Project leader Simon van Ipenburg on recovering valuables
In my search for a fresh product for our “Pretty Thing” column, I was made aware of the release of the Apple Airtag. Only just a few days on the market, but practically nowhere in stock and mostly available to order by reservation.
The Airtag is a nice addition to Apple’s Find My iPhone feature, which now makes other items findable. Simple, just put an Airtag on your keychain, in your backpack or on your laptop and through your iPhone you’ll be on the trail again in no time. Of course, the Airtag is designed for Apple-lovers, so an Android fan like me will quickly turn to the Samsung SmartTag or one of the other competitors already on the market.
Community
Is Apple coming too late to position itself at the top of the market? Probably not. After all, the power of finding an object is not in the tracker itself, but in the community. Through the connected network of millions of iPhone devices worldwide, there is a good chance that the lost object will be found in no time. And once you track the lost object through the community, Apple has come up with a fun new feature to help you cover the last few meters with extreme precision.
Technology
Unlike the rest, the AirTag features Ultra Wideband (UWB) via its proprietary developed U1 chip. Whereas other wireless technologies can only distinguish between a weak and strong signal for a rough estimate of location, UWB is able to determine the exact location based on reflection time (total time of transmission, arrival in the AirTag and return). Because the range is limited to a few tens of meters, Apple calls it “GPS, but at the living room level.” Ultra Wideband has been around for a while, but only now has the technology found its way into smartphones. For a long time, Apple will not be able to enjoy the sole right to UWB, as Samsung’s latest phones are already equipped, and with that, other applications of UWB will soon follow.
Precision
Coming back to the AirTag, I strongly wonder what target audience is willing to pay a high amount for a smart button that can find lost objects with high precision. But maybe that’s more down to my own precision in not losing track of my valuables. Although Find My Kid in a busy supermarket would be quite an attractive option….
