Apple has launched an updated version of its popular AirTag, boosting the device’s connectivity range and improving its findability features. This new model integrates the latest Ultra Wideband chip technology, enhancing tracking accuracy and expanding the distance at which lost items can be located.
The second-generation Ultra Wideband chip, also featured in iPhone 17, Apple Watch Ultra 3, and Series 11, powers the new AirTag. It allows Precision Finding to operate up to 50 percent farther than before using combined haptic, visual, and audio guidance. Additionally, an upgraded Bluetooth chip greatly extends the connectivity range, offering improved location tracking.
Owners can now utilize Precision Finding on Apple Watch Series 9 or later, as well as Apple Watch Ultra 2 or later, allowing seamless tracking from the wrist. The new AirTag’s speaker is 50 percent louder, enabling users to hear alerts from twice the previous distance, making it easier to find items hidden in hard-to-reach places.
AirTag continues to leverage Apple’s Find My network, which uses millions of Apple devices worldwide to anonymously locate lost items. When an AirTag is out of Bluetooth range from its paired iPhone, this crowdsourced network helps deliver approximate locations back to the owner securely and privately.
A new integration called Share Item Location allows users to temporarily and securely share an AirTag’s location with trusted third parties, such as airlines. This feature is designed to assist in recovering delayed or lost luggage. Apple has partnered with over 50 airlines that can access this location data through secure authentication.
According to SITA, a leading airline IT provider, carriers utilizing Share Item Location have seen a 26 percent reduction in baggage delays and a 90 percent decrease in truly lost luggage cases. Location sharing is controlled exclusively by the owner, can be disabled at any time, and automatically expires after seven days.
AirTag prioritizes privacy and security with end-to-end encryption and does not store location data or history on the device itself. Its unique Bluetooth identifiers change frequently to prevent unwanted tracking, and the system safeguards against inappropriate usage, ensuring only the owner has access to location information.
Environmentally, the new AirTag features 85 percent recycled plastic in its enclosure and uses 100 percent recycled rare earth elements in magnets. The printed circuit boards contain 100 percent recycled gold plating, and the packaging is fully fiber-based and recyclable, aligning with Apple’s carbon neutrality goals for 2030.
Compatibility remains consistent, as the updated AirTag supports all existing accessories, including Apple’s FineWoven Key Ring made from 68 percent recycled materials. The accessory is available in multiple colors and complements the device’s sustainability efforts.
The new AirTag is priced at $29 for a single unit and $99 for a four-pack, with free engraving available online and through the Apple Store app. It requires an iPhone with iOS 26 or later or an iPad with iPadOS 26 or later. Precision Finding on Apple Watch needs watchOS 26.2.1 minimum.
Orders for the updated AirTag opened immediately on Apple’s website and app, with availability in Apple retail stores and authorized resellers starting later this week. This release reinforces Apple’s commitment to providing powerful, user-friendly tracking solutions with enhanced security and environmental responsibility.
Read more at: www.apple.com
