I see way too many people use AirTags as outdoor pet trackers. Like… y’all do realize that AirTags (and Tiles and any other Item Trackers) aren’t GPS trackers, right?
The way AirTags work is via Apple’s equivalent of that Google feature everybody on Tumblr panicked and fear-mongered over a while ago. You know, the one that allows you to track your phone even when it’s turned all the way off?
Yeah, it does that by sending out a low energy Bluetooth signal that other devices can read. And when another device reads that signal, it tells Google its location, and says “Hey, I found this device here.” Google then updates your device’s location to the location that the anonymously pinged device gave them.
This is the same tech that powers AirTags (and other Item Trackers). They ping nearby iPhones via Bluetooth and have them automatically send Apple their location. Apple then tells YOU that your AirTag is at that location. Which means if your pet gets out (or… *sigh* is allowed outside), then an AirTag will only track them so long as an iPhone is nearby. If they escape into the woods where there is no technology, an AirTag cannot track them.
