cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/795697
Archived version: https://archive.ph/55yyZ
Archived version: https://web.archive.org/web/20230728012552/https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2023/07/android-phones-can-now-tell-you-if-theres-an-airtag-following-you/
Aren’t there a number of small gps trackers on the market that are compatible with Android? Tile and Chipolo to name a couple.
just for clarification, they are Bluetooth trackers. They don’t have a GPS radio within them and have no intrinsic knowledge of where they are located. Essentially just a Bluetooth beacon
Air tags do not have GPS either. They use UWB+bluetooth but rely on the phone for location data.
yes I wasn’t trying to say otherwise! Just annoyed when people call them GPS
The drawback of non-AirTags is that they depend on people consciously opting in to the network (by, say, buying Tiles themselves and running the app). The AirTag network just exists because every iPhone is part of the network, whether or not people have bought AirTags themselves. The AirTag network is orders of magnitude larger and denser than, say, the Tile network.
This vast difference between coverage networks will also push Tiles to extinction, as the Tile network is now far, far worse than the AirTag one, and there’s not much point in buying one. If you’re serious about tracking your stuff, it’s quite possibly worth buying a used iPad just for this purpose.
That’s the amazing thing about air tags that no other tracker can offer. For better or for worse, every modern iPhone is - by default - reporting the location of nearby tags. It’s nearly impossible to actually lose something with an AirTag on it assuming it doesn’t come off and the area has even the faintest cell signal.
That’s far from the case with tile or any other tracker.
I’m optimistic Google will be able to wave a hand and bam now 2 billion Android devices do it courtesy of Google Play Services
