Which Tracker is best?

[Grant Lamontagne]

There are three main trackers on the market now, up from just Tile a few years ago.  But, you can't let someone else just have a good idea and leave it at that- not when you can jump on the bandwagon!

I have been using Tiles for years, and if I'm honest, I see no real reason to switch.  That having been said, Samsung now has the Galaxy Smart Tag and Apple has the AirTag, and given that my luggage was recently misrouted (along with everyone else's in NA at Christmas time!) I started to wonder if any of them were any better than the others.

My plan was to buy the basic version of each (including a new Tile since my old ones are all dead with non replaceable batteries), and place them at different locations for a week or so and see which ones get the most hits.

Along the way I'll also add some other info, like size, weight, cost etc, since these are also important to the function of these things.  If they aren't convenient and easy to carry, then they probably won't be attached when you need them.

Starting off as a baseline, the old Tile Mate that I have been using for years measures 39mm x 39mm x 5mm and weighs in at 6 grams.  I honestly don't remember what they cost, and I bought a 4 pack at the time, which means I have 4 to replace.

This time around I bought the current generation Tile Mate as well as the Galaxy SmartTag and Apple AirTag.  Pricing varied a little, and it should come as no surprise that the Apple was the most expensive at $40 CDN ($30 ish US), the Tile Mate was in the middle at $28 CDN and the Samsung was by far the cheapest at $20 on sale.  It is normally the same cost as the AirTag, at $40 CDN, but I saw an opportunity to buy cheap, so I did. 

So far, only the Mate and the Smart Tag have been delivered, I expect to see the AirTag later this week.

Here's how it stacks up so far:

Samsung SmartTag:
Dimensions- 40mm x 40mm x 10mm
Weight- 15 grams.
Cost- $40 regular, bought on sale for $20

Tile Mate:
Dimensions- 38mm x 38mm x 5mm
Weight- 9 grame
Cost- $28.00

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

As you can see, the current generation Mate is slightly larger than the previous version I have, but is still quite a bit smaller, lighter and cheaper than the Samsung.

I won't know how the AirTag compares size wise until it arrives, although I could state manufacturer specs, but where's the fun in that?

I already have the Tile app installed and set up on my phone and iPad and so adding this new one was quite easy.  At first the app asked me if I was replacing one of my old Tiles or adding a new one- I told it this was a new one, I named it "Test" and it's already in my list.

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

Since I have a Samsung phone I figured the Samsung SmartTag setup would also be simple, at least on my phone.  I had a feeling it would be less smooth on my iPad.   

Since I had a Samsung phone, apparently all I needed to do was press a button on the SmartTag and it would automatically open in my phone,  Very cool.  If it worked, which it didn't, so I scanned the code on the box.

Once I had done that it opened up in Smart Things, software I already had on my phone, and it pretty well did everything else on it's own.  I had to download an add on to Smart Things called Smart Things Find, but that also went quickly and without issue.

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

It appears as if the iPad is out of luck as I am seeing that the Samsung Smart Tags only seem to work with Samsung devices.

Given Apple's history of not playing well with other devices, I am expecting much the same thing from it, which, IMHO brings this experiment to a very early conclusion- Buy Tile.

We can get into the Android Fanboy vs Apple Zombie debate all you want, but if they can't play with each other's toys then the whole thing is pointless.

After all, with these devices, it doesn't matter which you prefer, the idea is that they will ping off any phones passing by and transmit a location to help you find it.  This is done by the software.  Assuming an even 50/50 split between Apple and Android, that means that 50% of the phones within range of the tag won't ping a location.

While that may not be important at the local mall, where hundreds of people will walk by every hour, it really stinks if you lose your keys on a trail somewhere, in a place where very few people are going.  Imagine a spot that sees maybe ten people on a busy weekend, and knock half of those devices out- that could be an issue.

If this is true, then my early evaluation would be buy Tile.  If for some reason Tile isn't an option I'd probably go with the Apple Airtag over the Samsung, as Apple's support means that every iPhone will have the ability to ping, while only Samsungs with Smart Things installed will ping.

So far this is shaping up to be a very disappointing start to what I thought would be a fun experiment.  Still, there is lots of time left, so we will see what we will see!

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

The Apple Air Tag came in today and sure enough, it has the same problem as the Samsung- the Air Tag is only good for Apple devices, the Smart Tag is only good for Samsung devices.  Before I declare the Tile the unofficial winner though, since it plays nicely with both brands (and many others), I would also like to point out that the Tile only works if the phones within range of it have the Tile app installed.

So while Tile may edge out the others, it isn't the perfect solution either, although according to Tile in 2021, there were 35 million Tile units sold, and 425,000 paid users.  Bear in mind that you do not need to be a paid user to use Tile- the basic tracking is free.  That means there are likely a lot more than 425,000 people out there that have the app, which is good, because there's barely twice that many people in my province alone, and it's a small province.

Anyways, back to the Air Tag.  Continuing the comparison of the basic specs:

Samsung SmartTag:
Dimensions- 40mm x 40mm x 10mm
Weight- 15 grams.
Cost- $40 regular, bought on sale for $20

Tile Mate:
Dimensions- 38mm x 38mm x 5mm
Weight- 9 grame
Cost- $28.00

Apple AirTag:
Dimensions- 32mm diameter x 8mm
Weight- 12g
Cost- $40

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

The comparison is interesting- the AirTag is the smallest, (in this case) the SmartTag was the cheapest, and the Tile Mate takes both thinnest and lightest titles.

The AirTag was also the easiest to connect, as I just turned it on next to my iPad and it instantly launched into the setup- no software downloads or updates, no searching, nothing.  Just pull the tab to activate it and the iPad recognized it instantly.  This is to be expected, given that Apple controls every aspect of all their products.  If it doesn't work seamlessly, they continue development until it does.

The packaging also says that the AirTag has a replaceable battery, which beats out the other two- sort of.  More on that later. 

For now, the AirTag seems like a serious contender, but there is one little problem- and it's a big one.

There's no way to attach it to something.  Read that again.

There's no way to attach it to something.

What good is a tracking device if there is no way to attach it to something you want tracked?  There's no clip, no adhesive strip, no velcro, no keychain, no mounting hole, no securing strap, no MOLLE attachment, no bolt hole, no shackle point, nothing.

Apple thought of that, and in true Apple fashion, you can do that if you spend more money.   

In addition to being either tied for or simply just being the most expensive tracker, you also need to buy a holder for it to actually attach it to your keys or anything else.  Theoretically you can just stick it in a pocket of your bag or something, and track the bag, but there's always the possibility it will fall out or be damaged (or otherwise hindered) by something sitting on top of it.

Assuming you have a good place to tuck it, or don't mind using your own double sided tape though, the AirTag is a very pretty little device- very smooth and refined looking, kind of like the EVE robot from Wall-E.... or any other Apple product. 

It is very pretty for sure, and given how popular iPhones are, and that the software to track it is built into it rather than user added, it has great potential for number of pings.

One other thing I noticed about the AirTag, is that it doesn't have a button.  I'll have to play with it more, but the SmartTag and both generations of the Mate have a button on the tracker, which reverses the process- if you can't find your phone, click the button on the tracker and your phone beeps.  I don't yet know if the AirTag does this or not.

Getting back to the replaceable battery thing I mentioned earlier, Tile does have other models with replaceable batteries, and that is the benefit of their paid membership- if you sign up for that they ship you new batteries when yours start to run low.  As my old Mates don't have replaceable batteries I never bothered to sign up for that service.

However, given that my old Mates (4 of them, remember?) all have dead batteries and are otherwise useless, I decided to dissect one of them.  It actually wasn't hard to get the case open, although I fear it may require some glue to close properly again.  Inside I found a CR 2025 battery that should be quite easy to replace, so I ordered 4 of them on eBay to replace all four and maybe put them back in service.  For those keeping track, the 4 batteries cost me $5 with free shipping, and as it is a Canadian seller, I expect to have them as early as the end of the week.

If I can make them functional again, I should have enough trackers to keep track of just about everything!

To sum up, so far:

Apple AirTag:
Pros-
Nice design
Easy setup
Replaceable battery

Cons-
No way to mount it
Only works with iOS devices
Most expensive

Samsung SmartTag:
Pros-
Cheapest (when purchased on sale)
Easily accessible keyring hole
Replaceable battery

Cons-
Only works with Samsung Galaxy devices
Largest/bulkiest design

Tile Mate (New version):
Pros-
Works with both iOS and Android- all Androids, not just Samsung devices
Most affordable
Thinnest and lightest

Cons-
No replaceable battery (officially)
Only works when someone within range has the Tile app

Def

[Poncho65]

Very interesting 

Of course Apple doesn't play well with others and now Samsung seems to be getting into that game

If the Tile had a replaceable battery then it would likely be the best of the best, period

Be interesting to see how these all work and look forward to the test 

[Grant Lamontagne]

I kind of get that Samsung may have bitten off more than they could chew.  While Samsung phones are popular, I don't think they are popular enough to get away with only counting on them.   I have to wonder if that is why it was so inexpensive- maybe they have declared them a fail and are clearing them out?

Def

[Sos24]

Thanks.  I’ve considered purchasing one and this helps.

[Grant Lamontagne]

It will all come down to whichever one gets the most pings, but even then I think I'm going to stick with Tile as my main tracker.

There's more than just versatility in the user platform, they also have a variety of different sizes, shapes and models that I think makes them best overall.

Unless they get pinged a dismal amount, and I mean a really dismal amount, I'd say it's going to be the winner.

How that plays out in the future though, is another worry.  Often when Apple starts doing something, everyone else, even established brands get pushed out of the market, and worse if Samsung is doing the same.

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

Oh, and one key detail I forgot is range, which will play a huge factor in how many pings a device is likely to get.

Samsung- 120m (394 feet)
Apple- 10m (30 feet)
Tile- 76m (250 feet)

If those numbers actually work out in real world testing, the Samsung Smarttag should get more pings than the other two combined.

Def

[Echotech]

Interesting comparison 

I’ve had a few Tiles over the years but am now very much in the Apple air tag camp, I am an iPhone and iPad user so easy choice. It’s pretty easy and cheap to add a case to them giving you a lanyard or clip. I put them in my luggage when I traveled last year and they worked great….there’s a lot of apple devices out there for them to connect with and as you note, basically no set up required so good out the box

[Grant Lamontagne]

I agree with much of what you say- the setup is very smooth, and absolutely the best of the three.

However, the other two aren't difficult, and I really hate the idea of buying something and then having to buy something else to make it useful.  Especially when it is the most expensive item on the list (or even tied for most expensive) and then have to spend more for what should be a basic feature.

It's funny that you mention the luggage option as my recent travels have convinced me that I need to do this. 

First off, my lost luggage in Ontario (which was returned to me a day later, not a big deal) and wondering whether my carry on luggage was going to make it to Halifax when I came back from Greece.

Def

[Echotech]

I agree with much of what you say- the setup is very smooth, and absolutely the best of the three.

However, the other two aren't difficult, and I really hate the idea of buying something and then having to buy something else to make it useful.  Especially when it is the most expensive item on the list (or even tied for most expensive) and then have to spend more for what should be a basic feature.

It's funny that you mention the luggage option as my recent travels have convinced me that I need to do this. 

First off, my lost luggage in Ontario (which was returned to me a day later, not a big deal) and wondering whether my carry on luggage was going to make it to Halifax when I came back from Greece.

Def

 

Totally agree with you that it should have come with a way of attaching it without having to resort to third party options
I went with the belkin option in the end which were on special at the time so about A$10 each (I've two) and seem very sturdy, but it all adds up

A real pain your luggage went missing for a while there, glad you got it back quickly
I put one in my carry on and the other in the checked bag. It took about an hour for my checked bag to hit the carousel but I was able to check it had at least arrived in Sydney, so it was good for that

There's a story here of a guy who knew his "lost" bag was in Sweden, took about 6 months for him to get it back to Sydney but at least it was found

One of the European airlines has banned them though which seems crazy, not sure the logic, certainly gave me peace of mind, possibly misplaced!

 

[Smashie]

Totally agree with you that it should have come with a way of attaching it without having to resort to third party options
I went with the belkin option in the end which were on special at the time so about A$10 each (I've two) and seem very sturdy, but it all adds up

A real pain your luggage went missing for a while there, glad you got it back quickly
I put one in my carry on and the other in the checked bag. It took about an hour for my checked bag to hit the carousel but I was able to check it had at least arrived in Sydney, so it was good for that

There's a story here of a guy who knew his "lost" bag was in Sweden, took about 6 months for him to get it back to Sydney but at least it was found

One of the European airlines has banned them though which seems crazy, not sure the logic, certainly gave me peace of mind, possibly misplaced!

 

The airline that banned them was Lufthansa, saying that as they contained lithium and couldn't be turned off, they posed a risk. The FAA released a statement “Luggage tracking devices powered by lithium metal cells that have 0.3 grams or less of lithium can be used on checked baggage,” The AirTag only contains 0.1 grams. Plus the two main German safety organisations EASA and Luftfahrtbundesamt, didn't have a problem with them. So, Lufthansa backed down.

I agree that not having a built-in clip or even a hole for a split ring could be seen as a disadvantage. However, the person with adhesive fingers is going to rip the tag off and dump it. That is of course is if they can find it. My work backpack and messenger bag have little pockets in them that are perfect for hiding an AirTag. Want one on your keys? Find a funny or OTT keyring and mod it to take the AirTag.

That last part is my work mindset kicking in, but that's how I think.

[Echotech]

The airline that banned them was Lufthansa, saying that as they contained lithium and couldn't be turned off, they posed a risk. The FAA released a statement “Luggage tracking devices powered by lithium metal cells that have 0.3 grams or less of lithium can be used on checked baggage,” The AirTag only contains 0.1 grams. Plus the two main German safety organisations EASA and Luftfahrtbundesamt, didn't have a problem with them. So, Lufthansa backed down.

I agree that not having a built-in clip or even a hole for a split ring could be seen as a disadvantage. However, the person with adhesive fingers is going to rip the tag off and dump it. That is of course is if they can find it. My work backpack and messenger bag have little pockets in them that are perfect for hiding an AirTag. Want one on your keys? Find a funny or OTT keyring and mod it to take the AirTag.

That last part is my work mindset kicking in, but that's how I think.

Thanks for the info didn’t know they’d reversed their stance, glad they did

Yeah, I keep mine in little zip pockets too as it goes, but if I wanted to attach it to the dog, for example, a way to attach it would be useful without resorting to buying or modding something….more fun though I have to agree

I wouldn’t be surprised if future versions do have attachments, although Apple are pretty contrary so we’ll see

[Grant Lamontagne]

You are absolutely correct in saying that sticky fingers will remove the tag.  I see it more as a "I left my ______ somewhere" or "I must have dropped my _______" rather than a misplaced with assistance situation.

I prefer to use a 2x4 to thwart thieves rather than a tracker.

When we went to Greece we were on two different airlines- Air Canada between Halifax and Heathrow, and Aegean between Heathrow and Athens.  We had no checked luggage on the way there, but we did check a bag on the way back.  Aegean and Air Canada have very different ideas on how to ferry passengers around, so we were quite concerned about whether our checked bag would be automatically transferred or if we would have to pick it up and drop it off.  Aegean assured us it would be, but we had no idea for sure, so a tracker would have been a nice option.

I have no complaints about my lost luggage going to Ontario before that though.  My bag was delivered the day after, and given the problems most people had with baggage around the same time (one report said there was over 20,000 pieces of mislaid luggage at the airport in Toronto where I changed planes!) so I feel like my bag being a bit delayed was not a big concern.  Still, it would have been neat to see where it went!

Def

[HarleyXJGuy]

But pings?!

[Grant Lamontagne]

But pings?!

Don't knock it till you've tried it!   

Def

[Grant Lamontagne]

I have been keeping the Airtag in the Jeep until I figure out a good place to test it.  Tye rest of the trackers live in my EDC bag for the same reason.

Last night Megan and I took the Jeep to pick up something for supper- ordinarily we would take her car, but she needs some work done on her brakes so we took the Jeep.  No big deal, right?

After we get our food and get home, she gets the message below on her phone.

It seems that people are using Airtags to stalk people, and Apple is doing this to try and curtail this kind of behavior- good for them.

This seems like a good thing, but ultimately pointless, as if I decided to stalk her, knowing she had an iPhone, I'd use a Samsung Smart Tag.  The Smart Tag won't talk to her phone, making it so much easier to ensure she will never know about it.

While it seems like a good idea, I can't help but feel advertising these kinds of activities are just going to make them more prevalent.  Good job Apple.   

Def

[GearedForwards]

I have been keeping the Airtag in the Jeep until I figure out a good place to test it.  Tye rest of the trackers live in my EDC bag for the same reason.

Last night Megan and I took the Jeep to pick up something for supper- ordinarily we would take her car, but she needs some work done on her brakes so we took the Jeep.  No big deal, right?

After we get our food and get home, she gets the message below on her phone.

It seems that people are using Airtags to stalk people, and Apple is doing this to try and curtail this kind of behavior- good for them.

This seems like a good thing, but ultimately pointless, as if I decided to stalk her, knowing she had an iPhone, I'd use a Samsung Smart Tag.  The Smart Tag won't talk to her phone, making it so much easier to ensure she will never know about it.

While it seems like a good idea, I can't help but feel advertising these kinds of activities are just going to make them more prevalent.  Good job Apple.   

Def

This was implemented after people started stalking people, putting airtags in hidden parts of their vehicle etc. and it has to be noted that each company can only affect there own products. However, it should be noted that for Android users to get the same warning they must download an app and actively use it to 'scan,' which doesn't even always work... which is an epic fail

Tile recently announced something along the lines of agreeing to be fined $1,000,000 if you're found ot be using their product illegally as well as giving up biometrics. That hasn't gone into effect yet I don't think though.

[Grant Lamontagne]

That makes about as much sense as registering for your criminal activity license.   

Yes, I know it really is a good thing, my comment is that if someone wants to do wrong with it, it's not going to be hard to do, and I think all they've really accomplished is giving a lot more people the idea to do it.

But, getting back to topic, the batteries for the old Tile Mates came in and I successfully managed to replace it, but also failed miserably.   

The Mate that I had disassembled was the one that had previously been on my Wenger Swiss Clipper- my most carried and used SAK, and important enough to be able to find at all times.  I had tried to replace it with one of my other original Tile Mates, although it turned out that one had just enough power to "replace" the one I had on my Swiss Clipper before it too passed on.

I hadn't realized that it worked, so when I replaced the battery in the original and tried to reconnect it, the Tile app told me that Mate was already in use and had been replaced.  So basically because I replaced it in my app, apparently I can no longer use it, even though it now has power.   

Getting back to the actual change operation, it appears that the original battery was glued to the circuit board, and was not easy to peel off.  The circuit board flexed quite far as I tried to pry off the original battery, but still appears to be functional- of course with the exception of the app issue mentioned above, which is 100% my fault.

Also, as these were not designed to be opened, the case will need to be glued back together.  I don't know how water resistant these may be from the factory, but I'd think that it should no longer be considered to have any water resistance now.

To sum up:

1- You CAN change the battery in the officially non-replaceable battery Tile Mate.  It will just take some effort and some glue.
2-  Don't use the REPLACE TILE option unless you are sure you are done with it
3-  There is no number 3. 

Def

[HarleyXJGuy]

This topic has me thinking.

You could get all three trackers and hide em in whatever you want to track. Increase your odds of a ping substantially.

[Grant Lamontagne]

A pricey but accurate assessment!

I was reading a review written by someone who spent $30US on an Airtag to keep track of a $6 Nalgene bottle!   

Def

[Smashie]

A bit of thread revival. I’ve been using and AirTag on my wallet for the last 10 months or so. Now it’s not going to stop it getting stolen, but it’s great for when I put it down and can’t find it!

[Outback in Idaho]

  For the recumbent I use a Galeo tracker that uses GPS, Cellular, and Bluetooth tracking. Have a Knog but it only uses Bluetooth and it's battery is only good for 2 weeks. And AirTags seem to have the longest battery span that I am aware of, and they use an Apple Dual-Band signal.

  Have a few personal items, like keys for instance, that have an AirTag, in case I misplace them. Have used tracking a few times. Wished the AfterShockz bone conducting headphones had a tracker on them. Live in a darker environment and stuff that is black, like just about everything is black, becomes harder to find.

  Read that it is best to removed the AirTag speaker so as to lessen the chances of it being found since it will not emit any noise, and would probably extend the battery. Still can track by distance though. Have not messed with other trackers as Bluetooth has a very limited range, and unless their apps are running no one is going to find them. Guess Apple has a monopoly there as a lot of people in this world have Apple devices.

 

[Grant Lamontagne]

Just to update this a bit.

the Samsung tracker comes in dead last as I don't have a Samsung device anymore, and so it is completely useless to me.   

Megan travels quite a it for work and we have been putting a Tile and an Airtag in her luggage so we can compare them.

The Tile has been a better choice overall, as it seems to update faster than the Airtag.  This comes as no surprise as the Tile has a range of 200 feet versus the Airtag's 30 feet.  Tat having been said, the Airtag does give a better specific location when it does register.

I have been away from home for the past week and I also tracked my bag with both an Airtag and a Tile.  The Tile definitely pings first, which is nice because I know almost immediately on landing if my bag is on the same plane or not.  I'm usually within 200 feet of the bottom of the plane, but not necessarily within 30 feet of it.

If I had to choose one or the other, I'd still choose the Tile, but not quite as definitively as I thought I would.

Since this thread started, I have bought two new Airtags (should have been one, the second one was an accident) and five more Tiles.  IF it weren't for Megan only being interested in Apple stuff, I probably wouldn't have gotten any new Airtags though.

Def

[Echotech]

My experience has been similar Def

The AirTag is really slow to let me know when I’ve left something behind, I can walk 5 or 6 minutes before being alerted which for forgetting something in a public place is way too long. However it’s great for knowing where my luggage is at the airport or similar

I no longer have a Tile but when I did it actually pinged me too often in some ways, leave my keys in my desk, walk to another office and ping! But for leaving something behind exactly the behavior I want. Think I’ll have to get another

[Grant Lamontagne]

The Tile card I have in my wallet is really quite annoying,  Every time my wallet is even slightly compressed (like I bend over to pick up something I dropped, or I get in or out of the car) it pings my phone.   

But that's better than misplacing my wallet, which has never been a problem for me until recently for some reason.  Twice in the past year I have misplaced my wallet- fortunately I have found it both times, but I decided it was worth making sure that never happens again.

I think the Tile card is still better than trying to put the small, hemispherical Airtag on it.

Def

[Whoey]

As I recently got Samsung Galaxy buds2 pro, not working with other devices seems somewhat valid, however I have been able to pair with my work iphone and Lenovo laptop without too much trouble, although no where as easy as my Galaxy S22. Also the functionality is more limited on any device without the Galaxy wearable app, which is on the android and windows store (Not available at all for Apple of course).