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As rumors about Apple's AirTags ramp up, AirTag competitor Tile is planning to launch a new "Premium Protect" service that will provide up to $1,000 to reimburse customers who subscribe for their lost items.

tile1.jpg

Tile already has a premium plan that provides Smart Alerts when an item is left behind, free replacement batteries each year, and 30-day location history, but the $30 subscription service (per year) does not include item reimbursement.

As highlighted by Engadget, the Premium Protect service will cost $100 a year and will offer all of the same features as the premium service, but with the promise of up to $1,000 if Tile can't help users locate a lost item within seven days.

Premium Protect will cover Tile trackers as well as items that have built-in Tile tracking features like SkullCandy earbuds and the HP Elite Dragonfly laptop, with the warranty provided in partnership with warranty company Cover Genius.

Using the feature will require users to sign up, register the associated tile, and take a photo of the item that it is attached to. Tile says that Premium Protect is considered a service warranty on the Tile network rather than an insurance policy on the item.

If the Tile network is able to locate the item but it's unable to be safely retrieved, Tile will not provide reimbursement for the item. If the Tile network can't find the item at all, then it is eligible for replacement. According to Tile, the Tile network is able to find around 90 percent of items that are marked as lost.

Tile CEO CJ Prober told Engadget that Tile is system agnostic, which is a benefit that it offers over Apple's rumored AirTags. "Our customers aren't forced to choose a single platform and are advantaged by Tile being system-agnostic. We work with Android, Apple and other platforms people are already using and want to use to help find their lost stuff," he said.

Tile's Premium Protect service is going to launch in the fall, with current rumors also suggesting that Apple's AirTags could launch before the end of 2020, perhaps alongside the new iPhone 12 models.

Article Link: Tile Launches New Premium Protect Plan That Offers $1000 in Lost Item Reimbursement
 

pcmike

macrumors 6502a
Jun 17, 2007
518
378
Lake Worth, FL
So it’s essentially a money grab if they claim 90% of most items are able to be found, but don’t mention how many of that 90% are actually retrieved (and usable after the fact)?
 

jlocker

macrumors 65816
Jun 20, 2011
1,022
1,195
Lake Michigan
I love competition in the business world makes things better for consumers. I never went with Tile, but I am going with Apple Tags because I have a iPhone 11 and it will work with tracking. I guess now guys that leave their wallets at their girl friends house it can be found. :)
 

4jasontv

Suspended
Jul 31, 2011
6,272
7,549
What if the tile falls off? I put my tile on my suitcase, someone takes it and throws it out a window. Or maybe I attach one to my airpod case and it loses adhesive from being in and out of my pocket so often?
 

SkyRom

macrumors regular
Dec 17, 2018
132
668
So what prevents a user from signing up for this. Walking their item through a park- then smashing the tile to pieces? The tile won’t work and the user gets a $1000 reimbursement?

Integrity. Courage. Honor. Respect for the rule of law. Fear of consequences. Conscience. The same things that keep us from shoulder-surfing pin codes at the store, cheating on our taxes, signing bad checks, shoplifting, committing insurance fraud, stealing our neighbors mail. Faith that most responsible members of society will do the same. Like good ole Billy Graham said: When you drive your car over a mountain, do you stop before the top, walk over and check to see if any cars are in your lane? No, you have faith. ?
 

FloatingBones

macrumors 68000
Jul 19, 2006
1,506
775
Tile CEO CJ Prober told Engadget that Tile is system agnostic, which is a benefit that it offers over Apple's rumored AirTags. "Our customers aren't forced to choose a single platform and are advantaged by Tile being system-agnostic. We work with Android, Apple and other platforms people are already using and want to use to help find their lost stuff," he said.

This is Marketing 101: misdirect. With Tile, you're still choosing a platform -- the Tile platform. In 1 year, I'm betting the Apple Airtags-aware platform will be far more ubiquitous in the US than the Tile platform.
 

AngerDanger

Graphics
Staff member
Dec 9, 2008
5,452
29,006
So it’s essentially a money grab if they claim 90% of most items are able to be found, but don’t mention how many of that 90% are actually retrieved (and usable after the fact)?
I don't see it that way. Tile is an item tracker. If you forget where something is, Tile will tell you. That's their only service provided.

If you know where it is but can't get it or it's damaged after you left it behind, your Tile still fulfilled its purpose. If the item can't be located, you lost it because Tile failed, so you can be reimbursed.
 
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peterh988

macrumors 6502a
Jun 5, 2011
625
1,028
These devices have always confused me a little bit. How do they work? How effective would something like this be at locating a lost dog?
Yep, that would be my primary use, seeing as my dog has taken to running off if she hears a firework type bang.
 
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avanpelt

macrumors 68030
Jun 2, 2010
2,963
3,885
People will look for a way to take advantage of this and, if they're successful, it could cost Tile a boatload of money. It doesn't seem like a smart idea to set yourself up to hemorrhage cash unnecessarily when you have potential big competition on the horizon.
 
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LeadingHeat

macrumors 65816
Oct 3, 2015
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promise of up to $1,000 if Tile can't help users locate a lost item within seven days.


If the Tile network is able to locate the item but it's unable to be safely retrieved, Tile will not provide reimbursement for the item. If the Tile network can't find the item at all, then it is eligible for replacement. According to Tile, the Tile network is able to find around 90 percent of items that are marked as lost.


So in other words, you have a 10% chance of utilizing this service. And a 90% chance of not getting reimbursed if you can’t retrieve your item. (In another state/country now for example). Nice
 
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69Mustang

macrumors 604
Jan 7, 2014
7,895
15,045
In between a rock and a hard place
So it’s essentially a money grab if they claim 90% of most items are able to be found, but don’t mention how many of that 90% are actually retrieved (and usable after the fact)?
It's insurance. Insurance has always been and will always be a money grab predicated on the fact that most people with it never need to use it. This is no different in principle than your car or health insurance.
So what prevents a user from signing up for this. Walking their item through a park- then smashing the tile to pieces? The tile won’t work and the user gets a $1000 reimbursement?
Insurance companies have made a behemoth of an industry based on risk mitigation and fraud detection. "Up to" a $1000. Tile determines what "up to" means monetarily. Besides, not many scammers are going to shell out $100 for the chance at scamming Tile for up to $1000. The initial $100 investment would curtail most of the lazy scammers. Any scammer more industrious isn't wasting their time for the chance at $1000.
 

Commodore 64

macrumors member
Mar 12, 2009
94
47
Yep, the Tiles are pricey but I’ve saved so much time and frustration with them that I found them worth the price. Like when I was looking for a spare key and found it in a pile a snow under som bushes across the driveway. Turned out I had lost it in the snow and shoveled it away from the house. Without Tile I could have found it in springtime if ever. Or like the time my wife lost her car key in a hotel room. I called the hotel and told them I saw on the Tile app that the key was there. They promised to find and send it. After som time I got a message from the Tile community that the key was still in the hotel. I called back, they thought they sent it, I said “nope”, then they actually checked, found it and sent it.
Just some examples how these are useful. That said I’m probably gonna change to Apple’s solution:p?‍♂️
 

Jyby

Suspended
May 31, 2011
720
617
Integrity. Courage. Honor. Respect for the rule of law. Fear of consequences. Conscience. The same things that keep us from shoulder-surfing pin codes at the store, cheating on our taxes, signing bad checks, shoplifting, committing insurance fraud, stealing our neighbors mail. Faith that most responsible members of society will do the same. Like good ole Billy Graham said: When you drive your car over a mountain, do you stop before the top, walk over and check to see if any cars are in your lane? No, you have faith. ?

Surely haha and in video games if you find a duplication bug (dup bug) you definitely say to yourself oops I'll just forget that existed ;)
 

Jyby

Suspended
May 31, 2011
720
617
Insurance Fraud.

I don't think it's classified as insurance though. It's more like a warranty on the Tile according to the article... Idk the laws on that. But you need proof of fraud. Probably nearly impossible to determine fraud for this product.
 
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