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Apple Introduces AirTag

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Re: Apple Introduces AirTag

#512
post #489

I thought one of the big use cases for this was to track stolen items, like a backpack or maybe even a bicycle. But the "anti-stalking" feature will notify someone if an AirTag they don't own appears to be traveling with them. Does this render it useless for anti-theft, then? Since it will just notify a thief that the bike they just stole is being tracked, and they can look for the AirTag and throw it in the nearest…

So if a friend lends me some keys with one of these attached and I don't have the right kind of phone on me, the keys will start beeping incessantly? That seems pretty darn annoying.

i think only if they are marked lost?

Re: Apple Introduces AirTag

#513
post #16

> AirTag is designed for over a year’s worth of battery life with everyday use. The CR2032 battery is user-replaceable and widely available. Replacement batteries are sold separately. That's the piece of information I wanted to know first. Devices like this can be built, but those can't run on batteries for a reasonable time frame. Apple made it practical.

In Australia roughly 20 kids per week present to emergency having swallowed or inserted a button battery and in several cases many have tragically died.

It is an agonising death over a period of days/weeks for the child and horrible for the parents to witness. Many times both the parents and medical professionals don't realise what is actually happening to the child until it is too late. There is growing support for much tighter regulations of these batteries and limiting there use overall.

Apple is certainly not the only company who are using them, not by a long shot. But they are not some holy grail of replaceable batteries and it surprising Apple would decide to use them now.

If you are interested ABC in Australia did a rather big report into the increasing incidents of button battery related deaths and injuries, telling the story of families who's lives were turned upside down by them. It is incredibly difficult reading.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-02-15/button-batteries-land...

Re: Apple Introduces AirTag

#515
post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Didn't expect user replaceable commodity batteries from Apple. That's nice.

It is ridiculous that something as basic as having a user replaceable battery is considered an unexpected nice feature.

Considering some of the tags cost $300+, I guess they had no choice.

Re: Apple Introduces AirTag

#516
post #492

I don’t understand why Apple doesn’t fix the lost AirPods issue. If your AirPods communicate with your phone, shouldn’t your phone be able to have a record of the last time it was in communication with your AirPods and the phone’s location at that time?

They do this. Find My shows the last known location of my AirPods, useful when I lose them. Then, if I’m close enough and can’t see them, I can play a sound on them so I can find them.

Thanks! They should do so for each one (left and right)?

Re: Apple Introduces AirTag

#517
post #513
post #16

> AirTag is designed for over a year’s worth of battery life with everyday use. The CR2032 battery is user-replaceable and widely available. Replacement batteries are sold separately. That's the piece of information I wanted to know first. Devices like this can be built, but those can't run on batteries for a reasonable time frame. Apple made it practical.

In Australia roughly 20 kids per week present to emergency having swallowed or inserted a button battery and in several cases many have tragically died. It is an agonising death over a period of days/weeks for the child and horrible for the parents to witness. Many times both the parents and medical professionals don't realise what is actually happening to the child until it is too late. There is growing support for…

CR2032 is 2cm wide so you're probably referring to smaller batteries as these cannot be swallowed by a child.

Re: Apple Introduces AirTag

#518
post #475

Once I started using Tile it became impossible for me to remember where I put my keys. There just wasn't any pressure to stay organized since the beeping would always save me. But whenever the battery was out or the Bluetooth wasn't connecting oh boy. Same kind of thing happened with GPS. I used to pay more attention to maps and really learned streets but now I just expect the phone to solve everything for me. I'm lo…

This kind of thing would be incredible built in to expensive portable electronics. My bf recently lost his very expensive sony earbuds while on holiday and once its not in the hotel room or your bags, its basically gone. The most likely situation is it was at one of the public transport lost item collections but calling up everywhere we had been was too much work.

Airtags would have found them most likely.

Re: Apple Introduces AirTag

#519
post #503

Earlier quoted context omitted.

By attempting to prevent misuse they also prevent some legitimate and morally unquestionable uses. Like - the most obvious examples already mentioned in the comments - finding your cat or tracking your checked baggage. There are probably more less obvious use cases where something temporarily leaves owner's proximity, does not remain stationery, but tracking that object's location is perfectly legal and not questiona…

I'll be blunt: Neither of those use cases are very important in comparison, and neither come remotely close to justifying AirTags as unlimited tracking devices with zero restrictions. Just go buy some other tracker for your cat or whatever.

I don't argue, I'm trying to explain how others may see it.

Everyone has their own needs, requirements and ideas what's essential and what's not. Importance and justifications are subjective matters.

Only thing everyone can certainly agree on that those use cases were not deemed important (or even considered) by Apple, as they would've designed it differently otherwise.

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