Kuo: "Apple tags" will introduce ultra-wideband technology, probably much more accurate than Tile trackers



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Last week, MacRumors revealed new details about the future rival Apple, with an internal code iOS 13 suggesting that Apple plans to launch small circular "tags" that can be attached to electronic devices, backpacks, keys and other personal effects to keep track of the data. their locations.

Apple Tags concept by MacRumors

Ming-Chi Kuo, an analyst at Apple, has set his sights on this rumor. In a Chinese-language research note with TF International Securities, Kuo said he expects Apple's tags to have ultra-wideband or "UWB" technology. As he said earlier, Kuo also expects the three iPhones 2019 to support UWB.

Ultra-wideband technology is a low-power, low-power radio technology capable of providing more accurate indoor positioning than Bluetooth LE and Wi-Fi, suggesting that Apple's tags will be more accurate in locating lost items than the current elements of Tile. trackers, which rely on Bluetooth LE.

The distance between two UWB devices, such as a future iPhone and an Apple Tag, can be accurately measured by calculating the time required for a radio wave to pass between the two devices, according to Electronic design, which indicates that UWB is up to 100 × more accurate than Bluetooth LE and Wi-Fi:

In practice, UWB signals are able to effectively measure the distance between two Nano devices with an accuracy of 5 to 10 cm, compared to a precision of about 5 m for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth technologies. Once implemented in a fixed tag system monitoring the location of tags, these locations can be calculated with an accuracy of 10 cm.

It is unclear whether Apple tags will rely solely on UWB, which would apparently limit their compatibility with iPhones 2019 and newer, or whether they will also integrate Bluetooth LE for use with older devices.

Last week, MacRumors revealed that Apple's tags will be tightly integrated with the new "Find My" app in iOS 13, which merged the Find My iPhone and Find my Friends applications in one package. Apple has notably worked on an "Elements" tab in the application to track the location of items marked by Apple.


IPhone users will receive a notification when they are separated from a marked item, according to an internal version of the "Find myApplication obtained by MacRumors.If necessary, users can then press an application button that will cause the chime of the Apple tag to help locate the lost item.

"Safe locations" can be set so that the user is not notified if this item is left in these locations, and users will also be able to share the location of items with their friends and family members, according to internal criteria iOS 13 code.

If users can not find an item, they can put the tag in "lost mode". Then, if another iPhone user encounters the lost item, the owner will be notified immediately. The foreigner will also receive the owner's contact information, possibly via push notification or in the Find my app.

Like the Pixie Tracker, the Find my app will likely incorporate features from Apple's ARKit platform. An internal construction of iOS 13 includes an asset for a 3D red balloon that could help a user locate a lost item after scanning a piece with his iPhone. There is also an image of a 2D orange balloon.


"Walk several feet and move your iPhone up and down until a balloon comes into view", a string inside Find my app bundle bed.

Apple will host an event at the Steve Jobs Theater next Tuesday, where it is expected that many iPhone and Apple Watch models will be unveiled. It seems that the development of Apple tags has reached an advanced stage, but it is not clear if the product will be presented to the keynote or later.

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