Tile bluetooth trackers

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michaeljc70
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Joined: Thu Oct 15, 2015 3:53 pm

Tile bluetooth trackers

Post by michaeljc70 »

Does anyone use these? I saw them at Costco on sale. I don't use an iPhone, so an AirTag is not an option. What I am most curious about is how good the "network" is if the item becomes out of range from your phone.

For those not familiar with them, they use long range bluetooth (which can be up to 450 feet) when in range of your phone. After that, it relies on other people that have the Tile app installed on their phone. I just have no idea if that is a lot of people or not.

I would be using them for things outside of the house mostly like checked luggage and maybe hidden in something that might be stolen.
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Cubicle
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Re: Tile bluetooth trackers

Post by Cubicle »

I know the Airatags have been in the news for nefarious purposes.

I thought you don't need an iPhone to use the Airtags. The Airtags will use surrounding iPhones to report its location. That is a large user base to piggyback off of. I think the Airtags location can be viewed through an Apple website.

I could be very wrong.
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Topic Author
michaeljc70
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Joined: Thu Oct 15, 2015 3:53 pm

Re: Tile bluetooth trackers

Post by michaeljc70 »

Cubicle wrote: Sun Jan 23, 2022 10:40 am I know the Airatags have been in the news for nefarious purposes.

I thought you don't need an iPhone to use the Airtags. The Airtags will use surrounding iPhones to report its location. That is a large user base to piggyback off of. I think the Airtags location can be viewed through an Apple website.

I could be very wrong.
As I understand it, Android users can use an app to determine if someone is tracking them with an Airtag (one is nearby) and they cannot track their own Airtags.
bogledogle
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Re: Tile bluetooth trackers

Post by bogledogle »

I use tile for my wallet and keys. Tile's network is really non-existent in my opinion. It will not work for stolen things in real time unless they are right next to you. If you drop a tag in place with a lot of foot traffic like an airport or a movie theater, maybe the network will work?

I mostly use it to find my wallet, phone and keys in my home (under the couch/where my kid hides it) or in one of my cars. The last location my phone saw them is what works and the sound helps me find the tag. It is helpful if you leave your keys/wallet at work or a friends house while visiting, but not for theft.

Bluetooth range is not that good - definitely not 450ft in real world. I cannot ring tags in the other rooms, or my garage from the living room just around the wall. What usually works for me is walking around from room to room to find things.
Topic Author
michaeljc70
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Joined: Thu Oct 15, 2015 3:53 pm

Re: Tile bluetooth trackers

Post by michaeljc70 »

bogledogle wrote: Sun Jan 23, 2022 10:50 am I use tile for my wallet and keys. Tile's network is really non-existent in my opinion. It will not work for stolen things in real time unless they are right next to you. If you drop a tag in place with a lot of foot traffic like an airport or a movie theater, maybe the network will work?

I mostly use it to find my wallet, phone and keys in my home (under the couch/where my kid hides it) or in one of my cars. The last location my phone saw them is what works and the sound helps me find the tag. It is helpful if you leave your keys/wallet at work or a friends house while visiting, but not for theft.

Bluetooth range is not that good - definitely not 450ft in real world. I cannot ring tags in the other rooms, or my garage from the living room just around the wall. What usually works for me is walking around from room to room to find things.
Thanks. It seems like they have a lot of partnerships and hopefully that will change in the future. I guess they are incorporating the technology into things like Bose headphones, Fitbit, HP computers, etc.

I don't know for sure, but I bet all iPhones track Airtags whether the owner has any or not. I don't know if that can be turned off on an iPhone. That makes them more useful if you are in the Apple universe.
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