Samsung’s newest Bluetooth tracker pops up at FCC with a unique design
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Tags are so much fun.
On a trip I track my bags to see if they make it on the plane.
Track mykids er kids carry on bags…
Even tracked my older in law who due to age sometimes wanders off not entirely aware what they should be doing. Added a tag to his belt and knew if he wandered too far, but still didn’t have to follow him everywhere nervously.
On a trip I track my bags to see if they make it on the plane.
Track my
Even tracked my older in law who due to age sometimes wanders off not entirely aware what they should be doing. Added a tag to his belt and knew if he wandered too far, but still didn’t have to follow him everywhere nervously.
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Heh, from the headline, I thought the design was big in the sense it was a big deal. Now I understand the SmartTag 2 is physically big.
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"We're sure Apple is burning the midnight oil trying to get its competition on even footing as soon as possible, so who knows when Google's network will launch."
I wouldn't be at all shocked if this is actually a high priority for Apple. Anything they can do to beat the "we protect your privacy" drum is pure positive PR for them, and it's not like many people are going to be cross-shopping AirTags against the Android equivalents.
I wouldn't be at all shocked if this is actually a high priority for Apple. Anything they can do to beat the "we protect your privacy" drum is pure positive PR for them, and it's not like many people are going to be cross-shopping AirTags against the Android equivalents.
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Seems like it could also be smaller too - say roughly the form factor of a FIDO security key or RFID fob. A quick look at the filing shows the antenna array is 30mm, so doubt it would be much bigger than that on its longest dimension, and if they switched from button sized CR2025/2032 batteries to those used in watches or hearing aids, the size could be fairly compact.
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It is my understanding that the network doesn't really move any data around, at least not in the sense implied by the phrase "data and location network". The way I understand it the only data that is moved off the tag is it's identity and the tag does not receive any data of note. Has something changed since the original Airtag was released?
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Tracking my luggage, laptop bag, kids, elderly in-laws.
Apple’s “left behind” reminders saved me one when I forgot a bag while traveling.
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Only newer galaxy phones? Hard pass, call me when it joins one of the Big Tracking Networks.
The size of the tracking network is kinda a wee bit important-ish.
Knowing where my luggage is -- and whether it made it onto the underbelly of the plane I am sitting in -- really depends on a critical mass of nearby compatible phones to help triangulate its position. The tags don't have standalone tracking capability (3G/LTE/5G) so is entirely dependant on the tracking network.
It traced my forgotten backpack to the cafe I accidentally left it behind in, so my Big Name tracker tag has already paid for itself.
The size of the tracking network is kinda a wee bit important-ish.
Knowing where my luggage is -- and whether it made it onto the underbelly of the plane I am sitting in -- really depends on a critical mass of nearby compatible phones to help triangulate its position. The tags don't have standalone tracking capability (3G/LTE/5G) so is entirely dependant on the tracking network.
It traced my forgotten backpack to the cafe I accidentally left it behind in, so my Big Name tracker tag has already paid for itself.
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For the purposes of that phrase, even device ID's such as SSID or Bluetooth ID's are technically considered "data".
(just a lower-level network link layer, aka raw link-level data rather than application data/socket/etc, and just a few bytes of data).
This is broadcasted out unidirectionally via the link layer of the tag's own Bluetooth stack -- to any nearby phones listening for Bluetooth devices. Which is then relayed as a data piggyback to existing mudane communications to existing servers (over whatever network connection -- LTE, 5G, WiFi, etc).
For example, for AirTags, could be sent during the same burst-transmission of packets as completely unrelated data, such as Apple ID verification check, an iMessage packet, an email server ping, or other communications. The phones bundles low-priority data until the next transmission and then it's sent along for the ride while the radio is conveniently already in its high power state transmitting other data. It is a few bytes of extra payload of data piggybacked onto existing data-communications, for IDs of tags it detected in its Bluetooth sphere.
You can obviously opt out of this extra data, but it's very much a zeroed-out rounding error on my multi-gigabyte data plan, and has negligible battery impact (versus simply leaving Bluetooth on listening for my existing keyboard etc) so I leave it enabled.
It's all heavily encrypted and anonymized from what I understand, and there's no way to know whether I've helped someone tracked their stuff down or not.
I might've unknowingly helped a parent locate their child, who knows.
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So I do know the S23 does not have UWB, but the S23+ and S23 Ultra do. Pisses me off as I HATE larger phones.
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Our cat would wander off to the neighbor's, or just hide in our yard. We got an AirTag for her collar. Turns a couple hours of stressfully walking around our neighborhood yelling like idiots into a 30 second game of marco polo on the iPhone.
(and bags, keys, all the other boring stuff)
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That is probably intentional to help make the case they it's less prone to abusive use cases. It also looks more durable which would definitely help with luggage and wandering elderly or kids use cases.
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I have a tmobile one on a free data plan so I can see it anywhere, it usually lives on my key lanyard since they apparently are irresistible to the elves that hide keys. I road trip a lot too and I've left it hidden in my car when I've had to overnight in sketchy areas juuuust in case.
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I put mine in our luggage. No way I would put it anywhere on the outside. The whole point is to hide it. For other things such as Pete’s and keys, etc that’s different.
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Yeah, it looks like it's going to be about the length of my pretty average thumb, and maybe a bit wider, so at most no bigger than a AirTag (31.9mm in diameter) + a fob. Which, hey, that's exactly what it's meant to be. But sure, we'll run with Ron's "twice the size of an AirTag", because it's Samsung.
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I have one of the new Google network tags on order for my dog. He hasn't run away and I don't think he will, but if he does, I'd like to find him.
I'm also planning on integrating it with HA. Just like how I can trigger routines as humans come and go, I'd like to see if I can do the same for him.
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I made it smaller by looking at the photo on my phone instead of my PC monitor.
In all seriousness, it's going to be about the battery dimensions. I'd be surprised if they went with something smaller than a 20mm-diameter CR2032, because then you get into cells that are harder to find and annoyingly expensive. So ~30mm sounds about right.
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Got 'em on my bicycles so I can be beaten to death by the thief when I track it down after a theft and confront them. Also, in luggage.
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Stalking?
I mean not me of course, theoretically someone's likely to be doing it.
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Agreed. Being able to tell their customers that an Android device is tracking them is a feature for them. Also, I imagine that if they take unreasonably long to do this, Google will just go ahead without them, making them look bad.
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I wish they'd just agree on a standard for trackers, and not just 'stalking'. The more devices, the better - even if you have the "world's largest" network - larger than that is still better.
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Where do you check in your mum? You should probably buy her a ticket, I'm pretty sure putting her in the luggage area is inadvisable.
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I have a smart tag+, the UWB means you can use your camera to find your cat who is insanely good at hiding. Don't have to rely on the map which is super useful. To me a clear advantage if you have a use case that makes it make sense.
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I wonder would one of these tags, of any manufacturer, be useful for hiding inside say a PlayStation for when a burglar robbed your house.
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Who came up with that stupid negative X-axis overlay? How can it be "very big" and still have a negative dimension? It's a Tag, not a TARDIS.
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