Bluetooth Luggage Trackers

I use Samsung Tags, with some use cases better than others.

Did my luggage get loaded on the plane?

The United app is better for this. Around the airport, I've rarely seen the tags picked up by other Android phones. Once on the plane, my phone can't detect them through the aircraft metal.

Did my luggage get loaded on the bus?

Sometimes my phone can detect my luggage in the bus hold. But I can't count on it.

Is my luggage arriving at the baggage claim carousel?

I usually see my luggage coming out immediately before the app detects it. Again, probably being blocked by all the metal.

My parents find them much more useful.

Where is she?
Generally Mom, checking in. But she can tell this with just my phone, tag not required.

is she safe in her hotel room at night? With her luggage?

Are she and the dog (who also has an Android tag) still proceeding normally ( i.e., safely) on their dog walk?

This only works really because of my phone, not the dog's tag. During our trials, there was only 1 other Android phone that detected us during our walk. Minimally, she can see that we're together (me and the dog with tag.)

My elderly Dad has started carrying one in his pocket, so that we could find him in the event of a mishap. His phone would work for this, but perhaps there is a scenario where he doesn't have his phone.

Bottom line, for us, we've had better success tracking each other and limited success with other Android phones detecting anything for us.

Of course, if more people use them, more phones will detect them!

Interesting report. So there still are not enough Android tag users here yet... I have read that Europe is more Android, less Apple, so maybe they would work better in European cities. Maybe I'll buy one on Ebay just to experiment with it.

We use the Tile brand trackers for our Androids. We have also used the Samsung brand as well and have been pleased with both.

Wirecutter just recommended the Motorola Moto tag
https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-bluetooth-tracker/

I have no personal experience with the moto tag.

Our phones are Androids. We have the Tile brand with replaceable batteries. They are on sale at different times of the year, especially around Christmas. I also give them as gifts.

There are still plenty of Apple (iOS/iPadOS/macOS/watchOS) users in Europe and elsewhere that the AirTag is far more likely to get the crowdsourced location ID than one that's limited to Android.

And as AirTags actually work with Android (the Apple "Find My..." app exists for Android and Windows) it's not a hindrance to their use. And the "Find My" ecosystem also extends beyond Apple's own products - many other brands use "Find My" for their tracker products (one of the biggest being Spotminders).

If I didn't want to go the AirTag ecosystem I'd go with Tile, which has been around long enough to have traction. But it's not as useful in actual practice as the AirTag.

Just my $0.02 having used both AirTag and Tile - and I've found AirTag to be as useful in Europe as in North America.

My experience with Air Tags has been hit or miss. Standing at baggage claim I could see my two bags on the carousel, one Tag reported correctly that it was there and the other said it was still at my original airport.

It is fun to be sitting on the plane and keep refreshing to see if your bags are in the hold underneath you.

Another travel use is after a day of sightseeing, you ping them and ask your phone for directions back to your hotel (and bags).

Good information!!!

I liked what CW social said about her parents... her dad has solvd the issue for my friends of a certain age, who say " I have my phone, I'll be fine....."
And all I can envision is them tripping over a rut with their phone in hand, and on the way down, the phone sails 10 feet away from themmmmm

I'm an Android guy, and I looked into using the Apple Air Tag with the Apple "Find My" app on my phone. One problem would be that I can't register and activate an Air Tag with an Android. I would need to get an Apple user to do that. I don't want to inconvenience an iPhone user friend, it it means they have to track my Tag. Is my understanding correct?

My daughter has Samsung tags which she got for her birthday in February. So far we have only tested them in the house (and were pleased with what we found) but thought that she might be able to use them to find her pencil case if it gets lost at school. The real test will be in July when she goes on a school trip to Europe and uses them in her luggage. At the moment they are still an experiment but if they show themselves to be useful we will be pleased. I'll update you all in July!

Lavandula

I bought these at Amazon:

https://a.co/d/02oHWV9q

I'll give them a try to see how they work but I will only check my bag if forced. Of course, it might be tough to test them if thee aren't a lot of bluetoothusers near the bag. (Like leaving the bag in a hotel room while I'm out and about.)

The big question is will they work while inside a closed piece of luggage?

I recently purchased the Motorola Moto Tags for my android phone. They are working around here, but the real test will be the end of May when I will be using them in Europe. I looked at the Samsung brand as I have a Samsung phone. However, it appears that they will only work off of Samsung phones.