Like you, I am not the target demographic for such a purchase.
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What to Know if You Plan to Travel Abroad With AirTags
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Well.. what have we? 197 countries worldwide and not supported in 16? I'd call that more universally supported than not
I don't... but I think if the phone and Airtag was purchased outside of those areas, I'd presume the tech would work? The downside is if you rely on Russian sold iPhones to locate devices, you might be out of luck.
Apple isn't permitted to use the spectrum it seems.
Edit: Actually, seeing some of the later responses... using location services to not utilize the unauthorized spectrum makes sense... -suppose it won't work for anyone.
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Feet! I just love screenshots showing these cranky old units of measurement. Metric is just so much easier.
In the UK we're mostly metric, thank God, including short distances like millimetres and metres, and weights like kilograms.
We still drive in miles per hour, though, and road signs indicate distances in miles. Thankfully, Apple devices let me show distance units in metric form. So, CarPlay tells me how many metres it is to the next exit, and how many kilometres to go until my journey is over. Now, just to convince a few hundred Americans that metric is the way to go!
In the UK we're mostly metric, thank God, including short distances like millimetres and metres, and weights like kilograms.
We still drive in miles per hour, though, and road signs indicate distances in miles. Thankfully, Apple devices let me show distance units in metric form. So, CarPlay tells me how many metres it is to the next exit, and how many kilometres to go until my journey is over. Now, just to convince a few hundred Americans that metric is the way to go!
It’s not necessary about losing something. It’s about misplacing something. If you’re saying you’ve never misplaced something in 30 years, then you’re the only one. I’ve used tile to find my keys when I’m almost late for work. Even if it only saved me a couple minutes of searching (probably more), it’s worth it.
As long as you (or your phone) are still in close proximity then no. It will only send a notification if you are not within reach and only after some time (though not sure exactly how long after it loses contact with you)
Maybe but it does have pairing lock (similar to the activation lock), so whoever finds/steal one won't be able to use it
This is the big dilemma. Apple claims that they are to be used to easily find 'lost items', not as a anti-theft mechanism or to track people in general.
True. Not possible natively (yet), but there may be a way using Shortcuts 🤔Yep. Unfortunately it doesn't seem to be possible to set alerts like that.
So if I take a train and my air tagged luggage is another car etc or out of range will people closer get a notice that there is an airtag near by once the train moves etc?
Why do I get the feeling that lawsuits are just around the corner with these things?
Same for illegal surveillance.
Same for illegal surveillance.
No GPS? So if I loose one in a field surrounded by miles of grass, it’s lost because it can’t use other mobile phones Bluetooth to triangulate the position?
Okay, I will give you that....however, if they are that stupid....I will just locate it with the Find My and get the cops over there. I would think word would get out. That is the most trackable thing one could possibly steal. I might stick one under the carpet in my car, so that along with the Subaru starling tracking would turn up a stolen car pretty fast. also somewhere in an obscure inside pocket of my backpack.
Your phone has GPS and there should be a last known location that can get you close. GPS alone wouldn't help as it couldn't phone home without a built in wireless connection.
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Yes. If it had its own GPS receiver and cellular modem to contact you, it wouldn't be the size of a button, have a 1-year battery life, and cost only 30 bucks.
Does anyone else find these of limited use? I would love to use it on my bike, scooter, laptop, or other valuable object that is likely to get stolen. However, the size and shape of the airtag makes it infeasible to attach to these objects securely. Should I tape it or glue it to my laptop?
In addition, any educated thief will quickly spot the airtag and toss it aside, rendering it useless.
It seems mostly useful for people who misplace items frequently. Not so useful as a theft deterrent.
In addition, any educated thief will quickly spot the airtag and toss it aside, rendering it useless.
It seems mostly useful for people who misplace items frequently. Not so useful as a theft deterrent.
If you buy an Apple laptop, you don't need a tag to locate it via the Find My network, because the laptop itself can use it.
But yes, I don't think theft prevention is the main purpose.
It sometimes happens to me when I'm out and about that I forget my bag or jacket somewhere. That would be my primary scenario, but sadly the Airtags (or rather the Find My app) don't seem to be able to alert you when you move out of range.
Maybe a slight bit off topic, but does anybody know which model the black canvas/nylon bag, Apple uses in it ad?
THX
THX
Yea - I lived in the UK for a couple years and noticed this stupidity. It's literally like they were well on their way to metric conversion and then just ran out of money, at which point everything stopped - indefinitely!
Macrumors reported on this already the day after the Apple event:
"An AirTag that isn't with the person who registered it for an extended period of time will also play a sound when moved."
The article further elaborates that currently this 'extended period' is set to three days.
You'd probably be able to reset them to factory conditions as you can with an iPhone.
How is it that UWB communication between an UWB device (your iPhone) and another device (your AirTag) via precision finder won't work in countries where the A1 standard isn't supported?
If the frequencies are used for other communications, then sure the device finding won't work because of other signals on the frequencies.
But how would a standard in a device, that doesn't rely on another standard (WiFi, LTE, etc) not work there?
I've taken walkie-talkies (the cheap kind that you use camping or hiking) to countries where those frequencies aren't publicly assigned, and they still *work* but it would be illegal for me to use them.
Apple's devices sold in those countries don't have A1 chips enabled, but does Apple have the OS turn OFF a chip depending on GPS location data? Seems really unlikely. Because if the chip is functional, the AirTags should still work whether or not the country supports A1 as a standar
If the frequencies are used for other communications, then sure the device finding won't work because of other signals on the frequencies.
But how would a standard in a device, that doesn't rely on another standard (WiFi, LTE, etc) not work there?
I've taken walkie-talkies (the cheap kind that you use camping or hiking) to countries where those frequencies aren't publicly assigned, and they still *work* but it would be illegal for me to use them.
Apple's devices sold in those countries don't have A1 chips enabled, but does Apple have the OS turn OFF a chip depending on GPS location data? Seems really unlikely. Because if the chip is functional, the AirTags should still work whether or not the country supports A1 as a standar