Apple's Next Product is Likely an AirTag 2 With These New Features

[MacRumors]

Following the introduction of the iPhone 16e, new iPads and Macs, and some new accessories over the past month, what will Apple's next product announcement be? Based on rumors, a second-generation AirTag item tracker is likely next up.

Last year, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reported that a new AirTag would be released around the middle of 2025. More recently, a leaker known as Kosutami claimed that Apple plans to release a new AirTag in May or June this year. Both of those timeframes suggest that the next AirTag is a few months away from launching.

Three upgrades have been rumored for the AirTag 2:

• With a second-generation Ultra Wideband chip, the AirTag 2 is expected to have up to 3× longer range compared to the current AirTag. The chip debuted in the iPhone 15 and the Apple Watch Ultra 2. On the iPhone 15 and iPhone 16 models, there is a Precision Finding for People feature that can help you to find your friends in crowded places, and it offers a range of up to 200 feet/60 meters.
• The new AirTag's built-in speaker is expected to be more difficult to remove or tamper with, as an anti-stalking safety measure.
• The new AirTag is rumored to have improved integration with the Apple Vision Pro.

No major design changes are expected.

The original AirTag was announced during an Apple Event in April 2021. In the U.S., an individual AirTag costs $29, and a set of four costs $99.

Article Link: Apple's Next Product is Likely an AirTag 2 With These New Features

 

[JesterJJZ]

I'd welcome a slim credit card style version.

 

[goobot]

Basically just U2 support. No one considers a harder to remove speaker a feature and the handful of people with Vision Pro, good for them I guess

 

[Veinticinco]

If it ain't broke....errr, fix it anyway and charge a premium whilst you're at it. Innovation cannot be stifled.

 

[Rafagon]

I know one feature it won't have: enhanced Siri with Apple Intelligence.

 

[segfaultdotorg]

5G connectivity?

 

[Johnstrass2]

• The new AirTag is rumored to have improved integration with the Apple Vision Pro.

incredible if I can use my vision Pro to try to find my suitcase, it might be the first useful feature of augmented reality

 

[DrRadon]

I hope they do something to track things still. Bike tracking is nice to have.

 

[guy999]

i would like a larger range because if my stuff is in a bag underneath books and such, sometimes it doesn't get a very good direction. also i wish they could do the same thing with my apple tv remote i keep losing that thing too

 

[lovehateapple]

I want to be able to take a picture of the thing I'm "tagging," remove the background in the picture, then use the picture of the item as the icon in the FindMy app.

 

[DevNull0]

The only feature I care about is fix that idiotic beep. Did they spend $5 million on r&d to come up with a sound the human ear can’t localize even from 6 inches away?

I bought a 4 pack when they came out. 3 are still new in box. Most useless product Apple has ever made with that beep.

 

[johnsawyercjs]

I know one feature it won't have: enhanced Siri with Apple Intelligence.

Can't have what doesn't exist! (though that's your point!)

 

[johnsawyercjs]

The three times further range will definitely come in handy

 

[rchaser]

incredible if I can use my vision Pro to try to find my suitcase, it might be the first useful feature of augmented reality

This is the only reason I bought AVP…to find AirTags.

 

[svish]

For an upgraded AirTag, expecting Apple to only change the range. It will most likely have much better range. Would like to see it in an additional colour option too. Expecting no other change.

 

[Daws]

When is the iCloth 2 coming out? It really needs an upgrade.

 

[JitteryJimmy]

If it ain't broke....errr, fix it anyway and charge a premium whilst you're at it. Innovation cannot be stifled.

Exactly! Does Apple really need to change it while their prime competitor, Tile, has been more or less the same for the past decade? The biggest Tile innovation has been their subscription service, and most would call that an Anti-Innovation. Apple's airtag team should have instead taken a break here and sipped on a margarita for a job well done.

As for the price, most expect prices of tech goods to rise soon enough. Anything more than 25% would probably be the premium, and not simply the new federal sales tax kicking in.

 

[dinobear]

If you hide an airtag in your car and your car gets stolen, will the new feature alert the thief that they are being tracked without their consent?

 

[Squidiey]

I want to be able to take a picture of the thing I'm "tagging," remove the background in the picture, then use the picture of the item as the icon in the FindMy app.

Use an emoji that represents the item

 

[johnsawyercjs]

Does Apple really need to change it while their prime competitor, Tile, has been more or less the same for the past decade?...Apple's airtag team should have instead taken a break here and sipped on a margarita for a job well done.

Increasing the range by three times isn't a minor change. Sometimes I need to find my Mom when we're together but in separate locations in a big supermarket, which I do using an Airtag in her purse which I track using my iPhone, but too often, unless she's within sight, my iPhone tells me the signal from the Airtag is too weak, and that I need to move to a better location. I wind up doing so much walking throughout the store to achieve that, that I find her on my own anyway.

 

[nicholas.boncardo]

Improved range is enough to justify the purchase, for me!

 

[lovehateapple]

Use an emoji that represents the item

Most of the time there isn't an emoji that represents the item I want to tag / track.

 

[Jjaro]

If you hide an airtag in your car and your car gets stolen, will the new feature alert the thief that they are being tracked without their consent?

I mean, if a thief gets an alert it could motivate them to ditch the car, if they had any brains about them anyway.