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Apple introduces new AirTag with longer range and improved findability

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Re: Apple introduces new AirTag with longer range and improved findability

#211
post #169

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The battery needs changed.

Changing the battery was the first thing I did. No change. But if that is the official signal for "battery low", I can try a few more. Thanks.

Make sure the battery doesn’t have bitterant coating on the edge where it meets the AirTag contact.

The first time I replaced my AirTag batteries I had to remove some of the coating or it wouldn’t power the AirTag.

Re: Apple introduces new AirTag with longer range and improved findability

#212

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do they plug into the Find My network that iOS devices use?

Yep, Tile I believe is the only third party service that exists. All other trackers either plug into "Apple Find My" or "Android Find My Device" network. There's finally starting to be a few devices that can do both, but they're rare, so make sure you get the right one when buying. But they take 10s to setup and it's very smooth.

Tiles are about the same price as AirTags (at least they were last time I bought some)

Re: Apple introduces new AirTag with longer range and improved findability

#213
post #119

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You can buy a third party wallet card that works with the Find My network just like an AirTag.

I'm always tempted to buy one of these but most of them seem to be one time usage, and don't have a way to recharge. That always seems very wasteful to me. Any recommendations for a rechargable but thin one, AirTag itself is too thick for regular wallets.

The other direction is just get a wallet that supports a real airtag. Because my wallet is so important to me, the name brand airtag, with UWB-enhanced findability, is worth swapping out my wallet rather than getting a sub-par credit-card find my compatible device. nb, I came to this conclusion after getting an aftermarket credit card device and found it lacking.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BZ8C5N7H

Re: Apple introduces new AirTag with longer range and improved findability

#214
post #169

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Changing the battery was the first thing I did. No change. But if that is the official signal for "battery low", I can try a few more. Thanks.

Make sure the battery doesn’t have bitterant coating on the edge where it meets the AirTag contact. The first time I replaced my AirTag batteries I had to remove some of the coating or it wouldn’t power the AirTag.

Thats worth a try, because if the batteries have that, trying several ones of the same brand would produce the same results.

Now, do I try to test this by licking the battery or should I try to sand the surface without pre-testing? :)

Re: Apple introduces new AirTag with longer range and improved findability

#215

Airtag is the reason of why I stil have my favourite hand luggage. I had just sat down on the train from Zurich to Basel. Suddenly, someone sat down in front of me. He looked suspicious, but I didn't pay much attention. Just before the train departed, he picked up what I thought were his belongings and left. Twenty minutes later, already on the way to Basel, I looked toward where I had left my suitcase. It was gone.…

Thankfully you were in Switzerland rather than the states, I just never see American police caring about that.

Depends on the jurisdiction.

One time I was driving down a twoo-lane road with a police car a few hundred feet behind me. An oncoming pickup truck veered several feet over the center line and almost hit me. I flagged the police down to tell them and they were nonplussed even though they literally saw it happen. Drunk driving, a greater threat than property theft, was of little consequence to them.

On the other side of the country my motorcycle got stolen and the police found it the next day. I picked it up from the tow yard shortly thereafter.

YMMV.

Re: Apple introduces new AirTag with longer range and improved findability

#216
post #8

Is this demonstrably better that just... the devices already in your bag? My backpack would be a primary use case... and in it are my AirPods, iPad, and MacBook Air. I think any of these can use Find My already?

For that one item, no not really. But an AirTag has a battery life of about a year and there's really no reason to frequently remove it. AirPods have a substantially shorter battery life and are not guaranteed to be in that bag all the time no matter what. Also AirTags are many times cheaper and smaller than your listed items and are moderately water and impact resistant. If there's something you want to track in add…

The battery life of AirPods in a case (what GP is referring to) is quite long. I don't know how long, but I'd guess weeks/months if you're not using them. Obviously a single AirPod out of the case would last much less time (though still days, IME).

Re: Apple introduces new AirTag with longer range and improved findability

#217

I read they are popular with drug distributors. They ship their merch world wide using various hidden channels and couriers and this helps keep track of the merch.

Sounds like one of those "what if..." things someone made up. AirTags are terrible for surreptitious tracking, alerting every iOS user nearby of a tracked product following them around. I mean, years ago people, such as stalkers, would use it for this purpose, but Apple rightly gimped that. There are a lot of specialized, self-connected trackers that creeps and criminals use.

I've only been notified about a device traveling with me one time, and it was when a relative was riding home with me in my car. When we got home, I received a notification that there were AirPods Pro traveling with me.

This is consistent with my understanding that it only goes off if it travels with you for a very long time, or to your house. (Of course, at that point it's too late because they know where you live already.)

Re: Apple introduces new AirTag with longer range and improved findability

#218
post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I once bought 4 air tags, never got to work them in any useful sense. I keep getting warnings about leaving my keys behind, which are in my pocket. I don't recall any time being warned about leaving things behind when I did. Can't really locate things a few meters away.

That’s so odd! They’ve worked exactly as promised for me. I never, ever get warnings about my own tags, or my wife’s tags that she’s shared with me. Not even once. And yesterday I used them to find my keys that the cats had relocated to across the house. I don’t have any explanation for how our experiences could be so different, but they are. Mine even did the cool thing where you can watch your luggage move through…

Just found out that the one active remaining tag on my keychain stopped working in September without me noticing.

Re: Apple introduces new AirTag with longer range and improved findability

#220

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Chemicals. That’s what they mean by real ingredients: no chemicals. Like orange juice: can be from a chemical powder or real oranges.

But that's total nonsense. Everything in our physical world (including water, air, food, and human bodies) is made of chemicals. They can be naturally occurring or artificially manufactured.

You can nitpick and be pedantic about the wording I used, but if you equate artificial flavors or ingredients with natural ones…
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