Amid 'Apple Tag' Rumors, Tile Announces New 3M Adhesive 'Sticker' and Updated 'Slim' Electronic Trackers

[MacRumors]

Amid rumors that Apple is developing a Tile-like accessory that will help users keep track of their personal belongings, Tile today announced a new smart tracker called the Sticker, along with an updated Tile Slim.

About the size of a quarter, the Tile Sticker is the company's smallest tracker to date, and features waterproofing and a 3M adhesive backing for attaching it to most metal and plastic objects, including remote controls, cameras, and outdoor gear. The Tile Sticker is available in black and in twin packs for $39.99, or a pack of four for $59.99.

Meanwhile, the Tile Slim assumes a new compact form factor that's the shape and thinness of two credit cards. It also now features a three-year battery life, a speaker that's twice as loud as the previous model, and a 200-foot range. The Tile Slim also comes in black and costs $29.99 for a single device.

In addition, Tile's most popular tags - the Mate and Pro - have had their ranges extended to 400 feet. The Tile Mate costs $24.99 and the Tile Pro can be had for $34.99. All Tile trackers are available today from Tile's website, Amazon, and other retailers.

Based on assets discovered in iOS 13 by MacRumors, Apple's equivalent electronic tracker accessory is expected to be a small, circular tag with an Apple logo in the center.

The tags will be closely integrated with the new Find My app in iOS 13 and macOS Catalina, which merged Apple's previous Find My iPhone and Find My Friends services into one.

Apple Tags concept by MacRumors​

While not available in public betas of iOS 13, the internal build contains a new "Items" tab in the Find My app for iPhone and iPad, which allows users to track the location of personal belongings.

Noted Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has said he expects Apple's tags to feature ultra-wideband or "UWB" technology, which can be found in the iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, and iPhone 11 Pro Max.

Ultra-wideband is a short-range, low-power radio technology that is able to provide more precise indoor positioning than Bluetooth LE and Wi-Fi, suggesting that Apple's tags will be more accurate at pinpointing the location of lost items than Tile's current item trackers, which rely on Bluetooth LE.

Apple's tagging products went unmentioned at its September 10 event, but it's possible the company could make some sort of announcement soon, possibly during an October event.

Apple has several rumored products in its pipeline that could make an appearance as early as this month, including a 16-inch MacBook Pro with a scissor keyboard and an all-new design, refreshed iPad Pro models that will possibly sport triple-lens rear camera systems, and a refreshed Apple TV.

Article Link: Amid 'Apple Tag' Rumors, Tile Announces New 3M Adhesive 'Sticker' and Updated 'Slim' Electronic Trackers

 

[newyorksole]

Looking forward to this month’s event. I do think they’ll have 1.

 

[macobyte]

All this does is make me want Apple’s tags more. If Apple’s solution using UWB requires no charging or stays charged for multiple years and is very small and thin, they it will address every issue I’ve had with Tile. I think Tile will be dead in the water.

All signs pointed to an imminent announcement before the last event. Have their been any rumors as to why it was held back? Technical issues like AirPower?

 

[Sasparilla]

Looking forward to this month’s event. I do think they’ll have 1.

Agreed....time is getting on for them to announce something. Guess it'll be towards the end.

 

[Crowbot]

I was getting ready to buy some Tiles when I first heard of Apple's upcoming entry. If it works like their other stuff it should have some neat features. Nobody integrates like Apple.

 

[rmoliv]

Ridiculous product. Never needed such a thing to find my belongings.

 

[JosephAW]

Yes but is the battery replaceable? The traxx it devices from five below are.

 

[pika2000]

I'm not sure why people are so fascinated with these. Seriously, how many people actually bought and used these things?

 

[IIGS User]

All this does is make me want Apple’s tags more. If Apple’s solution using UWB requires no charging or stays charged for multiple years and is very small and thin, they it will address every issue I’ve had with Tile. I think Tile will be dead in the water.

All signs pointed to an imminent announcement before the last event. Have their been any rumors as to why it was held back? Technical issues like AirPower?

Will it use Air Power???

Discharged minds want to know

 

[magicschoolbus]

These will be a huge hit for urban dwellers, can't tell you how many times I always did a double check or knew people leaving their belongings behind on trains in and out of NYC/subways/ubers.

 

[Abazigal]

I'm not sure why people are so fascinated with these. Seriously, how many people actually bought and used these things?

I tried, but was put off by the bugginess.

If Apple can use their system integration to do away with the pain points like what they did with the AirPods, we may well have a winner here.

 

[Crowbot]

I'm not sure why people are so fascinated with these. Seriously, how many people actually bought and used these things?

The lure of not losing things (or being able to find lost things) is very strong.

 

[manu chao]

All this does is make me want Apple’s tags more. If Apple’s solution using UWB requires no charging or stays charged for multiple years and is very small and thin, they it will address every issue I’ve had with Tile. I think Tile will be dead in the water.

You think Tile couldn't survive with Android users only?

 

[Crowbot]

You think Tile couldn't survive with Android users only?

Maybe they could come out with a model that works with Android.

 

[zombierunner]

Why not just buy out Tile instead of putting them out of business?

 

[macobyte]

You think Tile couldn't survive with Android users only?

Fair point. But I think Tile pretty clearly markets to the iPhone crowd and is certainly aimed at older users who misplace things, and they tend to prefer iOS to Android.

I’d bet iOS users are more than half their market and Apple’s first party solution will take those folks away, and more than half their revenue with it. That’s a big hit for a relatively small hardware company like Tile.

 

[Bin Cook]

Genuinely staggered these are even a thing, and at those prices.

The only things I can think I'd want to track are my wallet and my car keys. And even with the wallet, all my cards are either in my phone or on my watch. Car keys could easily incorporate this feature without me needing to pay 40 bucks for an attachment (assuming you ignore the idea that my watch should be able to open and start my car anyway).

 

[maflynn]

You think Tile couldn't survive with Android users only?

Or that that some apple users will still buy tile.

I tried, but was put off by the bugginess.

If Apple can use their system integration to do away with the pain points like what they did with the AirPods, we may well have a winner here.

Because Apple never rolls out a buggy product

I think Apple will have a nice product, that may offer a number of advantages, but they have a history of pricing their products rather high. This is at its very nature a disposable product and I'd not want to spend hundreds.

 

[oldmacs]

Fair point. But I think Tile pretty clearly markets to the iPhone crowd and is certainly aimed at older users who misplace things, and they tend to prefer iOS to Android.

I’d bet iOS users are more than half their market and Apple’s first party solution will take those folks away, and more than half their revenue with it. That’s a big hit for a relatively small hardware company like Tile.

I'd be surprised if Apple users are half their marketshare..

My concern with Apple's implementation is that there will be no replaceable battery (thus environmentally bad) and also high cost. I've been a tile user for a while now and they are affordable and also (now) have a model with replaceable batteries.

 

[fmcshan]

It’s been pretty funny watching Tile over the past few months. Before Apple’s September event they sent units to influencers that pretty much said “Hey, don’t forget about us!” Now they are releasing new products to try to become as established as they can before Apple releases its own Tile-like tracker.

 

[manu chao]

Maybe they could come out with a model that works with Android.

I would guess against them doing so. Not least because they may not be able to offer such a deep system integration on Android. But they might just work on Android simply because they comply with Bluetooth and UWB standards, though most likely with somewhat lesser functionality and performance, the same way Apple Bluetooth headphones work with any phone via Bluetooth but have less range and less features (easy switching between devices) there.

 

[roland.g]

3 year battery life is an improvement but don’t call it a Sticker!!

It’s slightly larger than a quarter and as thick as more than 4 quarters stacked!!!Look at the website with the picks of it attached to things. Now imagine sticking a stack of 4 quarters on the back of something. That’s big!!

 

[MrGimper]

Ridiculous product. Never needed such a thing to find my belongings.

I'm not sure why people are so fascinated with these. Seriously, how many people actually bought and used these things?

I do, hope that's ok with you both?

 

[Jsameds]

Ridiculous product. Never needed such a thing to find my belongings.

I bet you'll lose something now you've said that.

 

[kurosov]

All signs pointed to an imminent announcement before the last event. Have their been any rumors as to why it was held back? Technical issues like AirPower?

With all the issues in the iOS 13 Beta and how quickly they wanted to move to . Releases I wouldn’t be surprised if it was software issues. It’s not the kind of product they’d want to announce and launch if the software side was really buggy.