AirTags

Are AirTags waterproof? Keeping liquids out of our electronics isn’t always easy. Especially when it’s something we take with us everywhere, like our AirTags. Those with Apple’s handle little item tracker, or anyone thinking about getting one, might ask the questions:

• Can AirTags be submerged in water?
• Can AirTags go through the wash?
• Can my dog swim with AirTag?

I’ve kept a tracking tag on my indoor/outdoor cat for years, so I fully understand wanting to be sure a bit of rain won’t cause problems. And I have tags on my keys and many other items, and I also don’t want a trip through the wash to ruin them.

Fortunately, I have lots of good news.

Amazon bargain site Woot! is offering deep discounts, anywhere from 13% to 83% off, on dozens of Apple accessories and a few choice items like Apple Watch Ultra and AirPods Pro — but only until Wednesday at 9:59 p.m. PT.

As of Tuesday morning, one item had sold out and 52 remained, including accessories for iPhone, Apple Watch, AirTag, AirPods and more. See some highlights below.

Mujjo, known for its high-quality leather cases for iPhone and other Apple gear, is having a rare sale — 25% off a wide variety of goods through January 18.

This is the good stuff, so don’t miss it.

Amazon bargain site Woot! launched an Apple accessories sale with something for almost everyone — and deals as good as 90% off certain iPhone cases and 61% off an Apple Thunderbolt 3 Pro cable.

But with 49 products on sale, that’s just a taste. Act fast, the sale ends November 10 at 9:59 p.m. PT.

If you keep forgetting or misplacing things, an AirTag will make your life much easier. Apple’s tracking tag can help you track lost or stolen items, even when they are not within your iPhone’s reach.

And what’s better than one AirTag? Four! And while an AirTag four-pack retails for $99, Amazon is currently discounting them to $84.99.

Traveling is a lot easier if you can keep track of your luggage with AirTags. It’s been in the news lately: Airlines have lost flyers’ bags and people have recovered them because they had the foresight to put an AirTag in the luggage. You can make sure it’s with you all the way along your journey and quickly find it among the baggage claim at your final destination.

Read on for my tips on traveling with AirTags.

Just a day after Apple touted its beefed-up privacy precautions for AirTags — in the wake of criminal incidents involving the tracking devices — an article in The New York Times on Friday showed their superiority to Tile and GPS trackers.

A reporter tracked her husband using all three kinds of devices. She found the AirTags not only better at tracking him in an urban area, but also better at tipping him off to the tracking.

Apple said in a statement Thursday it will update AirTags item trackers with new privacy warnings, better warning sounds and smarter Find My tracking. The efforts comes as the company tries to improve security in the wake of criminal activity involving the devices, such as theft and stalking.

It’s the latest of several privacy updates Cupertino announced for AirTags since releasing them last year.

Thieves in Canada have apparently found an unintended and novel use for Apple’s AirTag locator devices. They use them to track cars they’d like to steal.

The new generation of Tile trackers for 2021 offer sleeker new designs, increased range, a louder ring and a new way for lost items to be found and returned.

Tile has had to step up its game now that it faces competition from Apple AirTag.

Apple’s AirTag trackers are great. With one little device, suddenly you don’t have to worry about your lost wallet or misplaced keys.

However, these circular devices are just about useless for most applications unless you add an AirTag accessory that holds the tracker in place. You could always duct-tape one to your backpack and claim it’s shabby chic, but … yeah, no. Luckily, we have some fun cases and accessories specially made for AirTags on sale right now, and you should take a look.

Apple moved to address many of the privacy concerns raised after the release of AirTags. The item trackers launched with anti-stalking features, but a new firmware update is tightening them up further.

AirTags will start more quickly warning people if they’re being used to follow someone. And an Android app that can detect these trackers is in development.

Apple products have always cost a premium, but they’re also some of the best-made devices and products that you’ll find. Most of the time, at least.

9to5Mac points out that all three of Apple’s Hermès AirTag Key Rings and Luggage Tags are listed as “Currently Unavailable” on Apple’s website, regardless of which option users try to select. It also cites a reader who suggests a quality issue could be to blame.

The Apple AirTag tracker will be a huge hit, if a new survey of iPhone and iPad users is correct. More than 60% of respondents said they planned to buy the accessory.

Most people in the survey said they were satisfied with AirTag’s $29.99 price. But they were mostly drawn to the item tracker because it’s tied into Apple’s global Find My network.

It it “frighteningly easy” to use Apple’s location-tracking AirTag to stalk somebody, a new report suggests.

While Apple says it’s been careful to incorporate anti-stalking measures to stop the AirTags from being used in this way, a Washington Post columnist says Apple’s countermeasures are not effective.

More retailers in Australia are reportedly removing Apple’s location-tracking AirTags from their shelves. This relates to concerns that the trackers’ tiny button batteries could be swallowed by small children.

Earlier this week, office supplier retail giant Officeworks suspended sales of the AirTag. Now other Australian retailers — including JB Hi-Fi and Big W — have seemingly followed suit.

iMac … iPad Pro … Apple TV 4K … AirTag …

So much new Apple hardware, so little time!

And that’s not to mention the purple iPhone or the upgrades and updates coming to Apple Podcasts, Apple Card and more. Jump right into all our coverage of this week’s big “Spring Loaded” Apple event in Cult of Mac Magazine. (And if you’re already caught up on that, you’ll find plenty of other Apple news, reviews and how-tos.)

Our iOS mag is free and makes reading easy and fun, but you also can find the headlines below.

Bad news AirTag shoppers: there’s no hole in Apple’s item-tracker. You have to buy an add-on to attach it to anything. Accessory makers have rushed to put out key rings and luggage tags. But no one makes the item I want: an AirTag pet collar.

The first AirTags reviews and unboxing videos paint a pretty positive picture of Apple’s new tracking tags. After a short time using AirTags, reviewers praise the tiny trackers’ design as “classic Apple” and their precise finding capabilities as “utility-driven augmented reality.”

However, they also point out some limitations — including surprising scuffability!

Apple revealed on Tuesday that iOS 14.5 and the iPad equivalent will reach customers iPhones and tablets some time “next week.” These include a rush of new features, like unlocking an iPhone with an Apple Watch. And a controversial change that make it harder for apps to track users for ads.

To help make the launches possible, developers were given access to the release candidates for these upcoming operating system versions on Tuesday. They can both look for bugs and  test their own applications with the new OS versions.

Wow, that was the speediest, most jam-packed Apple event in recent memory.

It was so quick-moving, we all got whiplash. There was barely time to catch your breath between announcements: Here’s a new purple iPhone. Fuggedaboutit, here’s a new Apple TV, and new AirTags. Oh, and hers’s new iMacs — and iPads!!

In an hour, Tim Cook and Co. managed to introduce a raft of products with dozens of new features and technologies while dazzling us with some pretty jaw-dropping promo videos.

Once again, the prerecorded format worked well. The promo videos in Tuesday’s “Spring Loaded” event looked super. They hit us with a great mix of head-spinning effects and angles, humor and product placement.

Here are some thoughts and initial reactions to some of the major announcements:

It’s 4/20 and Apple’s big iMac and iPad Pro launch event was a total trip. The new Mac desktop comes in a rainbow of colors, and the M1 processor in the latest tablet will blow you away. And there’s AirTag too, at long last.

Grab some snacks and get ready to find out what the new products mean for Apple users and for the company’s future.

Apple just took the wraps off AirTag, a small tracker that users can attach to items for easy location at a later date.

Tile and other companies already offer rivals products. But Apple’s trackers offer technology that makes finding lost items easier and more accurate.

Update: The Apple Online Store is down as well now. Expect it to go back up following the conclusion of today’s Apple event.

The Apple Online Store sitemap page is down ahead of today’s “Spring Loaded” event.

Usually, Apple takes the entire Apple Online Store down ahead of its special events. Today that doesn’t appear to have happened. (Although this could change as the day progresses.)

Nonetheless, this highlights that Apple is expecting to make some changes to the products on offer — likely including a new iPad Pro, iMac, and possible other products like Apple’s location-tracking AirTags. There may also be more information about Apple’s rumored Podcasts+ service.

The next Apple product-release event will happen April 20. Invites went out Tuesday morning for the virtual “Spring Loaded” event, just hours after Siri leaked the date.

Naturally, Apple didn’t announce what’s on the agenda. But rumors point to multiple new iPads, as well as the possibility of next-gen AirPods, a faster Apple TV and the long-awaited debut of AirTags item trackers.