Apple AirTag Smart Tags Review

Overview

One of the most anticipated novelties from Apple has finally arrived — the AirTag. The device, designed to help you not lose your things, and in case of loss — to find them, has been awaited for a long time, and even the name was known long before the official announcement. Nevertheless, the manufacturer delayed. As it turned out, not without reason: it resulted in an exceptionally well-thought-out product, where the hardware and software components harmonize and maximize each other’s strengths. We tested both the device itself and the accessories for it.

The AirTag can be purchased in two options: a package with one device and a set of four devices. As for accessories — Apple offers a leather keychain with a ring for keys and two options for a pendant keychain — a leather one and a polyurethane one . Of course, it’s amusing that the accessories are more expensive than the device itself. But it’s time to get used to the fact that accessories from Apple are indeed not cheap. But is this price justified? We were able to evaluate both the AirTag and the keychains for it.

Packaging and Completeness

We tested the AirTag 4 Pack, which is a set of four AirTags. It’s a small flat box with an image of the device and its name: the design is extremely minimalist.

Inside is a cardboard layout, where the actual tags are inserted into slits in the two central flaps (two in each), while the other two flaps serve as the user manual. There are also leaflets with information about warranty service. However, there is no leaflet with apples. How is that possible! 🙂

The accessories, which are sold separately, have packaging done in the same style. And inside, there is nothing except for these accessories and information sheets.

A curious point: the information on how to properly attach the AirTag to keychains needs to be found on the back of the boxes, not in the leaflets.

Design and Device

The device itself is a “tablet” with a diameter of 30 mm. Its cover is made of stainless steel, featuring the Apple logo and device information.

The surface of the main part of the AirTag, which contains all the electronics, is made of white plastic — it is slightly curved towards the center, and the edges are smoothly rounded.

We find the combination of two signature design elements from Apple very successful: white plastic and metal with a mirrored surface. On the other hand, to be honest, the AirTag is too small for its appearance to draw attention. Moreover, it is almost impossible to use it without straps or keychains, so they also draw attention away from it. For example, here is how the AirTag looks in a leather keychain. Can you guess at a glance that this is a device from the great Apple?

However, the view from the back is more interesting. Still, the AirTag belongs to the category of devices that, rather, please the owner themselves than impress those around them.

The AirTag works with a regular CR2032 coin cell battery. In the new device, it is already inserted, and to prevent it from discharging before reaching the customer, a thin but strong transparent film, similar to those used to protect the screen and back of new iPhones, is placed between the battery and the contacts on the white base. We simply pull on the protruding tab — and the film is fully removed, the battery touches the contacts, and the AirTag emits a melodic sound, signaling its readiness to work.

We will hear exactly the same sound when replacing the battery. This is relatively easy to do. You need to press on the metal cover and turn it counterclockwise until the cover rises on the springs.

After replacing the battery, we perform the reverse sequence of actions. The only problem is: the surface of the metal cover is slippery, so your finger may just slip off it. It takes some time to adjust, trying to press it this way and that, until finally it fits into the right position.

By the way, the AirTag speaker is surprisingly loud, and the high-pitched sound it produces, somewhat reminiscent of birdsong, can be heard even from another room. However, if, for example, the device is lying in a closed bag, you will have to listen closely. There are no miracles.

Perhaps the main drawback of the AirTag design is precisely the inability to use it without additional accessories. It does not have any built-in attachment. Photos have already appeared on the internet of craftsmen drilling holes in the edge of the plastic part, but one must understand that, firstly, this immediately voids your warranty and may destroy the device, and secondly, it still looks quite ugly. So, you either have to buy expensive Apple keychains and attachments or wait for third-party alternatives to appear. Surely there will be many of them, and at a price that is much more affordable. But — for now, the choice is limited.

In addition to the aforementioned keychain shown in the photographs, Apple offers a pendant that can be conveniently attached to a bag, backpack, etc.

If you pass the suspension base with the inserted AirTag through the slot, you get such a loop, which you can already attach somewhere.

Despite the fact that the suspension looks much bulkier than a keychain, it is, of course, more versatile since it can be suitable for almost anything.

We had a polyurethane version in bright yellow (a great summer choice!) for testing, but there are also leather suspensions available for sale. Of course, they are significantly more expensive. Well, the most generous fashionistas can opt for Hermes accessories. There, the cost is measured in tens of thousands, but that is true luxury.

Connecting to iPhone and using

As soon as you unpack the new AirTag and place it next to an iPhone or iPad running the latest version of the operating system, a window appears on the screen, reminding you of a similar window when connecting AirPods headphones.

You can immediately assign a name to the new AirTag, indicating the item it will be connected to. By the way, if your iOS/iPadOS is not the latest version, you will be prompted to update before connecting; otherwise, you won’t be able to use the AirTag.

After assigning a name and a few seconds of setup, you will see the location of your AirTag on the map, a brief guide, and a recommendation to launch the “Finder” — the app with which you will interact with the AirTag moving forward.

In the “Finder,” your AirTag is displayed in the “Items” section, while your iPhone, iPad, MacBook, and other devices connected to your Apple ID are located in the “Devices” section.

By clicking on this item, we can activate a sound signal (useful, for example, if you have dropped your keys with an AirTag somewhere in the apartment and cannot find them) or build a route to the AirTag. There are also notifications — this is necessary in case you lost an item in a public place and want to receive alerts if someone with an iPhone passes by. Yes, any owner of a device running iOS 14.5 or later, passing by your AirTag, automatically becomes a “notifier,” meaning their iPhone with Bluetooth turned on is used to relay the geolocation of the AirTag to you. At the same time, Apple claims that this entire chain is protected by encryption and the company does not store any data about the location of the lost AirTag, the iPhone through which the geolocation information is transmitted, or the iPhone of the AirTag owner.

This is a very beautiful idea, although it may raise some questions regarding how acceptable it is that, for example, my iPhone is somehow used without my knowledge (even if it is not harmful to me in the slightest). However, we were unable to artificially recreate such a situation. We left the AirTag, went outside with the iPhone to which it is attached, moved a certain distance away from the building, and another person with an iPhone 12 Pro Max on the latest iOS approached the AirTag, but the notification did not appear.

Let’s note that you can only enable the “Find Notification” mode when you are away from the AirTag, meaning that if you are in the same room with it, the system will likely perceive this as being with you. So, during our test, we moved a sufficient distance away, the corresponding item was activated, but there were still no notifications.

Perhaps the issue lies in the intelligence of the system: AirTag and “Find My” remember where you usually are, and do not perceive that place as foreign. But, in any case, we were unable to verify this.

What other scenarios are possible in case of loss? Any person who finds your AirTag can touch it with their NFC-enabled smartphone, and a web page will open displaying your phone number and a request to call and report the find. Here’s how it looks on an Android smartphone.

Interestingly, the same iPhone 12 Pro Max did not respond to touches on the AirTag in lost mode (we emphasize, this was, of course, not the device to which the AirTag is attached, and was using a different Apple ID). Meanwhile, the Android smartphone responded correctly, as intended. We assume this is some kind of glitch or issue specific to that device.

Next, we noticed that the location of the AirTag, which was left at home while the author of the article (its owner) was away, is periodically updated. Let’s assume we see that 19 minutes ago the AirTag was at home, even though we haven’t been there since the morning. The question arises: how does the AirTag send me this data if no one is in the apartment? There are two possibilities: either it uses the iPhone of a neighbor, which is unlikely, or it connects to other devices on the same Apple ID that are in the apartment, even if they are in sleep mode with the lid closed. In particular, Mac computers with Power Nap functionality can even periodically go online during sleep—and, therefore, connect with the AirTag at that moment. But, to repeat, this is a hypothesis.

Another interesting feature is the signaling in case we try to place an AirTag on someone for tracking that person. Right after the announcement of the AirTag, many had the question: what if a malicious person wants to hide an AirTag in someone else’s belongings to track their location? For example, toss it in a car — and try to find it there, not knowing it’s there. The answer to this is simple: after a while, the AirTag that has lost its owner will start to emit a sound signal, and accordingly, will be quickly discovered. But then the next question arises. Let’s say I have an item with an AirTag attached to it, which I leave at home and go to work without it for the whole day. Will the keychain start beeping soon? What if I leave the AirTag at my summer house and go into the city for several days? And here we have the following information. The AirTag understands that it is in its “home” place, so it will not beep. However, if it finds itself, having lost its owner, in a new place, then in 8-24 hours — depending on the decision of the algorithm — it will indeed “raise its voice.” Machine learning!

And lastly: the AirTag has a built-in Apple U1 ultra-wideband tracking and communication chip, which previously appeared in the Apple Watch Series 6. In the USA, it allows the iPhone to not only show the location of the AirTag on a map but also display an arrow, like in a compass, indicating exactly where the keychain is located indoors. This is especially relevant for owners of large homes or those who have hearing difficulties.

Conclusions

Despite its apparent simplicity, the AirTag is a very intelligent device. Here, of course, we should speak not about the device itself but about the hardware-software ecosystem of which it is a part. And this, in general, is a great argument for why the AirTag has no real competitors and likely will not have any in the foreseeable future. After all, it’s not about creating a plastic “tablet” with NFC, Bluetooth, a U1 chip, a battery, and a metal cover — that part is actually elementary. What is much more interesting is how this little thing will transmit information about itself and how the user will be able to react to the obtained data. In simpler terms, without the “Locator,” the AirTag is practically meaningless; without millions of iOS devices — also, and without machine learning technologies as well.

As already mentioned, it is currently not possible to take advantage of the U1 chip in our country, so you will not see an arrow on your iPhone screen indicating the direction to the AirTag. This is quite unfortunate, since if the AirTag ends up inside a bag filled with items, or falls behind the sofa mattress, you might not hear its beeping. At that point, displaying directions would have been very relevant. We can only hope that one day the situation will change.

There is also a comment about the design: it’s a pity that using the device without additional (and, of course, not free) accessories is simply impossible — unless you stick it in a small pocket of a bag. It would have been worth considering at least some option to attach the AirTag without keychains or pendants. Well, or include them in the package without doubling the price.

Finally, during testing we managed to check far from all scenarios of AirTag’s operation, and it is unclear whether this is a bug or a feature. That is, is the issue in our devices, in the technologies themselves, or in the fact that AirTag somehow “understood” that we were not really losing it.

Nevertheless, it is worth acknowledging that this new class of devices in Apple’s lineup is successful. Simplicity here is combined with intelligence, external polish — with interesting functional qualities. Perhaps only the not insubstantial price may prevent one from buying a whole bunch of these AirTags and attaching them to all frequently used items outside the home. For example, is there any point in attaching an AirTag to an umbrella if the new umbrella costs less than the AirTag itself? With keys, the situation is different — here, one really shouldn’t be stingy. Moreover, Apple has provided the option to buy four AirTags at a price substantially lower (per unit) than for one.