Nomad Launches Find My-Compatible Tracking Card Pro

[MacRumors]

Nomad today announced the launch of its latest Find My-compatible item tracker, the Tracking Card Pro. Compared to Nomad's existing $29 Tracking Card, the $39 Tracking Card Pro features a design that better blends into the cards in your wallet, and a longer battery life.

Available in black or white, the Tracking Card Pro looks like a credit card, complete with an included chip to disguise it. The white version is the same size and shape as the Apple Card, just thicker. If someone steals your wallet, a tracking card that looks like a credit card might not be thrown out by a savvy thief that does a cursory check for tracking devices.

The Tracking Card Pro is 2.5mm thick, so it is not as slim as the 1.7mm Tracking Card. It fits well enough in a wallet, but if you're someone who prefers a super slim wallet with just a few cards, it might be too large. Nomad opted for a straight-edged design with an exposed aluminum frame, and while it looks nice, it also makes the Tracking Card Pro look thicker than it is. Other companies make tracking cards that are in this thickness range, but they have a slimmer appearance because of beveled edges.

The tracker is a third of the thickness of the AirTag, and Nomad used the extra space for the battery. The Tracking Card Pro can last for up to 16 months without needing to be recharged, rather than five months like the Tracking Card.

When recharging is required, the Tracking Card Pro charges with a Qi, Qi2, or MagSafe charger. It is magnetic so it can attach to an upright charger, and a red LED lets you know that it's aligned properly and charging. IPX7 water resistance and dust resistance means it can withstand water, dirt, and other abuse without failing.

The Tracking Card Pro works just like an AirTag. It can be added to the Items tab in the Find My app, and it will then show up right alongside AirTags and other Find My-enabled tracking products.

You can view a map of where the Tracking Card Pro was last spotted, play a sound to locate it if it's nearby, and get a notification if your wallet is left behind. Like AirTags, the Tracking Card Pro takes advantage of the Find My network. It can leverage nearby Apple devices to relay its location even if you're out of Bluetooth range.

Other features include an option to share your contact info so someone can get in touch if they find your wallet, and item location sharing, so if your item is left behind somewhere like an airport, staff can track it down for you even if you're far away.

The Tracking Card Pro has all of the same capabilities as the AirTag with one exception, Precision Finding. There is no Ultra Wideband chip, so tracking it down in close quarters requires the sound feature.

Nomad's Tracking Card Pro can be purchased from the Nomad website for $39, with a 10 percent discount when purchasing two. It will ship by December 19.

Article Link: Nomad Launches Find My-Compatible Tracking Card Pro

 

[Nrwrit3r]

We've officially lost all meaning to the word "pro"

 

[joeblough]

i wonder why this is so much thicker than the original one. if the main draw is that it looks like just another credit card, being that thick isn't terribly convincing.

they could just have made the original look more like a credit card. i have one and it's superior to the tiles and the anker ones for sure.

 

[vyspirit]

It doesn’t have precision finding, so yeah, it’s not like an AirTag.

 

[TokyoKiller]

We've officially lost all meaning to the word "pro"

Pro used to mean it's for niche users, now its the "Premium" model haha

 

[subjonas]

That’s almost as thick as my iPhone Air!

 

[sniffies]

Apple should absolutely turn titanium Apple Card into one of these.

Kill two birds with one stone.

 

[bmustaf]

It doesn’t have precise finding, so yeah, it’s not like an AirTag.

Yup, came here to say this. In my experience (and those around me), it is, actually, not at all like an AirTag in my book when you consider the number of times that feature is used when you know it's in the house and the "make sound" is echoing all over the place, the UWB is clutch and absolutely differentiated as a product from the non-UWB clones.

 

[CalMin]

It doesn’t have precise finding, so yeah, it’s not like an AirTag.

Thank you for pointing that out! I would have been hovering over the 'buy' button otherwise. Yeah - for me that's a dealbreaker because I misplace my wallet mostly in the house and use this all the time.

You know, I don't know if AirTags with my wallet are a good or bad thing for me... It makes me complacent about where I put my wallet down when I get home. Basically, and ironically, because I know I can find it when I need to, I lose it more often!!

 

[3pp]

This article is so poorly written. I had to re-read several sections several times.

 

[thejadedmonkey]

The cheaper one is actually not bad. Rechargeable and a good price.

 

[Njiphoner]

This article is so poorly written. I had to re-read several sections several times.

The white version is the same size and shape as the Apple Card, just thicker.

I went to the site to compare the black and white versions, just out of curiosity why one was a different size...appears to be identical, in case anyone else was curious.

 

[TomaxXamot]

Wouldn’t it make more sense to not make it look like a credit card and instead make it look like some generic store rewards card or something that thieves wouldn’t want to steal?

 

[thistleknife]

It doesn’t have precise finding, so yeah, it’s not like an AirTag.

Love that they went on forever before letting us know finally. No precision finding = not useful, at least for me.

 

[mattopotamus]

Wouldn’t it make more sense to not make it look like a credit card and instead make it look like some generic store rewards card or something that thieves wouldn’t want to steal?

I think most probably misplace their wallet vs actually having it stolen. It's probably the best solution to track your wallet short of buying one with the feature built in. A buddy of mine has an actual airtag in his wallet. It looks ridiculous.

 

[bob24]

It doesn’t have precise finding, so yeah, it’s not like an AirTag.

Exactly, no precision finding really is a big loss of functionality for a tracking device and while I would love a credit card form factor for a tracker I’m not willing to give up this functionality (so I’ll keep using my wallet which has an AirTag slot).

Having said they I believe Apple is more to blame for this than Nomad as to my knowledge they only allow regular FindMy tracking and no precision finding for third party accessories.

 

[NightFox]

We've officially lost all meaning to the word "pro"

Pro(fessional) is clearly for people who've made a career out of losing their stuff. Unless your job description includes "misplace your personal property", you can probably stick with the non-pro version intended for casual, amateur mislayers like the rest of us.

 

[Devnul0]

The cheaper one is actually not bad. Rechargeable and a good price.

From the Nomad FAQ:

• How does Tracking Card Pro compare to Tracking Card?
  Tracking Card is made of polycarbonate and lasts 5 months on a full charge, while Tracking Card Pro has a slightly heavier polycarbonate body with aluminum edges and lasts 16 months on a full charge. Otherwise, the cards are the same.

 

[jole]

They should have applied the credit card look to the 1.7mm model. No-one will mistake 2.5mm thick think as a credit card.

 

[WarmWinterHat]

We've officially lost all meaning to the word "pro"

Pro has been a trim package for over a decade.

 

[collin_]

We've officially lost all meaning to the word "pro"

If we're going to constantly relitigate the world's most pointless, futile and unproductive argument, then here's my personal submission: Mr. Clean.

Mr. Clean has been at this far longer than Nomad, and he threw in "ULTRA", too -- so feel free to kick off the ragebait thread we'll see on the homepage for the next 2 weeks. "Seriously, Apple???" and "I HATE this $2,000 iPad that I didn't return for some reason" are getting kind of old. Let's go after Mr. Clean.

 

[Izauze]

Inaccurate to say that it works just like an AirTag. Precision Finding is a CORE component of what distinguishes AirTags from other trackers. Without it, I can see my wallet on a map, but I have no idea where it is in the house/office/school/shop/etc.

 

[indychris]

So much negativity here!

On the bright side, it will still notify thieves that someone could be tracking them, so there’s that!

 

[Evangelion]

i wonder why this is so much thicker than the original one. if the main draw is that it looks like just another credit card, being that thick isn't terribly convincing.

It’s obvious: it has three times longer battery life.

 

[Radeon85]

It doesn’t have precision finding, so yeah, it’s not like an AirTag.

This is what annoys me about these third-party trackers. This device is perfect for what I want, but then I don't have the ability for precision finding, which is the whole point of it. So again, this is useless to me.

I wish Apple would allow third-party trackers to actually use it and stop locking it down to AirTag only, such a stupid limitation.