Apple AirTag, how to never lose the items you care about

Scattered around the world, rejoice! Even Apple – yes, the iPhone manufacturer – cares about you (or rather, we) and announces an arrival (in Italy on April 30th) A coin sized device promises to keep us from losing the things we care about. It’s called AirTag And it’s a small locator that can link to keys, bags, bikes, scooters, and all those things that we always miss. We tried it in preview: Here’s how it went.

How?
We open the package – elegant and sustainable (made from recycled wood fibers or that come from responsibly managed forests) in the perfect Apple style – and we find some kind of button inside.

On the one hand, it is straightforward and smooth, and here it is possible, by purchasing from the Apple store, to get a engraving made for free to make your AirTag even more special: You can choose between text and a selection of 31 emojis. The flip side, however, is Polished stainless steel and finely carved door Apple logo in the middle. We know right away that it is a “cover” that hides the battery, and can easily be removed and replaced after about a year of daily use. And nothing else: no buttons, no wires, no writing, and nothing. Because magic is inside. Plus the transmitter that can communicate with our iPhone – for the occasion We try it out with the iPhone 12 in the brand new purple color, Also introduced during the last keyword – AirTag has un Built-in speaker plays sounds to help locate it. But the “brain” of the AirTag is the Apple-designed U1 chip that uses ultra-broadband technology, enabling accurate searches for iPhone 11 and iPhone 12 users.

To attach our “button” to the things we want to track, you can choose from a series of stylish accessories, Including polyurethane ring, leather ring and specially tanned European leather key ring. We choose a brown leather keychain and assure you of the tracker.

how to use?
When we bring AirTag near the phone (required iOS 14.5 which will be available for all devices starting next week and is compatible with iPhone 6S and later models) Click “Associate” and that’s it. In fact, from now on, we will be able to check the whereabouts of our keys directly from the Where is it app. We can also decide Set a default name for AirTag: in this case we choose “Keys”. We can search for the object directly on the map, using the search option (and knowing how many meters the object is from us) or specify whether we will make it ring to determine its location when it is a short distance from us and thus within the bluetooth range. Or, directly ask Siri to make it sound. The emitted sound is loud enough to be heard clearly even if the keychain is inside a bag or inside a drawer.

But we can locate the AirTag even when it’s out of Bluetooth range, and take advantage of the Find My network that includes nearly a billion Apple devices and can detect lost AirTag Bluetooth signals and transfer the location to its owner, all in the background, anonymously and confidentially.

If we think we have lost something or that it has been stolen, we can put the AirTag in “Lost” mode and we will receive a notification when it has been located by the Find My network. At this point, one must hope for the kind heart of those who discover it and that they will be able to touch it using their iPhone (or any device with NFC capability) and be taken to a website that displays the owner’s phone number, if they have provided one. So we must recover the lost keys.

What about privacy?
Someone will be hesitant to think of “communicating” with strangers. But this time Apple also prides itself on its security and privacy protection system, and promises it is our data The site will remain private and secure: No data is physically stored inside the tool and the connection to the Find My network is encrypted so that only the device owner can access their location data.

Apple is keen to point out that the AirTag is designed to be used on things, not people. In fact, it might also prevent every jealous lover from knowing his lover’s whereabouts at any moment, IOS devices can also detect and notify AirTag not with its owner. However, nothing is said specifically On animals, and we probably wouldn’t stay long before trying it on our dog. We will keep you informed.

When and for how long
AirTag will be available in single or four-pack packages priced at € 35 and € 119 respectively from April 30 and will be available to order starting at 2 PM on Friday April 23rd.

Read also

Apple $ 200 million forest