this a good idea?? I understand the need for privacy but seriously if I wanted to track someone I can just buy something on Amazon to do it. This makes no sense if someone actually wants to rob me?!?!

Doesn't the owner of the tag have to report it lost first?
Does the Find app notify the user that others might be notified that you reported it lost?

If so, then it's common sense not to report it lost until you find it or can no longer track your tag.

 

[Calion]

Who’s putting those airtags into the kids lunch boxes, bag pack, shoes?

Except that an Airtag costs more than a lunchbox or kids’ shoes.

 

[Dammit Cubs]

So Apple releases the Find My network for third parties...

...then immediately abuses its competitive advantage by including proprietary chip technology that makes it far better and more useful than every other product that can use the Find My network.

And for what? To scrape up $29 sales? I feel really bad for anyone in the tracker tag business.

This has anti-trust law suits written all over it.

Chipolo one is 29 Bucks and you can get it now.... it has met the requirements to be on Apple‘s find my network

 

[Wando64]

Who’s putting those airtags into the kids lunch boxes, bag pack, shoes?

Are you worried about loosing those items around the house or are you more concerned about tracking your kids?
Unless your kids also carry an iPhone with them the Airtag is going to be rather usless for the purpose of tracking them, and if they already have the iPhone you can already track them with Find My linked to their phones.

Or am I missing some amazing feature?

 

[hipnetic]

I was excited about this before, and I may still find a use for some, but the thief-friendly design is really frustrating.

As an interesting side-note, yesterday I somehow came across an article about Helium and it's "People's Network" and LongFi. That then led me down the path of reading up on these IoT networks. I'm not sure if there are multiple competing standards in the USA, so I still have more reading to do. But perhaps something like this will meet the needs of theft-protection (and other use cases).

 

[hipnetic]

Chipolo one is 29 Bucks and you can get it now.... it has met the requirements to be on Apple‘s find my network

AFAIK, the Chipolo ONE Spot (which is the specific model that is compatible with Apple's Find My feature) isn't shipping until June and they just have an email sign-up button on their website to get notified when you can pre-order.

 

[Lemon Olive]

Are you worried about loosing those items around the house or are you more concerned about tracking your kids?
Unless your kids also carry an iPhone with them the Airtag is going to be rather usless for the purpose of tracking them, and if they already have the iPhone you can already track them with Find My linked to their phones.

Or am I missing some amazing feature?

I think this part is a bit nebulous, because the supposed magic of the Find My network is in its ability to locate devices by pinging anonymously off of any nearby Apple device. But I've never seen this demonstrated to see how well it really works. Presumably your AirTag could be far away from you, and you could still get location updates as other Apple devices come near it.

 

[Lemon Olive]

Chipolo one is 29 Bucks and you can get it now.... it has met the requirements to be on Apple‘s find my network

Chipolo doesn't ship until June and doesn't have a U1 chip. What chance to do they have?

 

[Wando64]

I think this part is a bit nebulous, because the supposed magic of the Find My network is in its ability to locate devices by pinging anonymously off of any nearby Apple device. But I've never seen this demonstrated to see how well it really works. Presumably your AirTag could be far away from you, and you could still get location updates as other Apple devices come near it.

Is Apple going to pay for the data usage?
Surely there has to be an "opt in" mechanism.

 

[Lemon Olive]

Is Apple going to pay for the data usage?
Surely there has to be an "opt in" mechanism.

Why? There is way too much of this "opt in/opt out" nonsense as it is. Good ideas like this should not be hampered by whiney know it all users who say, "Not me"

 

[Wando64]

Why? There is way too much of this "opt in/opt out" nonsense as it is. Good ideas like this should not be hampered by whiney know it all users who say, "Not me"

No offence taken, but thanks all the same.

In the meantime I found some more info from Apple and I didn't get belittled in the process:

"How does it work?​

Your AirTag sends out a secure Bluetooth signal that can be detected by nearby devices in the Find My network. These devices send the location of your AirTag to iCloud — then you can go to the Find My app and see it on a map. The whole process is anonymous and encrypted to protect your privacy. And itʼs efficient, so thereʼs no need to worry about battery life or data usage."

 

[ErikGrim]

Chipolo one is 29 Bucks and you can get it now.... it has met the requirements to be on Apple‘s find my network

My mate who got them has had nothing but troubles with them. Basically they aren't working at all.

 

[hometech99]

That's my problem as well. I would like to use them to protect something like my bicycle. A thief will be notified there is a tracker inside and will just find it and discard it. Wtf??

That's my problem as well. I would like to use them to protect something like my bicycle. A thief will be notified there is a tracker inside and will just find it and discard it. Wtf??

You still have time to have law enforcement retrieve it...it only alerts them with a current iOS and once they return to what’s in their address book labeled as “home”:

Apple AirTags 'Anti-Stalker' Feature Explained: How It Can Track Thieves

Apple's anti-stalker privacy feature works differently than some people believe, and means AirTags can track stolen items.

petapixel.com

 

[FireFish]

Except that an Airtag costs more than a lunchbox or kids’ shoes.

My sister‘s Honda CR/V was stolen in Riverdale, NY. Thankfully I had a Tile inside.

I love stalking carjackers who are dumb enough to steal a car, not realize there’s a Tile inside, and literally watch them park the car outside their Harlem apartment complex, while all along leading us and the cops to them.

 

[Wando64]

My sister‘s Honda CR/V was stolen in Riverdale, NY. Thankfully I had a Tile inside.

I love stalking carjackers who are dumb enough to steal a car, not realize there’s a Tile inside, and literally watch them park the car outside their Harlem apartment complex, while all along leading us and the cops to them.

What an amazing sequence of events.
Considering that Tile can be located (but not tracked) only if there is another Tile App user within Bluetooth reach of the Tile itself, I think the odds of something like this happening to anyone else are rather slim.