Finally, AirTag-Style Trackers for Android Phones are Available. This is how they Function

Now that Google’s Find My Device network has been restarted, users may finally use their Android phone to locate misplaced valuables thanks to the arrival of the service’s first AirTag-style trackers after a year of waiting.

Google’s new Find My Device app allows you to track assets without Bluetooth by attaching Chipolo and Pebblebee’s new trackers, which come in tag and card form. This is a huge advantage over competing products.

This new network leverages Bluetooth proximity data anonymously from millions of Android devices globally (beginning in the US and Canada), allowing you to use Google’s Find My Device app to pinpoint the exact location of your item on a map. You can also press the ‘play noises’ button in the app to make it make a sound or flash its LED light if you misplace it in the vicinity.

The One Point tracker ($28 / £30 / AU$49) and its more affordable Card Point tracker ($35 / £35 / AU$49) for keys have been introduced by Chipolo. Both have an IPX5 rating, making them splashproof against rain and mist, and employ Fast Pair to connect to your Android phone rapidly. Although the first batch has already sold out and the second batch won’t ship until June 10, Chipolo says they will begin shipping on May 27.

Pebblebee now offers Clip and Card trackers that operate with the recently launched Android Find My Device network. You can pre-order the Card ($30 / £25 / AU$47) for wallets and the Clip ($30 / £25 / AU$47) for keeping track of your keys right now.

However, Pebblebee is also selling a tiny tracker called the Tag ($35 / £29 / AU$55), which weighs just 6.5g and has a rechargeable battery that should last up to eight months. This is where Pebblebee’s trackers diverge from those made by Chipolo, who provide a changeable battery with a one-year warranty instead.

With the new Find My Device network, you won’t be able to track just these devices (except from Android phones). Software upgrades will soon be available for the Sony WH-1000XM5, JBL Tour Pro 2, and JBL Tour One M2 headphones, as well as the Eufy Smart Track Link and Smart tag Card for Android. Additionally, Google has stated that the Pixel Buds Pro will soon be connected to the network.

Concerned about privacy? The Find My Device network, along with these additional trackers, offers alerts for undesired tracking on both Android and iOS devices. This should theoretically prevent some of the stalker incidents we’ve previously seen with AirTag.

The Find My Device network launches globally, and in the upcoming months, there will probably be many more.