AirTag vs. Tile vs. Galaxy SmartTag - Specs, Prices and Features

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enbefore there were air tags there were trackers like tile and Samsung's Galaxy smart tag so if you don't have an iPhone or you want an alternative to Apple's product how do these other trackers compare let's break it down first some quick specs on each tracker tile's big perk is that it works on both Android and iOS the standard mate version costs 25 and the pro version costs 35 dollars you can use it just like any other tracker to find your keys wallet or bag or whatever else you want to attach it to just download The Tile app and connect it to the tracker the tilemate has a Bluetooth range up to 250 feet while the pro can track up to 400 feet the pro is also compatible with Siri Google and Alexa to help with finding now it's important to note the battery on the mate is non-replaceable but tile says it'll last up to three years you can replace the battery on the tile Pro jumping to a quick overview of the Galaxy smart tag you can get the standard version for thirty dollars or the smart tag Plus for forty dollars the key difference is that the plus has an a R feature that guides you to your tag using your phone camera and on-screen arrows to point you in the right direction just like how air tags are only compatible with iPhone Galaxy smart tags are only compatible with Galaxy phones the Apple Android rivalry runs deep smart tag connects to your phone using the SmartThings app which lets you control and monitor smart devices appliances TVs and speakers the Bluetooth range for smart tag is around 390 feet it has a replaceable battery and Samsung says the plus lasts a maximum of 165 days anecdotally when I first set up this tracker the battery was already showing as almost half empty which was a little surprising there are a lot of reviews on Samsung's website complaining about the battery life but I'll need to try it a little bit longer to really know if it's as big of an issue for me and for a quick comparison Apple's air tag costs 30 dollars Apple says the battery can last more than a year and is replaceable the Bluetooth range is about 30 feet now let's dive into the differences between how the tile and Galaxy smart tag track down items compared to Apple's air tag when you open up the Tile app you'll see the name of the item you attached your tracker to like your wallet or your keys you can tap find to ring the tracker if it's nearby you can also use tile to find your phone if you double press the button on the tile tracker it'll make your phone ring so you can track it down Samsung's SmartThings app will show your smart Tag's current location on a map and the location history it can ring your tracker or you can search nearby or navigate to track it down like the tile tracker you can also use smart tag to ring your phone if you lose it by double pressing the button on the tag when an air tag is connected to your Apple ID you can use the find my app to track it down you can ping it to have it play a sound or you can even ask Siri something like where are my keys and the air tag will chime in response also if you have an iPhone 11 or higher you can use something called Precision finding air tags Ultra wideband chip lets you pinpoint the exact distance and how to get to it a visual guide will pop up on your phone to guide you to the tag and item using haptics and Sound Precision finding works if you're within Bluetooth range of the air tag once you're beyond the Bluetooth range Apple's find my network can still help you track down your air tag the tracker sends a Bluetooth signal that's detected by nearby devices in the find my network this is all encrypted and Anonymous you can then go to your own find my app to see where your tag is on a map tile also has its own network that works in a similar way whenever you're within range of another tile tracker your app will anonymously update that tracker's location on the owner's account you can't see where other people's tiles are and they can't see where yours is but Apple's find my network is much larger than tile's Network meaning you're probably more likely to pinpoint a lost air tag than a lost tile and similarly there's a network of Galaxy devices that can detect your smart tag and you can then see the location and navigate to it when it comes to the way these trackers feel the tile mate is nice and light and it also has a hole so you can add it to your keychain the Galaxy smart tag plus also comes out of the box keychain friendly and is square shaped like the tile mate but it's a little bit thicker the Apple Air tag is circular unlike the tile and smart tag and it's a little bit smaller it feels slightly heavier than the tile mate and weighs around the same as smart tag plus because there's no hole in the air tag if you want to attach it to literally anything you'll need to buy separate accessories which is a bummer until you look at all the cute options I mean look at this it's so cute or perhaps this 450 dollar Hermes luggage tag is calling to you because people are totally going to notice your designer air tag holder anyway at the end of the day there's a way to attach all these to your keys or luggage or slip them into your wallet now trackers are great when you do want to find something but what about concerns related to stalking if you have an iPhone you'll get an alert if an unknown air tag is moving with you and if you're on Android then you can download the tracker detect app to pinpoint the air tag at this year's i o developer conference Google said unknown tracker alerts are coming to Android phones this summer and in a rare display of unity Apple and Google teamed up on an initiative that would notify people on both IOS and Android devices when they're being tracked through a Bluetooth device without their consent tile doesn't have any of these unwanted tracking features and Samsung has some but they only work across Galaxy devices that means Apple's air tag and other Bluetooth trackers that work using find my have the most robust unwanted tracking features ultimately tile and smart tags share a lot of the same functionality as air tags even if they may have been overshadowed by Apple's star power but if you don't have an iPhone or you want something different you've still got good options for tracking down your items if you care about the Galaxy ecosystem then the Galaxy smart tag may be the best option for you but if you want something more versatile across IOS and Android and potentially a cheaper option than maybe tile is for you and Rumor Has It Google is developing its own tracker so maybe someday soon you'll have another option until then let us know in the comments of which tracker you think is a better fit for your needs and don't forget to hit like And subscribe for more videos from CNET thanks for watchingbefore there were air tags there were trackers like tile and Samsung's Galaxy smart tag so if you don't have an iPhone or you want an alternative to Apple's product how do these other trackers compare let's break it down first some quick specs on each tracker tile's big perk is that it works on both Android and iOS the standard mate version costs 25 and the pro version costs 35 dollars you can use it just like any other tracker to find your keys wallet or bag or whatever else you want to attach it to just download The Tile app and connect it to the tracker the tilemate has a Bluetooth range up to 250 feet while the pro can track up to 400 feet the pro is also compatible with Siri Google and Alexa to help with finding now it's important to note the battery on the mate is non-replaceable but tile says it'll last up to three years you can replace the battery on the tile Pro jumping to a quick overview of the Galaxy smart tag you can get the standard version for thirty dollars or the smart tag Plus for forty dollars the key difference is that the plus has an a R feature that guides you to your tag using your phone camera and on-screen arrows to point you in the right direction just like how air tags are only compatible with iPhone Galaxy smart tags are only compatible with Galaxy phones the Apple Android rivalry runs deep smart tag connects to your phone using the SmartThings app which lets you control and monitor smart devices appliances TVs and speakers the Bluetooth range for smart tag is around 390 feet it has a replaceable battery and Samsung says the plus lasts a maximum of 165 days anecdotally when I first set up this tracker the battery was already showing as almost half empty which was a little surprising there are a lot of reviews on Samsung's website complaining about the battery life but I'll need to try it a little bit longer to really know if it's as big of an issue for me and for a quick comparison Apple's air tag costs 30 dollars Apple says the battery can last more than a year and is replaceable the Bluetooth range is about 30 feet now let's dive into the differences between how the tile and Galaxy smart tag track down items compared to Apple's air tag when you open up the Tile app you'll see the name of the item you attached your tracker to like your wallet or your keys you can tap find to ring the tracker if it's nearby you can also use tile to find your phone if you double press the button on the tile tracker it'll make your phone ring so you can track it down Samsung's SmartThings app will show your smart Tag's current location on a map and the location history it can ring your tracker or you can search nearby or navigate to track it down like the tile tracker you can also use smart tag to ring your phone if you lose it by double pressing the button on the tag when an air tag is connected to your Apple ID you can use the find my app to track it down you can ping it to have it play a sound or you can even ask Siri something like where are my keys and the air tag will chime in response also if you have an iPhone 11 or higher you can use something called Precision finding air tags Ultra wideband chip lets you pinpoint the exact distance and how to get to it a visual guide will pop up on your phone to guide you to the tag and item using haptics and Sound Precision finding works if you're within Bluetooth range of the air tag once you're beyond the Bluetooth range Apple's find my network can still help you track down your air tag the tracker sends a Bluetooth signal that's detected by nearby devices in the find my network this is all encrypted and Anonymous you can then go to your own find my app to see where your tag is on a map tile also has its own network that works in a similar way whenever you're within range of another tile tracker your app will anonymously update that tracker's location on the owner's account you can't see where other people's tiles are and they can't see where yours is but Apple's find my network is much larger than tile's Network meaning you're probably more likely to pinpoint a lost air tag than a lost tile and similarly there's a network of Galaxy devices that can detect your smart tag and you can then see the location and navigate to it when it comes to the way these trackers feel the tile mate is nice and light and it also has a hole so you can add it to your keychain the Galaxy smart tag plus also comes out of the box keychain friendly and is square shaped like the tile mate but it's a little bit thicker the Apple Air tag is circular unlike the tile and smart tag and it's a little bit smaller it feels slightly heavier than the tile mate and weighs around the same as smart tag plus because there's no hole in the air tag if you want to attach it to literally anything you'll need to buy separate accessories which is a bummer until you look at all the cute options I mean look at this it's so cute or perhaps this 450 dollar Hermes luggage tag is calling to you because people are totally going to notice your designer air tag holder anyway at the end of the day there's a way to attach all these to your keys or luggage or slip them into your wallet now trackers are great when you do want to find something but what about concerns related to stalking if you have an iPhone you'll get an alert if an unknown air tag is moving with you and if you're on Android then you can download the tracker detect app to pinpoint the air tag at this year's i o developer conference Google said unknown tracker alerts are coming to Android phones this summer and in a rare display of unity Apple and Google teamed up on an initiative that would notify people on both IOS and Android devices when they're being tracked through a Bluetooth device without their consent tile doesn't have any of these unwanted tracking features and Samsung has some but they only work across Galaxy devices that means Apple's air tag and other Bluetooth trackers that work using find my have the most robust unwanted tracking features ultimately tile and smart tags share a lot of the same functionality as air tags even if they may have been overshadowed by Apple's star power but if you don't have an iPhone or you want something different you've still got good options for tracking down your items if you care about the Galaxy ecosystem then the Galaxy smart tag may be the best option for you but if you want something more versatile across IOS and Android and potentially a cheaper option than maybe tile is for you and Rumor Has It Google is developing its own tracker so maybe someday soon you'll have another option until then let us know in the comments of which tracker you think is a better fit for your needs and don't forget to hit like And subscribe for more videos from CNET thanks for watching\n"