Apple today unveiled a new generation of AirTag, the popular item tracker, featuring expanded range, enhanced Precision Finding capabilities, and a significantly louder speaker to make lost belongings easier to locate. The updated AirTag builds on the original model launched in 2021, leveraging Apple’s vast Find My network to help users track everyday items like keys, wallets, backpacks, luggage, and more. Since its debut, AirTag has enabled countless reunions, from lost luggage containing critical medication to misplaced instruments that allowed musicians to perform on schedule. The device is powered by Apple’s second-generation Ultra Wideband chip — the same one used in the iPhone 17 lineup, iPhone Air, Apple Watch Ultra 3, and Apple Watch Series 11. This enables more powerful Precision Finding, which guides users to items using haptic, visual, and audio feedback from up to 50 percent farther away than the previous generation. An upgraded Bluetooth chip further extends the overall range for locating items. For the first time, Precision Finding is available directly on Apple Watch Series 9 or later, and Apple Watch Ultra 2 or later.The new AirTag’s internal design makes it 50 percent louder than before, allowing users to hear its sound — including a distinctive new chime — from up to twice as far. This combination of improvements helps in scenarios like locating keys buried in couch cushions or a wallet while heading out the door.
The Find My network remains central, using crowdsourced Bluetooth signals from nearby Apple devices to anonymously report an item’s approximate location when out of direct range. The new model integrates seamlessly with Share Item Location, an iOS feature that lets users temporarily and securely share an item’s location with trusted third parties, such as airlines for recovering delayed luggage. Apple has partnered with more than 50 airlines, and according to SITA, a leading IT provider for airlines, carriers using Share Item Location have reduced baggage delays by 26 percent and truly lost or unrecoverable luggage by 90 percent. Shared access is tightly controlled, expires automatically after seven days, and can be revoked anytime. Privacy and security remain priorities: AirTag stores no location data on the device itself, uses end-to-end encryption for Find My communications, and includes industry-leading anti-stalking features like cross-platform alerts and frequently changing Bluetooth identifiers. It is designed exclusively for tracking objects, not people or pets. The new AirTag maintains the same form factor for full compatibility with existing accessories, including the FineWoven Key Ring (made from 68 percent recycled content and available in five colors). It incorporates eco-friendly materials aligned with Apple’s 2030 carbon-neutral goals, such as 85 percent recycled plastic in the enclosure, 100 percent recycled rare earth elements in magnets, and 100 percent recycled gold plating in circuit boards. Packaging is 100 percent fiber-based and recyclable. Pricing remains unchanged at $29 for a single AirTag and $99 for a four-pack, with free personalized engraving available on apple.com and in the Apple Store app. The new AirTag is available to order today on apple.com and in the Apple Store app, with in-store availability at Apple locations later this week and through authorized resellers. It requires a compatible iPhone or iPad running iOS 26 or iPadOS 26 or later, with certain features like watch-based Precision Finding needing watchOS 26.2.1 on supported models. MacDailyNews Note: More info via Apple here. Support MacDailyNews at no extra cost to you by using this link to shop at Amazon. The post Apple unveils new AirTag with expanded finding range, louder speaker, and Apple Watch integration appeared first on MacDailyNews. Invite your friends and earn rewardsIf you enjoy MacDailyNews, share it with your friends and earn rewards when they subscribe.
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Monday, January 26, 2026
Apple unveils new AirTag with expanded finding range, louder speaker, and Apple Watch integration
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