Cases And Accessories

Expensive Apple, I attempted to like AirTags however I do not know …

I am a forgetful person.

I actually got into this tech business because a former boss of mine once asked me to do something and threw a pile of post-its at me because he knew I couldn’t be trusted, me to remember. That was when I bought my first Pocket PC to keep things calendar all over the place, and the rest is history. Yes, that’s why our site is called Pocketnow.

The point is, just like years ago when I needed a PDA, I was the perfect customer for Tile when it launched years ago. Got a few, tried them, and then found they were a good idea with a very bad implementation. The network alone wasn’t as bad as the idea of ​​having to buy a whole new tile when the battery runs out. Of course, I know this has improved over time, but the original problem was enough to tarnish the branding experience in my head.

I also realized that even if my problems persisted, I had found personal ways to work around them. I’m not sure, but I follow boring routines to avoid getting into the same mess every day. I put my keys in the same pocket, on the same table, and in the same place in my car. This helps sometimes, but then becomes a problem again if for some reason I hold them and get distracted and place them where I shouldn’t. If that’s you too, I feel your pain.

Apple is famous for being the company that is never the first product, but when it joins the crowd it is better than most. We saw what time it was on smartphones, tablets, and smartwatches only to own the market years later, but we should also keep in mind that their first generation versions of everything were pretty bad. I wasn’t ready to take over an iPhone until the 3Gs, I didn’t recommend an Apple Watch until the Series 3, and I quickly realized that the first iPad was a $ 500 piece of hardware that I rarely used.

My love and hate relationship with AirTags follows the same fate. From day one, they already offer features that dwarf any previous attempt we’ve seen by others and yet are far from perfect.

One thing to love is the entire Find My network and how Apple played the long game. Find My iPhone was launched in 2009 with MobileMe, the following year with iCloud for free and as announced. It has helped you find your iOS device at least to some extent. I think it didn’t get interesting until ten years later when it was renamed Find My, not only because it helped you track other Apple products like your Mac, but also because that is how it worked. A Mac doesn’t have a cellular network. As an alternative to its lack of permanent communication, Apple has made great use of the Bluetooth signal from an Apple product in its vicinity to determine its location. I’m talking about ALL Apple products, including those you don’t own. This alone makes AirTags a superior product compared to other competitors. Sure, Tile has a similar network, but the sheer size of iOS products in the world will make any other company look bad. We’ve seen cases before where people are able to track an AirTag via email, just for that reason. Given my travel needs, this is why it is an invaluable asset tucked away in my luggage.

My problem with AirTags is that they carry on an Apple legacy that frankly sucks. Have you ever noticed how well Apple can ship incomplete products? They sell you a Mac for a lot of money, but they ship it with so few ports that there is a whole dongle industry out there just designed for this particular problem. Apple wants to convince you that an iPad is a computer, but you have to buy the keyboard separately and Apple Pencil is also optional. These are two other big industries that are fed by both Apple and third-party vendors. An iPhone that was originally intended to replace the iPod no longer comes with earbuds or chargers. You’ll need to buy these separately and make sure you buy a suitcase too, as the materials you choose clearly don’t take into account regular human use.

So in typical Apple fashion, I didn’t just spend $ 99 on the 4-pack. I had to spend an additional $ 40 just on the keychain accessories, which honestly is terrible quality, and by then I had already spent so much I refused to spend another penny. I reached out to a third party for the other one to compare which is better and then the third AirTag is in my wallet, just loose in one of the pockets and another in my shoulder bag.

I’m not exactly sure how Apple assumed the company that has designed an ingenious charging stone since the first iBook that can also contain the wire. They were the first to include built-in speakers with the first iMac. Heck, your MacBook Pros even come with a cleaning cloth. The whole concept of Apple Stickers became one thing from day one. This is the company that has bundled its products with extras in the past. It puzzles me that for the past decade the only extras you get in the packaging of an Apple product are issues. People even drill holes in AirTags to make them as self-contained as any single competitor who has already thought of the obvious.

This typical Apple mentality makes my second reason to hate AirTags, and it’s this whole unified mentality. Unlike Tile, which offers its products in a variety of form factors, Apple only has one design for your wallet or keychain. It’s crazy to think there’s evidence that AirTags have been shipping ready for two years, and within that lag time, for example, Apple couldn’t find a second form factor for your wallet. Now we have people using 3D printed suitcases for their remote controls to bring up another common solution. I’ve been seriously thinking about taping an AirTag to my garage door controller for the past week just because my building is designed to be carried, and you guessed it, I lose it a lot too. You would assume that a company known for its industrial design would consider all possible use case scenarios when creating a product, but it is not. For everything they invested in rolling out MagSafe to the iPhone, AirTags is the only product that primarily needs magnets.

This is probably one of the main reasons I have a hard time recommending buying AirTags to everyone. The network is awesome, but the lack of functionality in the solution makes buying into the ecosystem difficult. You need a company to solve all of your problems, not just some, as there is no point switching between two solutions for the amount of money you have to invest. If your doing the math, Apple thinks you should be spending $ 70 on a keychain. About that amount on a pouch label holder that doesn’t make sense as anyone can easily remove it. Apple seems to think that you no longer care about your wallet or remote control, or you’re telling me what other products to keep track of.

This is the main reason for my third problem: because I can’t use AirTags for everything that is important to me, they have become kind of useless. I know they are there for some things, but because I cannot solve all of my problems, I lose faith in the system and forget that they are even there. Just like how Tile got into this cool thing that I quickly forgot about changing batteries due to its design limitations, I feel like Apple’s one-size-fits-all approach is backfiring its own way. This mentality works for a phone or a computer because the form factor serves many different purposes. With AirTags, that’s a different story. Just like you need specific tools for specific use cases, users can only view AirTags as a tool when most of the scenarios have been considered.

If Apple’s recent take on the market is something weird, they’re telling you the choice is yours. You do, but honestly, that’s a very irresponsible thing to say to a customer. When I worked for an airline, I remember being instructed to tell the customer if a bag was to arrive damaged, “The bag was designed to protect its contents, not itself.” Yes, we were right but imagine if you were telling this to someone who just spent $ 170 on that Samsonite they just entrusted to your ministry. The least they would expect is that you don’t treat their property like trash for the amount of money the airline charged for the ticket.

Dear Apple, you are better than that. I know I have a choice, but you also have a choice. You can sell standalone products that carefully resolve problems on the first day. As much as I’d recommend an AirTag as a keychain solution, at a combined price of $ 70 you make that really hard. As much as I’d recommend jumping on your iPad as a computer, $ 1400 is ridiculous for an iPad Pro with accessories compared to your own MacBook Pro. When pricing your products, consider the entire banana, not just the fruit, which can’t be shipped without the damn skin. I think car companies do best when they can choose extras for more money, but the base model has all the basic features regardless.

I’m not trying to convince you not to buy AirTags, but I recommend that you think about your needs first before paying that much cash. Maybe you don’t have to track your remote control all over town? Perhaps Tile has a better solution for your specific needs? It’s funny how AirTags only made me think twice about Tile and not the other way around.


Jaime Rivera

Jaime has been a fan of technology since he got his first computer when he was 12 and has followed the evolution of mobile technology from the PDA to everything we see today. As our multimedia manager, he was responsible for developing our YouTube hobby into one of the largest video channels in the industry. When he’s not making one of our videos or filming our Pocketnow Daily, he’s in his second greatest passion, running and fitness. Read more about Jaime Rivera!

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