A fundamental precept of the universe dictates that you’ll misplace your keys solely while you’re already late. If this occurs extra usually than you’d like, a Bluetooth tracker can assist. Attach one to your keys or stuff one in your bag (in addition they work properly with wallets and jackets) and when you may’t monitor one thing down, your telephone will make the tag ring till you discover it. These useful fobs may ship alerts while you’re about to go away them behind and might faucet into huge networks of different smartphones to anonymously find misplaced objects out on the imply streets. I examined choices from all the main producers to search out the best Bluetooth trackers for all types of wants.
Editor’s observe 6/17/2024: Two of the trackers we suggest come from Tile, which was lately the sufferer of a hacker who gained entry to buyer information together with names, bodily addresses and telephone numbers. We’re consistently re-evaluating our high picks and can take this under consideration in subsequent story updates.
Also, we lately acquired our fingers on the Pebblebee Clip and Chipolo’s One Point trackers, each of which depend on Google’s new Find My Device community. We are within the strategy of testing them and can replace this information as soon as we’ve completed.
What to look for in a Bluetooth monitoring gadget
Bluetooth trackers are small discs or playing cards that depend on short-range, low-energy wi-fi alerts to speak along with your smartphone. Attach one to your stuff and, if it’s in vary, your telephone can “ring” the chip so you’ll find it. These monitoring gadgets provide different options like separation alerts to let you know while you’ve left a tagged merchandise behind, or the place a misplaced merchandise was final detected. Some may even faucet into a bigger community of smartphones to trace down your gadget while you’re out of vary. Depending on what you need the tracker to do, there are a couple of specs to look for when deciding which to get.
Device compatibility
Like most issues from the oldsters in Cupertino, AirTags solely work with merchandise within the Apple ecosystem. The firm has opened up entry to its Find My community to third-party producers, together with Chipolo and Pebblebee. Those finders work with Apple’s massive monitoring community, however solely pair with Apple gadgets. Chipolo’s traditional trackers will work with both Android or Apple gadgets, as will Tile trackers. Samsung’s newest fob, the Galaxy SmartTag2, solely works with Samsung telephones, however new tags from Chipolo and Pebblebee that depend on Google’s new Find My Device community will work with any Android telephone (working Android 9 or later).
Finding community
Crowd-sourced discovering capabilities are what make headlines, with tales about recovering stolen tools or monitoring misplaced baggage throughout the globe. Using nameless alerts that ping different folks’s gadgets, these Bluetooth monitoring gadgets can doubtlessly let you know the place a tagged merchandise is, even when your smartphone is out of Bluetooth vary. Apple’s Find My community is the most important, with over a billion iPhones in service all working Apple’s Find My app by default. So except an iPhone consumer opts out, their telephone silently acts as a location detector for any close by AirTags.
Now that Google’s Find My Device community is up and working, it’s an in depth second for the most important within the US. Like Apple, Android customers are robotically a part of the community, however can opt-out by deciding on the Google providers choice of their telephone’s Settings app and toggling the choice within the Find My Device menu. Samsung’s SmartTag 2 and associated community additionally defaults to an opt-in standing for discovering tags and different gadgets.
Tile affords a big discovering grid, with each smartphone that runs the Tile app appearing as incognito locators. After Life360 acquired Tile, the 47 million customers of that app have been added to the 50 million current Tile customers, creating a large community.
In our checks, AirTags provided almost real-time location information and have been quickest to search out objects deserted in spots round Albuquerque, together with a bar, bookstore and low store in Nob Hill, together with numerous out of doors hangouts on UNM’s campus. Tile trackers and Samsung’s SmartTags have been in a position to find our misplaced objects more often than not, although not with the identical pin-point accuracy as AirTags. Chipolo’s Spot trackers function on the identical Find My community and carry out on par with the AirTags.
Chipolo’s traditional trackers, however, don’t have a lot of a crowd-sourced community to talk of. Yet as we used the trackers, the scale of the discovering community began to really feel much less vital within the face of typical, on a regular basis use instances. It was their potential to out-perform in each different means that boosted Chipolo’s traditional trackers to the highest of our record.
Separation alerts
Here’s the place a tracker’s day-to-day utility actually shines. A separation alert lets you understand while you’ve traveled too far out of your tagged objects, which is beneficial if you wish to be sure your laptop computer bag, or jacket or umbrella at all times comes with you while you depart the home.
These notifications work while you’re out and about too. If you’ve acquired a Bluetooth monitoring gadget in your pockets and stroll out of a restaurant with out it, the separation alert ought to kick in, leading to fewer misplaced objects. This characteristic additionally tells you the place your tagged merchandise and telephone have been final paired, permitting you to retrace your steps in case you occur to overlook the alert.
Each tracker handles left-behind objects in another way. Both AirTags and Chipolo embrace the characteristic by default. Tile trackers require a yearly subscription to allow the alerts (at the moment $30 per 12 months). Both AirTags and Tiles will let you flip off separation alerts at sure places, that means you may set your private home as a “safe” place the place objects could be left behind, however alerts will nonetheless set off elsewhere. Chipolo doesn’t provide protected places, however you may toggle out-of-range alerts on a per-item foundation.
In our checks, the Chipolo despatched an alert after we acquired between 250 and 450 ft away from our tagged merchandise. AirTags alerted us between the 600- and 1,400-foot mark. And Tiles despatched a notification after about a mean of 1,500 ft. Tile notifications weren’t constant on an iPhone, however labored properly when working with an Android telephone.
Connectivity, quantity and design
The characteristic you could use most frequently is the important thing finder perform, which makes the tracker ring while you hit a button within the app. The SmartTag2, Tile, Chipolo traditional and Pebblebee trackers utilizing the Pebblebee app may also allow you to double click on the gadget itself to make your telephone ring. AirTags and any third get together tags working on both the Find My (Apple) or Find My Device (Google) app don’t provide this characteristic.
The quantity of the Bluetooth monitoring gadget could decide whether or not you’ll find an merchandise buried in your sofa cushions or in a loud room. AirTags have a repute for being on the quiet aspect, and that aligned with what we noticed (measuring roughly 65 decibels). Chipolo’s keychain-style tags, each the Apple-only model and the device-agnostic model, and the Tile Slim pockets tracker have been the loudest, measuring between 83 and 85 decibels.
Design will decide what you may connect the tracker to. AirTags are small, clean discs that may’t be secured to something with out equipment, that are quite a few, however that’s an extra value to contemplate. Both Chipolo and Tile provide trackers with holes that simply connect to your key ring, and each firms additionally provide card-shaped variations designed to slot in your pockets. Tile additionally makes Tile Stickers, that are even smaller trackers that adhere to issues like your TV’s distant.
Batteries are replaceable for AirTags, Tile Pro and Chipolo One; the primary two have a one-year battery life and the Chipolo can go as much as two years. Tile Mate and all card-shaped trackers don’t have replaceable batteries, which suggests you’ll have to interchange the complete unit at any time when it dies. Pebblebee trackers are rechargeable and are available each a key fob and pockets selection.
Stalking and stealing
AirTags have gotten quite a lot of consideration and even prompted some lawsuits for Apple as a consequence of unhealthy actors planting them on folks with a view to stalk them. While this truth could not affect your shopping for choice, any dialogue of Bluetooth trackers ought to observe what steps Apple, Google and Tile have taken to deal with the problem. Last 12 months, all the main gamers within the Bluetooth tracker enterprise teamed as much as fight misuse and standardize how unauthorized monitoring detection and alerts work for iOS and Android.
Recently, Tile launched a characteristic referred to as Anti-Theft Mode, which lets you render considered one of its trackers undetectable by others. That means if somebody steals your tagged merchandise, they gained’t be capable to use the anti-stalking options to search out its exact location and disable the tracker. Of course, that doubtlessly makes a Tile simpler to make use of as a stalking gadget, so with a view to allow the characteristic, you must confirm your ID and comply with a $1 million penalty for misuse.
In normal, a Bluetooth tracker could or is probably not the best choice for combating theft. Anecdotal tales abound by which folks have recovered stolen items utilizing a tracker — however different tales are extra cautionary. Neither Apple nor Google promotes its trackers or discovering networks as a approach to cope with theft. GPS trackers, however, are usually marketed for simply that objective.
How we examined
Before deciding on which trackers to check, we researched the sector, consumer critiques on Amazon, Best Buy and different retailers, together with discussions on websites like Reddit. We additionally checked out what different publications needed to say on the matter earlier than narrowing down our picks to Apple AirTag, Tile and Chipolo trackers. When Samsung’s SmartTag 2 got here out in October of 2023, we added that to our testing, together with Pebblebee’s rechargeable Chip tracker.
Here’s the complete record of each tracker we examined:
After buying the trackers, I examined each over the course of some weeks utilizing each an iPhone 11 and a Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra. I recreated doubtless consumer experiences, comparable to shedding and leaving objects behind at dwelling and out within the metropolis. I planted trackers at totally different spots close to downtown Albuquerque, principally concentrated in and across the University of New Mexico and the encircling neighborhood of Nob Hill. Each take a look at was carried out a number of instances, each whereas strolling and driving and I used the measure distance characteristic on Google Maps to trace footage for alerts. I paid consideration to how simple the app was to make use of, how dependable the phone-to-tracker connection was and some other perks and disadvantages that got here up throughout common use.
Photo by Amy Skorheim / Engadget
Format: Disc with gap | Compatibility: Android and that iPhone | Water resistance: IPX5 (splash resistant) | Battery life: 2 years | Replaceable battery: Yes | Distance for left-behind alerts: 350 ft. | Phone finder perform: Yes
Hands-on testing is nice at smashing assumptions, and that’s what occurred with the Chipolo One. This tracker’s crowd-sourced discovering community can not evaluate with Apple’s AirTag or Tile. In truth, after I left the Chipolo for 24 hours simply exterior the busy scholar union at UNM, I used to be by no means alerted {that a} member of the Chipolo group had detected my merchandise. But as I used it and pictured how most individuals would use a tracker each day, the gadget proved its price and earned its spot on my keyring.
The One is a small and colourful plastic disc with a gap. It works with each Apple and Android gadgets and requires an app which is straightforward to make use of and simply pairs new trackers. The app and monitoring expertise on an iPhone and a Galaxy telephone have been almost similar, working equally properly on each platforms. It rang the loudest of all of the trackers, so misplaced objects have been rapidly discovered round the home. Unlike different trackers, there was by no means a delay between urgent the Ring to Find button and listening to the trill. The ring delay for AirTag was by no means various seconds and Tiles would typically join and ring after not more than ten seconds. While that’s not a deal-breaking delay, it may add to the stress of speeding out the door.
Where the Chipolo One actually set itself aside was with its separation alerts. I’d solely get a half to 2 blocks away (or a mean of 350 ft) earlier than getting an alert asking if I’d forgotten an merchandise. Neither AirTag nor Tile ever beat Chipolo to the punch. The alerts have been constant whether or not I used to be forgetting an merchandise at dwelling, at a espresso store, or inside my automobile.
As far as shedding stuff out within the wild, it can get you again to the spot the place your telephone and tracker have been final paired. That means in case you miss an alert or don’t have them turned on, Chipolo gives you instructions (through your maps app) and take you proper to the place you left your merchandise. In one take a look at, I had a good friend cover the tracker close by after I wasn’t wanting. I left the realm and returned hours later, utilizing the final location info to steer me inside a couple of ft of the tracker’s exact location. Ringing the tracker then made it simple to search out. Of course, if somebody walks off along with your tracked merchandise, the Chipolo can be tougher pressed that can assist you out.
If you’re involved about misplaced baggage while you journey or in case you fear you could lose issues on trains or buses, this isn’t the tracker for you due to its a lot smaller discovering community. But in case you’re wanting for a lifeless easy approach to discover your keys and ensure your jacket leaves the bar while you do, the Chipolo One is tough to beat.
Chipolo may also will let you use Alexa to assist discover your keys. You’ll have to allow the Chipolo ability within the Alexa app and join your Chipolo account. Relying in your sensible dwelling assistant to search out your misplaced keys may make an on-time departure even simpler.
- Loud ring
- Fastest left-behind alerts
- Affordable
- Works with iPhone and Android
$25 at Amazon
Photo by Valentina Palladino / Engadget
Format: Smooth disc | Compatibility: iPhone | Water resistance: IP67 (water and dust-resistant) | Battery life: 1 12 months | Replaceable battery: Yes | Distance for left-behind alerts: 1,200 ft | Phone finder perform: No
AirTags work with iOS’ Find My app, in order that they don’t require any further downloads. If you’ve used the Find My app earlier than, you’ll doubtless perceive how this works. These are the quietest of the trackers we examined and every time you press the Play Sound button, the tags solely ring for seven seconds. You’ll have to preserve urgent in case you don’t discover your merchandise instantly and AirTags can’t be used to ring your telephone.
As for separation alerts, AirTags have been constant, at all times delivering a “left behind” alert after I traveled about 1,200 ft away, or about three sq. blocks, with out an merchandise. You can flip off separation alerts for any given tracker, in addition to designate sure places, comparable to your private home or office, as exceptions for the notifications.
One characteristic that AirTags have that no different tag affords is the flexibility to faucet into the ultra-wideband (UWB) wi-fi protocol. This permits you to play a enjoyable recreation of cold and warm with an merchandise when it’s inside about 25 ft of your iPhone. Directional arrows and a diminishing distance meter in your iPhone’s display level you to an merchandise with out having to ring it. This labored reliably about 75 p.c of the time in my checks; typically it was simply simpler to ring the merchandise when the directional discovering couldn’t preserve a lock on the tracker.
UWB is supported by iPhone fashions 11 and later and whereas newer Galaxy and Pixel telephones additionally help UWB, no Android-compatible tracker has but been launched. In 2021, Tile introduced one that may, however has since missed its promised launch window of “early 2022.”
AirTag’s potential to find a misplaced merchandise out within the metropolis is nearly eerie. I had somebody (who was not carrying an iPhone) take my bike with a tracker hidden beneath the seat to a location a bit of over a half mile away. I set out a couple of minutes later and toggled on Notify When Found within the Find My app. Within three minutes, I obtained a notification that the bike had been “seen” close to an tackle. Tapping on Directions navigates to Apple Maps, which took me to a spot about 30 ft from the bike. Had it been obscured from view, I may have then used the Find Nearby button to activate the UWB finding options. Ringing the tag was too quiet to listen to on the sidewalk.
If you need the identical scary-precise group discovering options, however with a louder ring and a gap within the tracker, the Chipolo One Spot is a stable choice. It doesn’t provide UWB capabilities, nonetheless, and the separation alerts are the identical as with AirTags (letting you get 1,200 ft away earlier than a ping, versus a mean of 350 ft with our high rec, Chipolo One traditional).
Or, for a chargeable choice, the Pebblebee Clip is an effective AirTag various. True, you may swap out the battery in Apple’s discs, however charging your tracker through USB-C each few months is likely to be simpler. The Pebblebee works with Apple’s Find My community and has the identical setup as an AirTag. In my checks, it was noticed simply as rapidly as Apple’s tracker, and the left-behind alerts went off about the identical distance away.
But the Pebblebee has a couple of benefits over AirTags: The black disk has a built-in metallic attachment level and features a small carabiner clip, so for most conditions, you gained’t want an extra accent. The Pebblebee is way louder than Apple’s tracker, too. I additionally like that while you ping it from the app, it continues ringing till you hit cease as an alternative of going silent after seven seconds. Pebblebee makes a chargeable pockets tracker as properly, which can be simpler to slip in a billfold than the rounded AirTag. One phrase of warning, nonetheless: If you’re going to make use of it with Find My, don’t set it up with Pebblebee’s personal app beforehand. If you do, you’ll should do a manufacturing unit reset earlier than it’ll work with Apple’s app.
- Vast discovering community
- Accurate UWB for close by finding
- iPhone solely
- Only rings for 7 seconds at a time
- No attachment level
$25 at Walmart
Photo by Amy Skorheim / Engadget
Format: Oblong fob with gap | Compatibility: Android and that iPhone | Water resistance: Up to three ft | Battery life: 1 12 months | Replaceable battery: Yes | Distance for left-behind alerts: 1,500 (requires subscription) | Phone finder perform: Yes
Tile will work with both Android or Apple gadgets, however the expertise is significantly better on Android. Certain connectivity points and a scarcity of alerts that plagued the iPhone expertise didn’t present up in checks with the Galaxy telephone. One caveat to notice is that Tile requires a subscription to allow separation alerts. Tile Premium goes for $3 per 30 days or $30 per 12 months and consists of location historical past and merchandise reimbursement of as much as $100 on objects that you simply register with the corporate, they’ll additionally ship out a contemporary battery yearly. Tile stands out as the one tracker firm providing reimbursement — even and not using a subscription, they’ll pay out as much as $25 for objects that you simply register with them.
The Tile Pro is a key-fob formed gadget with a metallic keychain gap that feels sturdy. The Pro’s ring was just some decibels quieter than the Tile Mate (78 versus 82 decibels), however the connectivity vary was higher with the Pro, and it was extra correct in finder community checks. On high of that, that is the one present Tile gadget with a replaceable battery, which lasts about one 12 months.
For the lost-item checks, I had a good friend take the Pro to random places. After turning on the Notify When Found characteristic, an alert would arrive between 5 and ten minutes later saying my misplaced merchandise was “found by the community.” The map particulars have been usually correct inside about 100 ft or so, although it often thought the Tile was at a enterprise subsequent door to the place it really was. Without the UWB characteristic, precision discovering of an merchandise was trickier. In one take a look at, the tracker ended up in a loud pub. While the instructions pointed me to the fitting location, it will have been troublesome to search out the merchandise if I hadn’t noticed my good friend, because the ring perform was ineffective among the many din.
- Works with Android and Apple
- Louder than AirTag
- Finding community is first rate
- Requires a subscription for left behind alerts
$28 at Amazon
Photo by Amy Skorheim / Engadget
Format: Oblong fob with gap | Compatibility: Samsung telephones | Water resistance: IP67 (water and dust-resistant) | Battery life: 16 months | Replaceable battery: Yes | Distance for left-behind alerts: 1,300 ft. | Phone finder perform: Yes
Nothing can beat the vastness of Apple’s Find My community, because it depends on each close by iPhone to assist find AirTags. The variety of Samsung telephones within the US could also be smaller than the variety of Apple handsets on the market, but it surely’s nonetheless important. The new SmartTag 2 depends on these telephones to supply a discovering community that won’t best Apple’s, however is bigger than the rest on the market for Android in the meanwhile. Of course, as soon as Google unleashes its expanded Find My Device community, every thing will change.
The SmartTag 2 solely works with Samsung gadgets and after testing one out with a Galaxy S23, I used to be impressed how rapidly it was capable of finding tagged objects out within the wild, although the precision didn’t fairly match that of Apple. Of all of the trackers I’ve tried, I just like the design of the SmartTag the best. It’s an rectangular fob with a giant gap for attaching on to your keys, or you should purchase the elective silicone case and ring Samsung affords. Its quantity is louder than the AirTag and the Tile Pro, however not as loud as both the Chipolo One or the Pebblebee Clip. You may change the tag’s ringtone or double squeeze it to ring your handset, each issues you can’t do with AirTags.
Setup is straightforward as properly: when you take away the plastic pull tab, your telephone senses the tracker and walks you thru the usual permissions (location providers, notifications) and warnings (don’t use the tracker on folks). The companion app, SmartThings Find, tracks your Samsung gadgets and the SmartTag with an intuitive and clear Google Maps-based interface.
As for how the tag works in apply, I discovered the left behind alerts triggered reliably after I acquired about three blocks (1,200 ft or so) away when strolling and about eight blocks away when driving. That’s far longer than Chipolo’s alerts, a bit of longer than Apple’s notifications and about on par with Tile’s left-behind characteristic.
When the tag is out of vary and also you allow Lost Mode, you’ll get an alert when it’s noticed by one other Samsung telephone. The tag additionally makes use of NFC to show your contact data and a customized observe to anybody who finds the tracker, whatever the model of smartphone they carry. Of course, whoever finds it will have to know to carry it to the again of their telephone to get the message, and it was tougher to set off with my iPhone when the tag was within the silicone holder.
To take a look at the discovering community, I requested a good friend (and not using a telephone of their pocket) to wander a half mile away with the tag. About 12 minutes after turning on Lost Mode, I acquired a message that the SmartTag was “spotted by a nearby device” with a dropped pin. I tapped Navigate within the app, which opened Google Maps and led me to some extent straight throughout a reasonably busy road from the place my good friend was standing. If I’d left the tag behind someplace I’d lately been, simply seeing the situation on the map would have been sufficient to jog my reminiscence as to the place I might need dropped my stuff. But if somebody had stolen the tagged merchandise and I used to be wandering the streets attempting to get it again, vigilante type, it might not have been exact sufficient to assist. It is probably not as correct because the iPhone-and-AirTag combo, however the SmartTag 2 is a stable entry within the Bluetooth tracker market and a very good choice in case you have a Samsung telephone.
- Finding community is massive
- Attractive and helpful design
- Only works with Samsung telephones
$28 at Amazon
Photo by Amy Skorheim / Engadget
Format: Thick bank card | Compatibility: Android and that iPhone | Water resistance: Up to twenty ft | Battery life: 3 years | Replaceable battery: No | Distance for left behind alerts: 1,400 ft. | Phone finder perform: No
The Tile Slim is louder than each the Pro and the Mate, and almost equals the loudest tracker we examined, the Chipolo One. It works with each Android and Apple gadgets and its thick bank card form matches within the slots of a typical pockets (although it usually gained’t join when inside an RFID-blocking pockets). The separation alerts you’ll get in case you pay for a Tile subscription activate at about the identical distance because the Tile Pro, letting you get round 1,500 ft away earlier than pinging you a few left-behind merchandise. When utilizing an iPhone with Tile trackers, separation alerts hardly ever got here and connectivity between the telephone and tracker was spotty at best, even in shut proximity. If you utilize an iPhone, the Chipolo Card Spot is equally loud, runs on Apple’s huge Find My community and constantly offers you a left-behind alert at round 1,200 ft.
- Loud ring
- Works with iPhone and Android
- Has hassle with RFID-blocking wallets
- Spotty reference to iPhones
$35 at Amazon
Bluetooth tracker FAQs
Which Bluetooth tracker has the longest vary?
Both the Tile Pro and the Samsung Galaxy SmartTag2 declare a most vary of round 400 ft, which is longer than the 200-foot declare for most of Chipolo’s tags. Apple doesn’t make related claims for AirTags. Any Bluetooth sign, nonetheless, depends on a couple of components. Obstacles like partitions and folks can block the sign, so a transparent line of sight is the one approach to obtain the utmost vary. Other alerts, like Wi-Fi, may intervene with Bluetooth connections. Even excessive humidity can have an impact and reduce the space at which your telephone will connect with your tracker.
Remember, when contemplating the vary of Bluetooth trackers, the scale of the “finding network” additionally comes into play. This is the variety of close by telephones that can be utilized to anonymously ping your tracker when your personal telephone is out of Bluetooth vary. As of now, Apple AirTags have the most important community, adopted by Google’s Find My Device, Samsung’s discovering group, Tile’s Life360 members and at last Chipolo’s personal community.
What is the best Bluetooth tracker for a automobile?
Bluetooth trackers are designed to trace small, private objects like keys, jackets, backpacks and the like. All trackers have safeguards to ban the tag from getting used to stalk folks, so most will alert somebody if a tracker that doesn’t belong to them is detected following them. That means a automobile thief could get tipped off that there’s a tracker within the automobile they’re attempting to steal. That stated, you’ll see loads of tales about folks discovering their automobile because of a Bluetooth tracker. Some police departments have even handed out trackers to fight excessive charges of carjacking. In most cases, the tracker of alternative has been AirTags because of their broad discovering community.
How correct are Bluetooth trackers?
Accuracy for Bluetooth trackers could be checked out in two methods: Finding objects close by and discovering objects misplaced exterior your private home. For close by objects, you’ll most frequently use the ring perform on the gadget to hunt it down. Two tags, Apple’s AirTags and Samsung’s Galaxy SmartTag2, additionally use ultra-wideband expertise, which creates directional navigation in your telephone to get you inside a foot of the tracker.
Accurately discovering misplaced objects exterior your private home is dependent upon the scale of the discovering community. Since this depends on the serendipity of a random telephone passing inside Bluetooth vary of your tracker, the extra telephones on a given community, the higher. And since Bluetooth ranges and distance estimates are solely exact inside a few meter or so, getting pings from multiple telephone will assist finding objects. Here once more, it’s price noting that Apple’s FindMy community is the most important, adopted by Google, Samsung, Tile and Chipolo (each Chipolo and Pebblebee have fobs that work with the Apple and Google networks).