What a tag gives you
A continuous Bluetooth signal on an object that had none, a way to make it ring from the manufacturer’s app, and access to whatever finding network the brand operates.
Battery life is excellent, most coin-cell tags run for a year or more, so a tagged object stays findable indefinitely in practice.
What a scanner adds on top
- One list containing every tag you own, whatever brand, alongside your headphones, watch and everything else.
- Raw signal strength for the final approach, which most manufacturer apps abstract away into a vague nearby indicator.
- Last-seen positions for all of them on one map rather than four separate apps.
- Visibility of tags you do not own, which is how you find an unwanted one.
Where each one stops
A tag stops at the edge of its network. A scanner stops at the edge of Bluetooth range, which is tens of metres. Neither finds something that has left the area unless a network is behind it.
Other comparisons
How this sits against the rest of what is available.
- GPS tracker or Bluetooth: which do you need?
- SmartThings Find and iPhone: the gap
- Google’s Find Hub and iPhone owners
- Free or paid: what actually differs
- Find My Device₊ and Apple’s Find My: what each is for
- Last-seen map for your devices, Map tab
- How to check whether someone is tracking you, Safety
- All comparisons, the complete list
Common questions
Do I need Tile’s app to find a Tile?
Not to detect it. A Tile broadcasts openly and any scanner can see it and follow the signal. Tile’s own app is needed to make the tag ring and to use its community network.
In the app: This is what the app does. Read about Proximity Radar.