I believe the article answered its own question of why the AirTag 1 is not supported with precision find, it is one hardware upgrade behind on hardware.....
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Precision Finding on Apple Watch Doesn't Work With the Original AirTag
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It is, but the 1st gen has precision finding when using an iPhone which suggests the hardware in the tag can’t be the roadblock.
Got my new tag today.
Apple Watch and iPhone updated.
Precision finding works fine from iphone.
From an Apple Watch, if you find via the ‘find items” app then it doesn’t do precision find. If you use control center (add the option to find a tag) then it does.
I can’t help but think the watch update is a bit half baked.
Apple Watch and iPhone updated.
Precision finding works fine from iphone.
From an Apple Watch, if you find via the ‘find items” app then it doesn’t do precision find. If you use control center (add the option to find a tag) then it does.
I can’t help but think the watch update is a bit half baked.
Well at home - like all the time. My watch is always on me, my phone isn't. You don't tend to use Airtags because something is actually lost, you use it because you don't know where you've put it/left it.
This is how precision finding of your iphone from your watch has worked, so there's precedent for it working that way with the AirTag2
I did... after the disappointment with the airtag, I switched to the Gen9 and it's working pretty flawlessly. I did know exactly how the location work on the airtag and it was not supposed to be quarter mile off like that. In fact when I tried to locate my keys, it pointed me exactly to the location. What made my kid's airtag so far off was probably the lack of nearby bluetooth devices.
and Apple Watch has precision finding of your iPhone, which suggests it's not the watch hardware either. 🤷♂️
Correct - that's exactly what happens when the last phone (or other device) to detect the Airtag moves before it next reports to the Find My servers. In some cases a phone inside a building can show an inaccurate location due to GPS multipath inaccuracy, particularly if it's near a window and the roofing/structure blocks the direct GPS signals.
I have an airtag in a kayak at the dock at our weekend place. I regularly see it's position showing as somewhere other than the dock due to reporting delay. Right now it's located inside the neighbor's house, 300ft from the dock.
Someone else put an AirTag near a highway to experiment with this location inaccuracy due to the reporting device moving. See https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/dont-get-fooled-by-an-airtags-phantom-location.2349750
When you try to locate your keys inside your home, this tends not to be an issue.
Just installed my Airtag2. It works on my iPhone as it should. My Apple Watch doesn’t see it and the Find Items on the watch say to add them to my iPhone. Of course I’ve done that. I have the latest update on both phone and watch. Any ideas?
A new Apple support document and our own testing has confirmed that Precision Finding on the Apple Watch Series 9 and later and Apple Watch Ultra 2 and later works with the AirTag 2, but the original AirTag is not supported.
Apple has not indicated why this feature does not work with the original AirTag. However, the new AirTag is equipped with Apple's second-generation Ultra Wideband chip, while the original has Apple's first-generation Ultra Wideband chip.
Precision Finding can lead you to the exact location of an item with an AirTag attached to it, by showing you a directional arrow and your distance away from the item on a compatible iPhone, and now on a compatible Apple Watch too.
Precision Finding already existed on the above Apple Watch models for finding an iPhone 15 or newer, but there was no Precision Finding on the Apple Watch for finding an AirTag until now. As we confirmed, however, Precision Finding on the Apple Watch still does not work with the first-generation AirTag released in 2021.
To use Precision Finding to find a second-generation AirTag with a compatible Apple Watch, the watch must be running watchOS 26.2.1 or later.
How to set up the feature, according to Apple:
How to use the feature, according to Apple:
- On your Apple Watch, go to Control Center.
- Scroll to the bottom and tap Edit.
- Tap the Add button.
- Scroll down to Find Items.
- Tap Find Items, then tap Find AirTag.
- Tap Choose, then choose an item.
- Tap the Done button, then tap Done.
If you have an original AirTag, you can still find it with Precision Finding on an iPhone 11 or newer.
- On your Apple Watch, go to Control Center.
- Scroll down and tap the Find AirTag button.
- Follow the on-screen instructions and move around your space until your Apple Watch connects to your AirTag.
- Follow the distance and direction information on your Apple Watch. When you are close to your AirTag, the watch screen turns green.
With the AirTag 2, Precision Finding works at distances up to 1.5× farther away from an item compared to the original AirTag, but this longer range requires an iPhone 15 or newer, Apple Watch Series 9 or newer, or Apple Watch Ultra 2 or newer.
To learn more about the new AirTag, read our coverage of Apple's announcement.
Article Link: Precision Finding on Apple Watch Doesn't Work With the Original AirTag
