Apple AirTag — The Next Generation Key Tag
Apple recently announced some really interested about their upcoming item, the AirTag. This Air Tag is literally a highly advanced Key Tag. The main purpose of a Key Tag is to make something easily noticeable even after they are lost and this AirTag takes that into a whole next level.
Let’s take a look at what is good and what is bad about this new AirTag …
If you are willing to buy an AirTag, there are two options available for now. You can either purchase a single item or you can purchase a pack of four. Choosing the pack of four is a really good idea because it is a lot better and cheaper option when comparing with the price of the single item. Surprisingly, Apple has decided to give their customers a moment of joy by letting them to engrave an emoji or a word which contains four characters for FREE in their AirTag.
Apple AirTag will be available in the worldwide market from April 30th 2021.
This comes in a little box, with some documentations and a user manual. The main and may be the only issue with this AirTag is it doesn’t come with a Key Ring. You can’t attach your AirTag without using a Key Ring and Apple decided to sell it separately, as they do always. There are several types of rings. Some of them cost just like the AirTag and the ones called AirTag Hermès starts from roughly 299$ (AirTag included). There are plenty of good alternatives and legit key rings already in the market for a reasonable price so you don’t have to worry about that much. This is probably the one and only bad thing (not exactly a bad thing, depends on the point of view) about this AirTag.
This AirTag is quite small and thin device so you can put it in your wallet or bag even without a key ring. First of all, you have to pair you AirTag with your Apple device and then name it. After that you will be able to locate your whatever item attached with the AirTag via your Apple device. One side of the surface is made from plastic and the other side is stainless steel. The stainless steel part is removable; under it you can find the CR2032 coin cell battery which lasts for almost a year. The stainless steel part has the Apple logo, and it attracts your fingerprints easily, also it will get scratched easily. You will be surprised to hear that this tiny — battery replaceable item is IP67 level water resistant (maximum depth of 1 meter up to 30 minutes).
There are two different ways to locate a lost item using this AirTag. The first one is ringing a small sound via the AirTag so if it is near you, you can easily identify the source and find the item. Even though the AirTag is quite small, the speaker is nowhere to be found the sound it generates is impressive. The next way is to get the directions. If the lost item is in the Bluetooth (5.0) range (about 30ft) there will be an arrow on your mobile phone showing where should you look. That direction is quite precise and useful.
So what happens if you have misplaced an item far away from you?
This is the best thing with this AirTag. Even if you forgot something on somewhere and now you are not nearly there you can still use this AirTag to locate your item. All you have to do is open the mobile app, then select the AirTag and enable the Lost Mode. This mode uses other people’s Apple devices to locate the AirTag. If someone with an Apple device is near your lost item then you are lucky! The Lost Mode lets you to enter a mobile number and a short message so the finder can contact you via those details. This goes even further, imagine there are no Apple devices around the item and someone with an Android device finds your AirTag. Any Android phone with the NFC function can scan the AirTag and view the owner’s details through a webpage.
Then there is the last thing…
If your AirTag is near some other person’s Apple device for a considerable amount of time the person will get notified about the AirTag. It is ok if your device is in range with your AirTag so the Tag will be connected to your Apple device and will not notify others. With this security method, no one can use a AirTag to track someone’s location without their consent.
As you can see this Apple AirTag is something totally different. Disregarding the price, the item is quite amazing and can be very helpful in difficult situations.
Best Attachments
Apple AirTag Leather Key Ring
Made from European leather and strong stainless steel. Fits perfectly with the AirTag (of course because Apple is making these). Available in three different colors: Saddle Brown, Product RED and Baltic Blue.
Apple AirTag Loop
A 9 inches long polyurethane loop that can be used to attach a AirTag to your valuable items. This comes in four different colours: White, Deep Navy, Electric Orange and Sunflower.
Apple AirTag Leather Loop
This is exactly the previous item but made with leather. This is only available in Product RED and Saddle Brown colors.
Naiadiy Silicone AirTag Protective Cover
If you think the authentic key ring from Apple is bit too expensive then this is the item for you. This is really similar to the Leather Key Ring but costs about half the price of it. It is made from silicone and comes in five different colors. They are Black, Blue, Orange, White and Yellow.
Are there any alternatives…?
Of course there are…
The next best thing to the Apple AirTag is their rival Samsung Galaxy SmartTag.
What is this Samsung Galaxy SmartTag?
This is also an advanced key tag made by Samsung a little bit before the Apple AirTag. Sometimes this SmartTag outperforms the AirTag by several valuable features. The first thing Samsung did right when making this Tag is to put a punch hole in it. You don’t have to use external Key Rings to attach this to your items. The surface of the SmartTag is made from plastic; it will not get scratched easily (it will eventually) like the AirTag.
This also uses Bluetooth 5.0 to connect with any Samsung Galaxy devices (only Galaxy devices). the Bluetooth range is 130 yards without any obstructions. SmartTag can do everything that AirTag does (can be located by other Android devices too) except the SmartTag isn’t water resistant. In addition to all these things you can even locate your phone using the SmartTag. You just have to press the button on the SmartTag twice then your Galaxy smartphone will emit a very loud ring. You can even use this to control your Smart Home devices. You can enjoy all these benefits for a considerably lower price when comparing to the Apple AirTag.
The decision between the AirTag and the SmartTag depends on the devices you are using. If you are an Apple device owner there is no better thing than the AirTag, same goes for the Android users with the SmartTag.
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