Latest news with #MotoTag
Android Authority
14-05-2025
- Android Authority
Android gets closer to AirTag territory as Find Hub starts showing directional tracking
Ryan Haines / Android Authority TL;DR UWB-based tracking for location and direction was announced to come 'later this month' to Find Hub (previously known as Find My device). However, some users already have the functionality on Find Hub via the Moto Tag and UWB-compatible phones. Google is fresh off the Android Show: I/O Edition, announcing a slew of changes coming to the Android platform. One of the changes included renaming Android's Find My Device app to Find Hub, underscoring its ability to track more than just your devices. Google also announced that the Find Hub will get UWB support 'later this month,' but it seems the switch has been flipped early. Artem Russakovskii on X spotted the UWB UI active within the Find Hub. The app now shows an arrow and distance to the Moto Tag tracker, the first UWB-based tracker supported through the Find Hub. Old UI New UI for UWB tracking To use UWB tracking within Find Hub, you'd need a UWB-compatible tracker like the Moto Tag and a phone with the requisite UWB radio. You can find that on newer Android flagships, so double-check for UWB support. Once you tick these boxes, you must wait for Google to roll out the new Find Hub update to your device to start UWB tracking for distance and direction. Apple has had this functionality for years with the AirTag, but we're still glad that Android is catching up. Got a tip? Talk to us! Email our staff at Email our staff at news@ . You can stay anonymous or get credit for the info, it's your choice.
Android Authority
14-05-2025
- Android Authority
UWB won't fix everything that's wrong with Google's Find My Device
Rita El Khoury / Android Authority Yesterday, Google announced that Ultra-wideband (UWB) support is coming to its Find My Device network later this month, starting with the Moto Tag. The UWB chip has been present in the tag since last year, but hasn't been active until now. Soon, it will be, and we'll be able to locate a nearby tag more accurately. More precise directions and distances will undoubtedly help me find my keys between the couch cushions or the tracker at the bottom of my full backpack faster and without triggering the ringtone. That's all awesome and a feature we've begged for since the launch of Google's Find My Device networks and its compatible tags. If Apple's and Samsung's trackers had this option, it felt like a step back for Google not to offer it. However, having extensively tested and used Google's network and a bunch of AirTag alternatives for Android, I'll let you in on a secret: UWB isn't enough. As a matter of fact, UWB shouldn't even have been the first improvement on Google's to-do list; there are at least four or five improvements that would've been more useful than telling me to walk left or right to find my tracker. Google's network needs these crucial Bluetooth fixes — yesterday Apple AirTag airplane mode Tile Pro airplane mode Samsung Galaxy SmartTag2 offline nearby finding Google Find My Device app in airplane mode The Google Find My Device app doesn't work when you're offline. The app just won't load the available phones or trackers in Airplane mode, or if you happen to be in an area with limited connectivity (check the fourth screenshot above). In other words, your phone can't find a Bluetooth tracker on Bluetooth only. When I'm on a plane, I can't make sure my luggage is in the luggage hold if I forgot to do it before take-off; when I'm on a high-speed train with a spotty connection, I can't keep an eye on my suitcase in the luggage-designated area behind me unless I physically turn to check on it during every stop; and if I land in a country where I don't have an active SIM yet, I don't get to monitor my suitcase when it's being delivered. Sure, satellite support will be nice when it rolls out, but that sounds like climbing Everest when you could've just walked up a gentle hill. I wish Google would fix the easy things first. Make the app work offline so we can track our Bluetooth trackers on Bluetooth (d'oh), then add all the bells and whistles like UWB and satellite support. Before UWB and satellite support, Google's Find My Device needs to work well over basic Bluetooth. Speaking of nearby Bluetooth finding, oh, how I long for the feature to actually work! I can't tell you how many times I've had a tracker (irrespective of brand) literally next to my phone with the Find My Device saying, 'last seen x hours/days ago.' It. Is. Right. There. Moto tag connected in app but not seen for 7 days in FMD Moto Tag connected in app but last seen 8 minutes ago in FMD There's no better example than this screenshot I captured while using the Moto Tag. The official Moto Tag app was showing the tracker as connected, while the Find My Device app told me it hadn't been seen for seven days… on the same phone and literally at the exact same moment. Maybe it's a bug, I thought. So I removed the battery from the tag, hoping it would reset the connection, put it back in, and things worked until a few minutes later, when the official app was still actively connected while Find My Device said it was last seen eight minutes earlier. I know there's a likely difference between an active Bluetooth connection for the official app and Bluetooth low energy for Find My Device, but under no circumstances should there be an eight-minute gap when the Find My Device app is open, showing that tracker, while the tracker is literally right next to my phone. That's not to mention whatever bug had happened during those first seven days. I haven't had a similar problem with any other tracker network I've tested (Samsung, Apple, Tile), so why can't Google figure out the basics of Bluetooth first is beyond me. Beyond Bluetooth, Google's network is missing important features Rita El Khoury / Android Authority Google's official feature set for Find My Device trackers is quite restricted. Any tracker that shows up in the app can display its current or last-known location, battery level, be shared with other users, and that's it. UWB support is nice, but it doesn't replace all the other features that have become essential on Bluetooth trackers in general. There's no option to reverse-find the phone by clicking the tracker's button, and no saved location history to see where the tracker has been over the last 24 hours, both features of Tile and Samsung trackers. There are no left-behind alerts (or out-of-range alerts) when you mistakenly walk away from a tracker, a feature available on Tile, Samsung, and Apple trackers. To implement some of these, Chipolo and Moto had to build standalone apps. So instead of having this basic functionality built into the Find My Device app, I have to install a second app, keep it running in the background, and give it all the required permissions. Google should've solved that by offering the proper APIs for every tracker out there by default, in the Find My Device app. Motorola and Chipolo had to build standalone apps to add essential tracker functionality that Google's network is missing. Honestly, I would rather see these improvements before UWB support. UWB adds a bit of extra flourish on top of existing functionality, whereas left-behind alerts and reverse phone finding would've brought genuinely new features to the Find My Device platform. But I guess they don't sound as cool as UWB, and all the tech reviewers wanted UWB. UWB is a pretty band-aid on a semi-broken service Rita El Khoury / Android Authority I'm not saying I don't want UWB functionality in Find My Device. Of course, I do. But Google's network woes won't be magically solved with this new capability. If you're hoping they will or were holding your breath for UWB before buying any Google-compatible trackers, I'm sorry to burst your bubble. There are more pressing issues that Google should've fixed first. Sure, the network does seem more solid now, and I'm running into fewer hiccups than I did in 2024, but it's still not as reliable as Apple's and Samsung's networks in my testing, which is why I still recommend Samsung's Galaxy SmartTag 2 for Android users. I keep running into bugs like bad Bluetooth connectivity, and have some random days when the tracker is just invisible. When I mark a tracker as lost, I rarely get a notification when it's found, even if it's been found (I manually open the app to check and see it there). When an unknown tracker follows me, there's a long delay before my Android phone alerts me (it alerts me of an AirTag before it does a Find My Device tracker). And I'm not alone, people still complain about these trackers and the ability to find things near home. And, if nothing else, Google should've prioritized making Bluetooth trackers trackable over Bluetooth first. At least we can all agree on that.
The Verge
13-05-2025
- The Verge
Google adds UWB support to its rebranded Find Hub tracker app
A year after launching its Find My Device location tracking network, Google is adding support for ultra wideband (UWB) for more precise tracking using compatible phones and trackers. The network and its Android app are also getting a new name: Find Hub. Google says that UWB will be enabled 'later this month.' UWB provides more accurate tracking at close range than Bluetooth, reporting both distance and direction so you can find a missing tracker quicker once you're in the vicinity. Apple's AirTag has supported the tech since its launch in 2021, as have Samsung's SmartTags. Tile's is now the only major tracker network to lack a UWB option, since the UWB-enabled Tile Ultra it first announced way back in 2021 never actually launched. No one will be happier about the news than Motorola, which launched its Moto Tag in June 2024 with plenty of fanfare around UWB support that has been inactive ever since. The downside of UWB is that it requires compatibility from both trackers and phones. While all of Apple's modern iPhones apart from the affordable-ish 16E support UWB, support on the Android side is spottier. Some Pixel and Galaxy flagships include UWB chips, but not all of them, though at least the new Galaxy S25 Edge does make the cut. Despite producing the Moto Tag, even Motorola only included the tech in a single phone, the Edge 50 Ultra, which never launched in the US. Alongside the launch of UWB, Google is rebranding its network and app to Find Hub. That's likely both to differentiate it from Apple's network — even I still get Find My and Find My Device confused with one another — and to reflect Google's recent inclusion of a 'People' tab in the app for tracking contacts who've agreed to share their location with you. Google also announced that Find Hub will incorporate satellite connectivity 'later this year,' though wouldn't comment on the specific satellite features it's bringing to the app. Google's Pixel 9 phones already include a Satellite SOS mode for emergency communications outside of cellular service. Early next year you'll also be able to share trackers' locations with airline staff. Find My Device has long lagged behind Apple's equivalent, arriving later with less accurate tracking and no UWB support. I spent several weeks testing trackers across the network last month and found that it had improved substantially since a rocky launch, but marked the lack of UWB as one thing still holding it back. Today's update is a step in the right direction.
Android Authority
13-05-2025
- Android Authority
Google is finally ready to flip the switch on precise UWB Find Hub tracking
Ryan Haines / Android Authority TL;DR Android's newly renamed Find Hub is getting UWB support before the end of May. UWB allows much more precise tracking than Bluetooth alone. To take advantage, you'll need a UWB-compatible phone, and a UWB tracker like the Moto Tag. Android's Find My Device app offers an easy way to locate misplaced hardware, and right now it's in the middle of a big rebrand, as Google capitalizes on the recent addition of people-tracking to transform it into the Find Hub. But more than just finding a fitting new name for the service, Google's also sharing word of some powerful new functionality coming to the Find Hub — including one long-overdue upgrade that promises to deliver the most precise tracking yet. When it comes to the technology we use to track down and locate missing devices, Bluetooth works in a pinch, but for super-precise radar-like tracking, we have to turn to ultra-wideband (UWB) connectivity. Samsung has supported UWB through its SmartTag2, but we've been waiting for Google to bring the same support to its own tracking solution. We've recently spotted development on Find My Device headed in this direction, and today Google finally announces how this support is landing. UWB support will come to the Find Hub later this month. The first tracker Google intends to support is the Moto Tag, which we saw launch last summer with promises of UWB connectivity — we just didn't expect to be waiting quite so long before we'd have a chance to actually take full advantage of it. Of course, to capitalize on Find Hub's UWB support you'll need both a compatible tracker like the Moto Tag, as well as a phone with the requisite UWB radio. UWB-equipped models include recent Plus and Ultra Galaxy S flagships, as well as newer Pixel Pro phones. Between this high-precision tracking and the Find Hub satellite support Google just announced, Android feels like it's seriously upping its game when it comes to helping us keep an eye on all our devices. Got a tip? Talk to us! Email our staff at Email our staff at news@ . You can stay anonymous or get credit for the info, it's your choice.
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Business Standard
28-04-2025
- Business Standard
Soon, Google's Find My Device to support accessories with ultra-wideband
Google is reportedly preparing to add support for ultra-wideband (UWB) to its Find My Device network, enabling users to locate supported devices with much greater accuracy. The US-based technology giant has confirmed to The Verge that UWB support is coming 'very soon.' Currently, the Moto Tag — launched recently — is the only tracker on the Find My Device network that features UWB hardware. However, its precise tracking capabilities remain largely unusable because Android's Find My Device network has yet to enable UWB functionality. Speaking to The Verge, Android product manager Angela Hsiao said that UWB support would arrive 'very soon,' bringing much more precise location tracking. In addition to UWB support, Google has reportedly improved the overall speed and reliability of the Find My Device network. According to the company's internal testing, the network is now four times faster at locating and updating device locations compared to when it first launched. These improvements come from 'continuous algorithm and technical under-the-hood enhancements," including better Bluetooth scanning patterns that make it easier for devices and trackers to communicate. Google also noted that more users are now adjusting their default privacy settings to allow Find My Device to operate in 'all areas' instead of just "high-traffic" zones. This expanded participation further strengthens the network's effectiveness. What is UWB Ultra-Wideband (UWB) is a short-range wireless communication technology that enables high-precision positioning. UWB is increasingly being added to smartphones and tracking devices for use cases like loss prevention. It uses very low power while achieving high bandwidth over distances of up to 50 meters. By combining two key signals — "Time of Flight" (ToF) and "Time Difference of Arrival" (TDoA) — UWB can calculate a device's location accurately.
