Second-generation AirTags are a scattered mind’s best friend

In a somewhat controversial matter vertcast episodeIt has declared AirTags a superior product to iPads. iPad fans have been roasting me across social media. I heard and respected their opinions. But, I’m sorry — the second-generation AirTag has only deepened my conviction that the humble $29 item tracker is one of Apple’s most useful tools.

The new updates focus more on improving the good thing. There is an upgraded Bluetooth and ultra-wideband chipset that helps extend the range by about 1.5 times. Your ringer has a new, louder tone that is 50 percent louder thanks to a redesigned speaker. You can now use Precision Finding for AirTags on your Apple Watch, provided you have at least a Series 9 or Ultra 2.

Before Apple announced the update last week, my wife and I owned seven AirTags and were planning to buy more. We both have ADHD. We have cunning cats who love To knock things under sofas, beds and behind shelves. Without AirTags, we probably would spend an hour a day walking up and down the 42 stairs in our four-story house trying to find our essentials. We have AirTags on keychains, TV remotes, wallets, car glove boxes, and inside our Canada Goose jackets. (It was expensive and it is North Pole It’s cold on the East Coast now, okay?)

But we also have a lot of complaints about our AirTags. One day, my wife lost her keys in the parking lot and spent 90 minutes looking for them. The ringing was very low, and The AirTag was struggling to connect via Bluetooth. The short disc shape is annoying for wallets unless you buy one specifically designed to fit it. (And those wallets tend to be that way ugly.) They scuff easily. If your cat hits it on the stairs, there’s a good chance it will go flying, and you’ll have to race the deranged cat so it doesn’t eat the battery.

2nd generation AirTags are not fixed most From that. They are still the same shape, size and design. (And fortunately, so is the price.) My review unit scratched for about two seconds after I stuck it on the supplied key ring. But the higher resonance and extended range made a big difference in testing.

I pitted the second-generation AirTag against an original device with a freshly replaced battery. I quickly noticed how the extended range improved connectivity. The connection to my phone was always much faster than the original connection, no matter the distance. This speed means that the ringing sound is faster and the precise search signal appears faster.

Vertical range has also improved. AirTags are best if you’re searching for things in a horizontal space. they truly Suffer if you’re on a different floor – a constant problem in our house. The original AirTag was good if you were one floor up or down from the desired object. But two or more floors? Forget it. The best I could hope for was a pinpoint search screen that told me the marker was “far away” or, more likely, inaccessible.

Not so with the second generation AirTag. I hung it on the ground floor of my house and ran all the way to the fourth floor. Not only was I able to get a fast, reliable connection for precise searching, but to my surprise, I could also hear the ringing easily. (If everything on my street were completely silent, I would do that maybe I hear the original AirTag from the same position, but more often than not I can’t.) This was true when I stuffed the AirTags under blankets and between couch cushions as well.

However, my favorite new feature was the ability to use Precision to search from the Apple Watch. It’s not intuitive to set up. Instead of using the Find Items app, you need to add a button to your Apple Watch trackpad. It works fine. When I’m doing chores around the house, I often leave my phone behind. If something with the original AirTag on it is missing, I first have to find my phone and then use the exact search to find the missing item. I never I lose my Apple Watch because it is always with me. (Honestly, the most used function on the Apple Watch is Find My Phone.)

As with the original AirTags, the new versions still contain unwanted tracking alerts. Apple’s announcement post for the new model argues that higher resonance makes AirTags less attractive for nefarious purposes. Apple does make a point during setup to say that these devices aren’t intended for tracking people or pets — unlike Tile — however Bad actors won’t listen. I haven’t had this unit long enough to see how the higher resonance and extended range affect this feature in an organically operated scenario. I will report back once I have it.

I now want to upgrade all my perfectly good original AirTags. At the very least, this will cost us $200. Although you can recycle old AirTags for free, you don’t get store credit, and I hate the idea of ​​e-waste when replacing a coin cell battery is so affordable. My father-in-law announced that he has no such concerns and plans to update all eight of his AirTags immediately. I suggest a compromise that makes more sense if you’re an AirTag user like me. Be patient, identify the four items you tend to lose the most, grab a four-pack when they’re on sale, and then reuse the originals for items you use (or lose) less frequently but still want to keep track of.

Ultimately, iPad fans reminded me loudly that AirTags aren’t for everyone. I’m naturally jealous of you geniuses who always seem to know where your stuff is. But if, like me, you suffer from goldfish executive dysfunction, the second-generation AirTags are a meaningful update — even if it’s not a flashy one.