Hands-on: The Moto Tag is the most capable Find My Device tracker, even before UWB

BookSwiftieAndrew@kbin.run to Android@lemdro.id – 60 points –
Hands-on: The Moto Tag is the most capable Find My Device tracker, even before UWB
9to5google.com

The Moto Tag is probably the best Find My Device tracker on the market, and that's before you factor in the added future benefit of UWB.

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Too bad google have crippled their FMD network.

Someone complaining that Google chose "privacy over functionality" was not on my bingo card...

Well, it's only privacy from people who aren't google, since google still receive all the pings.

It's also questionable how much it actually helps privacy.

Explain?

Basically Google made it so it only really works well in busy areas, to protect user's privacy.

Aggregation by default. This is a first-of-its-kind safety protection that makes unwanted tracking to a private location, like your home, more difficult. By default, the Find My Device network requires multiple nearby Android devices to detect a tag before reporting its location to the tag's owner. Our research found that the Find My Device network is most valuable in public settings like cafes and airports, where there are likely many devices nearby. By implementing aggregation before showing a tag’s location to its owner, the network can take advantage of its biggest strength – over a billion Android devices that can participate. This helps tag owners find their lost devices in these busier locations while prioritizing safety from unwanted tracking near private locations. In less busy areas, last known location and Nest finding are reliable ways to locate items.

https://security.googleblog.com/2024/04/find-my-device-network-security-privacy-protections.html

You could read the first two paragraphs of the article.

1 more...

What's UWB?

Ultra-wideband

In addition to other use cases, it is used to precisely identify where a device is in relation to another one.

With Bluetooth you could probably figure out which room a device is in - it'll get you within a few meters - UWB will help you find which end of the couch it is under, at the cost of only working once you are within a meter or two

I have Samsung's uwb trackers, and they can show precise location at a distance of roughly 15 meters

Another company releasing another unfinished product, with no estimated date on when ultra wideband will be implemented.

Please people, don't buy unfinished products.