03 May 2024,   03:24
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Apple officially unveiled its lost item finder AirTag

Apple officially unveiled AirTag, its location tracking beacons that can help Apple device owners find lost items through Apple’s “Find My” application. The AirTags themselves are small, rounded tracking devices that can be attached to personal items, like purses, bags or keys. Pre-orders start April 23 and are USD 29 USD for one AirTag or USD 99 for a pack of four.

The tags are small, polished stainless steel and white, and circular in shape, and have the Apple logo printed on the front. They also come with various case options and keychain dongles, allowing you to add an AirTag to your keys, for example, or a handbag or duffle, and so on. Further customization exists, including emoji symbols.

The item tracking uses the company’s proprietary U1 ultra-wideband chip for what it calls “Precision Finding.” This will work with Apple’s newer iPhones (iPhone 11, 11 Pro and the newer iPhone 12 devices) using the U1 chip and ultra-wideband, as well as other input from the camera, ARKit, accelerator and gyroscope. This way, the Find My app can guide users to a lost AirTag using a combination of sound, haptics and visual feedback.

The device also uses Bluetooth LE (low-energy) and is able to get a year of battery life, according to the company. When the battery is out of juice, it’s user replaceable. Apple says the AirTag is IP67 water- and dust-resistant, which means you could probably drop one in a toilet and it would be okay, but you shouldn’t expect iPhone-like miracles.

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