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By MacRumors Staff
Tile Guides
AirTag vs. Tile Buyer's Guide 2023
The AirTag remains a prominent player in the item tracker market, known for its small, round disc design that integrates seamlessly with Apple's Find My app. However, it's worth noting that Apple wasn't the pioneer in this technology; Tile has been a forerunner in Bluetooth item trackers for over a decade, maintaining its status as AirTag's primary competitor even today.
While both AirTag...
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Tile Articles
U.S. Department of Justice in 'Early Stages' of Drafting Possible Antitrust Lawsuit Against Apple
The United States Justice Department is in the early stages of crafting an antitrust complaint against Apple, reports Politico. A source that spoke to the site described the lawsuit as "potential," indicating that the DOJ's plans are not yet finalized.
Prosecutors within the DOJ are said to be "assembling the pieces" for a lawsuit that could be filed by the end of the year, but the decision...
Tile Buyer Life360 Selling Precise Location Data on Millions of Users [Updated]
Location tracking service Life360 has been selling the precise location data of tens of millions of its users, according to a new report shared by The Markup.
Life360 bills itself as a "family safety platform" app that is meant to allow family members to keep tabs on one another with tracking software that's installed on smartphones, and there are both Android and iPhone apps.
The...
AirTag Competitor Tile Getting Acquired by Location Sharing App Life360
Tile, known for its range of Bluetooth-based tracking accessories that compete with the AirTag, is being acquired by location tracking service Life360, Tile announced today.
Tile will continue to be operated as a standalone brand under Tile CEO CJ Prober, but Tile says that when the acquisition is completed, it will be able to leverage Life360's 33 million smartphone users to grow Tile's...
Tile Unveils New QR Code-Based 'Lost and Found' Feature and Upcoming 'Tile Ultra' With Ultra Wideband Support
Tile, a company that makes Bluetooth-based item trackers that compete with Apple's AirTags, today introduced a refreshed lineup of devices and new features that make it easier for users to locate lost items.
The Tile Pro, Tile's most robust tracker with a 400 foot Bluetooth range, has been updated with a new key fob look. Tile says that the Pro is designed to attach to keys right out of the...
Apple Says Tile Trackers Sold Poorly in Apple Stores
Earlier last month, Spotify, Tile, and Match (owner of Tinder), testified at an app store antitrust hearing spearheaded by the U.S. Senate. During the hearing, Spotify called Apple's App Store "an abusive power grab," while Tile said Apple uses its platform to "unfairly limit competition for its products."
Now, in response to their testimonies, Apple's vice president and chief compliance...
Tile to Leverage Amazon Echo and Ring Devices to Better Compete With AirTags
Amazon today announced that it is teaming up with Tile to add Amazon Sidewalk integration to Tile's Bluetooth trackers. Amazon Sidewalk, for those unfamiliar, is a network of Amazon Bluetooth devices that's designed to improve the connectivity of devices like the Ring and Amazon Echo.
Tile will now be joining Amazon Sidewalk, and through this integration, Amazon Echo and Ring devices will be ...
Tile Unhappy With Apple's AirTag Launch, 'Skeptical' About Fair Competition and Plans to Tattle to Congress
Just hours after Apple unveiled its long-awaited AirTag, Tile CEO CJ Prober released a statement expressing his concerns about competition in the item tracking arena.
As relayed by TechCrunch, Prober said that while Tile welcomes "fair competition," the company is "skeptical" about Apple's aims, given its "history of using platform advantage to unfairly limit competition."
Tile plans to...
Tile Plans to Introduce Item Trackers With Ultra Wideband Support
Tile is poised to compete with Apple's long-rumored AirTags and is planning to introduce an upgraded series of item trackers that include an ultra wideband (UWB) chip for more precise tracking.
Tile concept art for UWB tracker, via TechCrunch
Apple's AirTags are rumored to include the U1 ultra wideband chip that has been added into the iPhone 11 and iPhone 12 models. Apple's U1 AirTags will ...
Epic Games, Spotify, and Tile Form 'Coalition for App Fairness' to 'Fight Back' Against Apple
A range of companies, including Epic Games, Spotify, and Tile, have formed a new organization called the "Coalition for App Fairness," in an effort to highlight developer issues with Apple.
The organization describes itself as "an independent nonprofit organization founded by industry-leading companies to advocate for freedom of choice and fair competition across the app ecosystem." The...
Tile Launches New Premium Protect Plan That Offers $1000 in Lost Item Reimbursement
As rumors about Apple's AirTags ramp up, AirTag competitor Tile is planning to launch a new "Premium Protect" service that will provide up to $1,000 to reimburse customers who subscribe for their lost items.
Tile already has a premium plan that provides Smart Alerts when an item is left behind, free replacement batteries each year, and 30-day location history, but the $30 subscription...
Tile Writes to EU Accusing Apple of Abuse of Power
Bluetooth accessory maker Tile has written to the European Union accusing Apple of abuse of power and of illegally favoring its own products.
According to a report by Financial Times, in a letter sent on Tuesday to the European Commissioner for Competition, the accessory maker said that Apple is making it harder for users to use Tile products on iPhone because it has its own rival Find My...
Tile Claims Apple's Anticompetitive Behavior Has 'Gotten Worse, Not Better'
Apple's anticompetitive behaviors have gotten worse over the course of the last few months rather than better, Tile claimed in a congressional panel today, reports Reuters.
Executives from Tile, PopSockets, Sonos, and Basecamp in January testified in front of a congressional hearing in an ongoing antitrust inquiry launched by the U.S. government against tech companies like Amazon, Apple, and ...
Tile Decries Apple's iOS 13 Location Tracking Changes, Calls on Congress to 'Level the Playing Field' [Updated]
Executives from PopSockets, Sonos, Basecamp, and Tile are attending a congressional hearing today to testify in an ongoing antitrust inquiry involving major tech companies like Amazon, Apple, Google, and Facebook, reports The Washington Post.
The smaller companies are aiming to provide evidence that the tech giants have become too big and have practices in place that stifle competition and...
Amid 'Apple Tag' Rumors, Tile Announces New 3M Adhesive 'Sticker' and Updated 'Slim' Electronic Trackers
Amid rumors that Apple is developing a Tile-like accessory that will help users keep track of their personal belongings, Tile today announced a new smart tracker called the Sticker, along with an updated Tile Slim.
About the size of a quarter, the Tile Sticker is the company's smallest tracker to date, and features waterproofing and a 3M adhesive backing for attaching it to most metal and...
iOS 13 Code Has References to Apple's Rumored Tile-Like Item Tracker Accessory
A few months ago, 9to5Mac's Guilherme Rambo reported that Apple is working on a new Tile-like item tracker accessory for tracking the location of belongings through the new merged Find My app. The report said the "tag" would be paired to a user's iCloud account and rely on proximity to an iPhone.
Tile next to placeholder image for Apple's item tracker in iOS 13 via 9to5Mac
Like the Tile,...
Apple Reportedly Working on Tile-Like Item Tracker Plus Merged 'Find My iPhone' and 'Find My Friends' App
Apple is developing a new app that combines Find My iPhone and Find My Friends into a single package, according to 9to5Mac's Guilherme Rambo. The report cites sources familiar with ongoing testing of the app.
In addition to existing Find My iPhone features like Lost Mode and the ability to remotely erase a device, the report claims the new unified app includes a new "find network" feature...
CES 2019: Tile Partners With Major BLE Companies to Integrate Tile Technology Into Bluetooth Chips
Tile, known for its range of Bluetooth trackers for finding lost items, today announced partnerships with several major Bluetooth companies that will see the integration of Tile technology onto Bluetooth chips.
Product manufacturers who are interested in using Tile's tracking functionality for various Bluetooth-enabled products will be able to integrate it during production.
"Through BLE...
Tile Launches Upgraded Tile Mate and Tile Pro Along With Premium Finding Services
Tile, known for its range of battery-powered Bluetooth-enabled tags for tracking various items, today announced the launch of upgraded Tile Mate and Tile Pro accessories.
The new Tile Mate and Tile Pro feature a longer range, louder volumes when pinging them from an iPhone, and, for the first time, batteries that can be replaced.
Previous Tile versions have not had user-replaceable...
CES 2018: Bose Wireless Headphones Getting 'Find My AirPods' Type Feature Through Tile Integration
Tile today announced a few new partnerships with companies that will integrate its Bluetooth item-tracking technology into consumer products, including Bose's existing line of SoundSport Wireless and QuietControl 30 headphones. In addition to Bose, partnerships for the new "Tile Platform" also include Samsonite luggage, Boosted Boards, and Propeller Health's inhalers.
The Bose partnership will ...
Tile Launches New 'Pro' Bluetooth Trackers: Up to 2X Range, Twice as Loud, and More Water Resistant
Tile today released two new Bluetooth lost-and-found trackers, Tile Sport and Tile Style, which together make up the new Tile Pro Series.
Tile Sport and Tile Style feature a Bluetooth range of up to 200 feet, double that of the previous Tile Mate and Tile Slim. They're also twice as loud, with new silent, normal, and loud volume options in the updated Tile app for iPhone, iPad, and Apple...