AirTag Shipments Reportedly Grown Over Time, Making Second-Generation Model More Likely

[hcherry]

Would love to see alternative shapes/configurations to give you more options for placement.

I’ve also found the sound the AirTags plays to be just a tad too quiet. Anyone else?

 

[MVMNT]

Imagine the e-waste mess if they ever made 1st gen obsolete.

 

[contacos]

Imagine the e-waste mess if they ever made 1st gen obsolete.

Just look at the AirPods. Great device for about 2 years before the battery is dead

 

[Shanghaichica]

They are so useful for me. I have 8 and will probably get a few more. Before AirTags the Apple TV remotes used to go missing all the time in my house and they could go missing for months on end. Since attaching AirTags to all the remotes I’ve not had a single one lost in well over a year.

 

[Shanghaichica]

Hopefully AirTag's expanded not just to different form factors, but also built-in to other Apple & third party products (I'm looking at you, AppleTV Remote. If only I could find mine... 😬)

Just attach one to the back of your remote. They have been a life saver in this house. No remotes lost since AirTags launched. There are even cases that have a cut out for an AirTag.

 

[_apple_apple_]

I think gen 2 will be the same shape as gen 1 due to all of the accessories, with different internals. I don't think they'll switch to Li battery due to fire risk (not sure if button batteries are any better though). Apple could make a new type of AirTag though, AirTag+ or something with more sensors.

There was a patent filing a couple years back with loads of fancy use cases for AirTags, but they all required motion/light sensor and some other stuff. I was wondering if Apple gave up or if they chose to launch a simpler device to test the waters.

 

[Whathappened]

They are so useful for me. I have 8 and will probably get a few more. Before AirTags the Apple TV remotes used to go missing all the time in my house and they could go missing for months on end. Since attaching AirTags to all the remotes I’ve not had a single one lost in well over a year.

Other people just clean up.

 

[unregbaron]

2. .. I recently lost my wallet so this is a sore point for me. I almost certainly would still have it if it had had an AirTag!

Hopefully we won't need wallets soon when official ID in Apple Wallet is given the go ahead.

 

[philstubbington]

This is such a glairing omission, I don’t understand it.

It’s deliberate. Having just bought some more that arrived today the number of warnings about privacy and tracking during setup indicates Apple are rightly concerned about stalking, etc.

 

[tastesliketailpipe]

2nd gen without removable speaker will put 1st gen in much higher demand.

 

[Xand&Roby]

If you have to worry/be concerned about ‘where your car is’ when it’s getting repaired, I’d probably suggest a new repair shop.

Just sayin’.

It’s a little more complicated than that, in reality.

It’s full of repairers who use cars as if they were their own, create damage and repair them, if they repair them, at little expense.

 

[Xand&Roby]

I think the biggest improvements for me would be:

1. Rechargeable battery. Coin cells are annoying, dangerous to small children, and not environmentally friendly. Could you make an AirTag that charges on an Apple Watch charger, or any wireless phone charger?

2. Thinner profile. If the AirTag wasn’t so fat it could fit inside wallets, for example. I recently lost my wallet so this is a sore point for me. I almost certainly would still have it if it had had an AirTag!

I have one in my wallet since April 30, 2021, when they were made available, one in the car, one in a motorcycle, one in my backpack. Sure in your wallet it's not thin, but if you delete coins it's not much thicker.

 

[tastesliketailpipe]

It’s deliberate. Having just bought some more that arrived today the number of warnings about privacy and tracking during setup indicates Apple are rightly concerned about stalking, etc.

They’re only concerned now cos of negative headlines AirTags been generating. They’re only started concerning when they got called out on it.

They knew the risks from the start - everybody knows about the risks of trackers and how they can be used against people.

 

[44267547]

It’s full of repairers who use cars as if they were their own, create damage and repair them

That’s a lot of hyperbole that’s a bit extreme. I’ve never had that happen and never heard of that happening.

Back to the point of the AirTag, I can see why it’s would be useful, but like I said before, if you have to worry about a shop joyriding your car or where your vehicle is, then you should find a different shop. It’s that simple.

 

[Devin Breeding]

I am not completely convinced by the way it operates (only when in range of another iProduct) and by the battery life, but frankly it remains much better than any competition in the same price range.

Just tracked four I shipped to my parents to use when they move. Not only was it better than USPS tracking, but I could even tell what plane terminal it was in. They are good. Very good. Like a tiny bit of magic 🙂

 

[Xand&Roby]

That’s a lot of hyperbole that’s a bit extreme. I’ve never had that happen and never heard of that happening.

Back to the point of the AirTag, I can see why it’s would be useful, but like I said before, if you have to worry about a shop joyriding your car or where your vehicle is, then you should find a different shop. It’s that simple.

Personally, it happened to me with three different cars four times, of which I am aware because I saw the damage, but I am sure it happened several times with the sports car, with which too many “enjoy” trying it. And I changed 16 mechanics in 8 years.

 

[Wanted797]

Hopefully in the 2nd gen you can share an airtag amongst your family.

This is literally why I haven’t bought them.

I want to hide one in each of mine and my wife’s car. But we swap cars. I don’t want her or me getting annoying “there’s and AirTag with you” message.

 

[44267547]

I want to hide one in each of mine and my wife’s car. But we swap cars. I don’t want her or me getting annoying “there’s and AirTag with you” message.

It’s a simple one-time notification. It’s not like it keeps repeating itself. I wouldn’t let that be the sole reason why I wouldn’t purchase an AirTag.

 

[DMinTX]

Can a family find a AirTag yet or are they still limited to one owner?

IMHO, lack of family sharing is the reason Air Tags have had slow sales.

 

[Shanghaichica]

Other people just clean up.

My kids hide them. I guess you don’t have small children who hide things in obscure places then.

 

[DrV]

It’s deliberate. Having just bought some more that arrived today the number of warnings about privacy and tracking during setup indicates Apple are rightly concerned about stalking, etc.

I understand the privacy concerns.

However, I am allowed to track a kid's phone by using "find my". I am not allowed to track their stuff. Now, I need to make sure they carry a phone instead of just telling them to carry their keys if I want to know their wherabouts. Of course, I could sew one of my airtags to their pants, but wouldn't that be more intrusive?

(Just to give a bit of background. I happen to live in a country where kids usually walk to school and roam about the neighbourhood on their own when they are around seven.)

 

[matrix07]

Makes it family-sharing-able and I’ll buy 2 packs.

 

[RalfTheDog]

Really happy with my AirTags, they give me a little peace of mind.

Would be nice if they had a rechargeable option in the future, and maybe one that was more rugged / waterproof (for attaching to an adventurous pet or something).

They need to integrate wireless charging into them if they're going to get the bulk down. A slimmer custom battery is possible and a wireless coil is paper thin. The current bulk of an AirTag comes from using a consumer available coin battery that they have no control over. A slimmer battery would just need to stay powered on for a few months after which a quick charge with any wireless Qi or MagSafe charger would top it up. They could get these things to fit in a wallet with no bulk.

Rechargeable batteries would make the AirTags almost useless. Rechargeable batteries don't last that long. The key to AirTags is, you can put them on a device, then ignore them for several years. If you powered them with a rechargeable battery, they would be out of power the first time you tried to find something.

 

[Abazigal]

They need to integrate wireless charging into them if they're going to get the bulk down. A slimmer custom battery is possible and a wireless coil is paper thin. The current bulk of an AirTag comes from using a consumer available coin battery that they have no control over. A slimmer battery would just need to stay powered on for a few months after which a quick charge with any wireless Qi or MagSafe charger would top it up. They could get these things to fit in a wallet with no bulk.

Isn't the point to avoid another Tile-like scenario where your battery dies after 1 year and we are stuck with millions of AirTags being thrown into the trash when it's time to replace them? This way, a single AirTag can theoretically last forever so long as you keep replacing the battery.

 

[RalfTheDog]

Isn't the point to avoid another Tile-like scenario where your battery dies after 1 year and we are stuck with millions of AirTags being thrown into the trash when it's time to replace them? This way, a single AirTag can theoretically last forever so long as you keep replacing the battery.

Not only that, but the charge on an AirTag would run out in days. You would spend half your time trying to find all the AirTags that needed to be put on the charger.