7 ms·

What tracker is comparable in price? An AirTag is $30 with no other monthly costs. Genuinely asking, I would love to find a better solution.

k8sToGo 5y ago
You also need an Apple device.so it is not just $30
- spike021 5y ago
  Your comment is akin to "which came first, the chicken or the egg?" I highly doubt there's (much of) a market looking to buy AirTags without already owning the pre-requisite Apple hardware.
  - Dylan16807 5y ago
    Except that many uses don't need a phone at all, and android hardware could give you an acceptable experience for most of the remaining uses, on par with many iphone models.
  - k8sToGo 5y ago
    Maybe. But if I buy a third party GPS thing for $50 that also works with my Android, PC etc. then it is cheaper than getting the apple devices plus airtag.
  - jfengel 5y ago
    I would. I own a Tile, and it's limited by the relatively smallish network, at least out in the burbs where I live. Having every iPhone in the vicinity conscripted into the network would be good for me... even though I don't particularly want an iPhone. Mind you, I only ever use it to locate my wayward cat, so perhaps my use case isn't the most common. I don't seem to find any other need for it, though perhaps I should attach one to my keys.
rootusrootus 5y ago
A quick search on Amazon for 'gps tracker' will yield at least one option on the first page for $29.99. GSM for communications. Not as small as an AirTag, but 1.5 inches by 0.9 by 0.6 inches isn't exactly huge either. A legitimate point is that the battery life isn't great. But that's not too hard to solve, if you tolerate a little more space for a bigger battery. I'm sure there are even better options out there, that's just what I could come up with in under a minute. For anybody with more than idle curiosity, I imagine there are some pretty clever solutions available.
- gtm1260 5y ago
  There are plenty of trackers, but they require monthly subscriptions!
  - nicce 5y ago
    Exactly. Somehow need to send that data.
- nomel 5y ago
  > A legitimate point is that the battery life isn't great. A big difference is that these GPS trackers broadcast their position continuously, wherever there is cell coverage. The AirTags only update their position when an Apple device (made after 2015) is within the relatively short bluetooth range of the tag.
  - deleted 5y ago
    [deleted]
  - TuringNYC 5y ago
    >> The AirTags only update their position when an Apple device (made after 2015) is within the relatively short bluetooth range of the tag, with an internet connection. Luckily the "only" is pretty good. There are Apple devices almost everywhere i'd need to track a lost bike/car/schoolbag.
- gjs278 5y ago
diebeforei485 5y ago
T-mobile has a cellular tracker for $5/month, with no device fee. Over the course of one year, this is very comparable.

k8sToGo 5y ago

You also need an Apple device.so it is not just $30

spike021 5y ago
Your comment is akin to "which came first, the chicken or the egg?" I highly doubt there's (much of) a market looking to buy AirTags without already owning the pre-requisite Apple hardware.
- Dylan16807 5y ago
  Except that many uses don't need a phone at all, and android hardware could give you an acceptable experience for most of the remaining uses, on par with many iphone models.
- k8sToGo 5y ago
  Maybe. But if I buy a third party GPS thing for $50 that also works with my Android, PC etc. then it is cheaper than getting the apple devices plus airtag.
- jfengel 5y ago
  I would. I own a Tile, and it's limited by the relatively smallish network, at least out in the burbs where I live. Having every iPhone in the vicinity conscripted into the network would be good for me... even though I don't particularly want an iPhone. Mind you, I only ever use it to locate my wayward cat, so perhaps my use case isn't the most common. I don't seem to find any other need for it, though perhaps I should attach one to my keys.

rootusrootus 5y ago

A quick search on Amazon for 'gps tracker' will yield at least one option on the first page for $29.99. GSM for communications. Not as small as an AirTag, but 1.5 inches by 0.9 by 0.6 inches isn't exactly huge either. A legitimate point is that the battery life isn't great. But that's not too hard to solve, if you tolerate a little more space for a bigger battery. I'm sure there are even better options out there, that's just what I could come up with in under a minute. For anybody with more than idle curiosity, I imagine there are some pretty clever solutions available.

gtm1260 5y ago
There are plenty of trackers, but they require monthly subscriptions!
- nicce 5y ago
  Exactly. Somehow need to send that data.
nomel 5y ago
> A legitimate point is that the battery life isn't great. A big difference is that these GPS trackers broadcast their position continuously, wherever there is cell coverage. The AirTags only update their position when an Apple device (made after 2015) is within the relatively short bluetooth range of the tag.
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- TuringNYC 5y ago
  >> The AirTags only update their position when an Apple device (made after 2015) is within the relatively short bluetooth range of the tag, with an internet connection. Luckily the "only" is pretty good. There are Apple devices almost everywhere i'd need to track a lost bike/car/schoolbag.
gjs278 5y ago

diebeforei485 5y ago

T-mobile has a cellular tracker for $5/month, with no device fee. Over the course of one year, this is very comparable.