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Yeah, and isn’t it convenient that the documentation and packaging appears to have been around for a couple years, but Apple just didn’t release AirTags? It’s almost as if Apple allowed time for Tile to “git gud” or at least make a try.

Airtags also had 2 years to improve the airtag. Yet it comes with sub par less features.
 
Well, same with AirTags and Apple, but I trust Apple more. BUT I also don't care – I've got Ring stuff anyway.

I got a couple ring devices as well. There’s no Bluetooth in their devices. I can’t think of any ring device that has Bluetooth. Ring runs off wifi.
 
Is this supposed to improve my trust in Tile?

With regard to respecting privacy, I’ll pick Apple over Amazon every single time. Amazon’s, much like Google and Facebook, incentives are misaligned.

Tile is just digging a deeper grave here.
 
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I’m so confused. Didn’t Apple make their “find my” system accessible for developers? I read that a bunch of companies are making “find my” compatible devices.. why wouldn’t tile??
Tile DOES have broad name recognition already. And the color/shapes of the tiles are distinctive. I’m guessing they see more of a future for themselves charging folks a subscription for the tracking, not so much being the number one Find My compatible vendor to a company with over a billion customers looking for Find My stuff to buy… Ok, maybe not that. Maybe they’re also making good money selling the aggregated location data and don’t want to give THAT up.
 
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Airtags also had 2 years to improve the airtag. Yet it comes with sub par less features.
The documentation and packaging for AirTags has been around for a couple years. My whole statement was about how AirTags COULD have been released soon after Apple announced their existence, but they didn’t. It’s almost like they waited for Tile to find a partner to work with. :)
 
So why doesn't tile allow its trackers to be used on the findMy network? Is it a hardware thing? So what if users ditch the premium paid app from tile, shouldn't that be their choice? It sounds like tile is taking choice away from its customers instead of expanding it. They could always join Samsung trackers, everyone is always saying how Samsung sells so many phones. Oh wait, their trackers only work with Samsung phones, snap
I believe they want to charge theirs users for using their servers/infrastructures through subscription.
 
This news makes me feel like Tile is now less private and less secure. Not what I want in a tracker.
Tile never was private. Here's a quote from their privacy policy:

"Any location information we receive about Tile device(s) located through a Tile app will be stored by us on our cloud server. Such information can be associated by us with the account for which the Tile device(s) have been registered"

and

"We may share your personal information (including your location information and your Tile devices' location information) with our third party service providers or affiliates, as authorized by us to collect, process and use your personal information as data processors on our behalf, such as, for instance, cloud based and hosting services, technical service providers, mail carriers, communication agencies and customer support service providers; these parties may be located in countries outside of your jurisdiction, including but not limited to the USA."

In other words, they record the location history of your tiles and associate that information with you. They can share it with any "affiliates" as they see fit.

In contrast, the Apple system uses end-to-end encryption such that only the owner of the tag can decrypt the location information.

Now Amazon will probably get the information too, which is, ahem, problematic given their history with Ring and other products.
 
I do think Apple is abusing its position by introducing a competing product and not opening up its SDK so there’s a level playing field. That’s a bad look.
It’s a bad look for Apple to spend billions developing the iPhone and then more money to develop products that work the best with it? Why in the world shouldn’t Apple get to benefit from being the iPhone creator?! That’s the whole point of vertically integrated products! Of COURSE Apple devices get access to better integration with other Apple products! It’s the same way a Sony TV and a Sony AV Reciever and Sony speakers can be designed to work better together. Or why the Xbox and Windows can work better together. Or how Googles various devices and services work better together! There is nothing inherent bad OR illegal about having a competitive advantage! You might be shocked to learn it’s a thing that happens all the time and is quite legal. For example, if you stay at a Disney owned hotel you can get special privileges at Disney resorts, such as early entry, extra fast passes, guaranteed tickets, etc. This has been happening for decades! It’s one of the advantages of staying at a Disney hotel AND why Disney hotels are often more expensive. Other hotels who want to compete have to do so by offering other advantages such as cheaper rates, discounts on other things, different benefits such as free meals, etc. Those other hotels are primarily dependent on Disney for their business. If, for some reason, Disneyland were to permanently shut down they’d be severely impacted as a result. They take that risk because they think the odds are in their favor. Tile took a risk, as all businesses do. If they didn’t want to worry about what Apple might or might not do, they need to diversify, i.e. not make their products and success dependent on a single source OR eliminate that dependency by making their product independent of whatever Apple does.

Competitive advantage only becomes illegal under specific circumstances, such as a monopoly (which again, the iPhone is not). Tile doesn’t have some inherent right to be on a level playing field with Apple. They are experiencing the inherent risk of making your product dependent on another. That risk is one reason why Apple has tried to reduce as much of ITS dependence on outside sources as possible.

If Tile wants to compete it can do so in a variety of ways. It can make its products cheaper than Apples. It can offer additional features that Apple doesn’t. It can make its experience superior to Apples in some ways. Otherwise, it can fail. Failure in business is a thing that happens. Apple shouldn’t be hamstrung simply for being successful and making a better product.
 
So instead of hoping someone with an iPhone passes your lost item, you have to hope someone with an Echo or Ring passes it. You know, things that need to be plugged in to work.
 
Still, nobody owns end to end ecosystem and Find My network as massive as Apple?

What will work seamlessly with Amazon network? Google won’t integrate their services into Android phones.

Pixel phones barely sell, and Android OEMs also in competition and try to kill each other, instead of working together building a potentially massive integration. Why bother?
 
So Tile who wants all their users to have always on uploading of their location data back to Tile is partnering up with Jeff (All Your Thought Are Belong to Us) Bezos. The match-up does make sense, but who in their right mind buys personal data siphoning products from Amazon?
Millions of Apple users for a start
 
It’s a bad look for Apple to spend billions developing the iPhone and then more money to develop products that work the best with it? Why in the world shouldn’t Apple get to benefit from being the iPhone creator?! That’s the whole point of vertically integrated products! Of COURSE Apple devices get access to better integration with other Apple products! It’s the same way a Sony TV and a Sony AV Reciever and Sony speakers can be designed to work better together. Or why the Xbox and Windows can work better together. Or how Googles various devices and services work better together! There is nothing inherent bad OR illegal about having a competitive advantage! You might be shocked to learn it’s a thing that happens all the time and is quite legal. For example, if you stay at a Disney owned hotel you can get special privileges at Disney resorts, such as early entry, extra fast passes, guaranteed tickets, etc. This has been happening for decades! It’s one of the advantages of staying at a Disney hotel AND why Disney hotels are often more expensive. Other hotels who want to compete have to do so by offering other advantages such as cheaper rates, discounts on other things, different benefits such as free meals, etc. Those other hotels are primarily dependent on Disney for their business. If, for some reason, Disneyland were to permanently shut down they’d be severely impacted as a result. They take that risk because they think the odds are in their favor. Tile took a risk, as all businesses do. If they didn’t want to worry about what Apple might or might not do, they need to diversify, i.e. not make their products and success dependent on a single source OR eliminate that dependency by making their product independent of whatever Apple does.

Competitive advantage only becomes illegal under specific circumstances, such as a monopoly (which again, the iPhone is not). Tile doesn’t have some inherent right to be on a level playing field with Apple. They are experiencing the inherent risk of making your product dependent on another. That risk is one reason why Apple has tried to reduce as much of ITS dependence on outside sources as possible.

If Tile wants to compete it can do so in a variety of ways. It can make its products cheaper than Apples. It can offer additional features that Apple doesn’t. It can make its experience superior to Apples in some ways. Otherwise, it can fail. Failure in business is a thing that happens. Apple shouldn’t be hamstrung simply for being successful and making a better product.
lol thank you for the big love letter to Apple. We get it, you love Apple and they never do anything wrong.
 
I'm probably way off base but personally I wouldn't trust Amazon as far as I could throw them when it comes to collaborating in location tracking infrastructure.
Gee, I am sure Amazon won’t gather tiles data and then develop and sell a competing product (if Tile isn’t willing to sell out). Tile Willard no one to but themselves.

But, I can’t help but think that Apple should provide an API and service. for other hardware vendors to use.
 
I feel a little bad for Tile, but Apple can't choose to deny releasing a new product because theirs will be better.
 
Good for them, it’s been in the works for a bit, but either way it’s better than whining after having enjoyed a de facto monopoly for 8 years and a 2 years heads up on AirTags.

Personally I wouldn’t enter into Amazon’s ecosystem even if my life literally depended on it, but that’s ok. Not every product needs to cater to my preferences and there’s certainly a market for people that don’t take issue with Amazon like I do.

I think it would’ve been better for Tile to partner with a carrier and connect their future products through narrowband.

This would not only be a form of oneupmanship and immediately create near 100% coverage of their network in the US (their main market by far), it would also justify their subscription model.
And in the process it would prove to be serious competition for Apple.

But in the end they’ll have their reasons for making the choices they make.
 
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