In an ever-hectic and chaotic world, it’s really easy to misplace stuff and lose track of things. With that in mind, it’s probably a good thing then that tiny little Bluetooth trackers have become way more commonplace, more accessible, and even cheaper, too! There are tonnes of superbly simple and dependable trackers that you could go out and buy today, such as Apple’s popular AirTag trackers, as well as the ubiquitous Tile tracker. Elsewhere, there are a plethora of new players on the market too, such as PebbleBee. The latter makes for an interesting proposition, as it comes in not just one, nor two, but three distinct form factors and sizes.
There’s the ‘Clip’, which as its name suggests, handily clips onto your key ring, which is rather handy if you have a habit of misplacing your car keys. Additionally, you then get the PebbleBee ‘Card’, with its slim and slender credit card-sized build that could very easily tuck into your wallet. Finally, there’s the ‘Tag’, which is PebbleBee’s tiniest and most discreet tracker yet, which you might find useful if you need to hide it somewhere. As such, depending on what it is that you need to keep track of all the time, there’s certainly a right fit for you! Crucially, these PebbleBee trackers leverage the vastness of Google’s and Apple’s tracking networks, to boot.
Ecosystem Agnostic, For Both Google & Apple Users
Specifically, the PebbleBee Clip, Card, and Tag pairs and syncs effortlessly with either Google’s ‘Find My Device’ network or Apple’s ‘Find My’ service, ensuring that regardless of which device or ecosystem you’re stuck in, the PebbleBee trackers won’t leave you in the dark. Compared to merely relying on its own network, there are huge upsides to gain by PebbleBee leveraging Google’s and Apple’s respective ‘Find My’ networks to power their new ‘Universal’ family of trackers. Namely, each member of the ‘Big Tech’ conglomerate features massive, reliable, and robust tracking networks from which you can better keep track of your items and belongings.
Plus, we’d be remiss to not mention and celebrate the end-to-end encryption that Google and Apple offer by default, guaranteeing that your location data won’t be compromised or traced back to you. Even better still, for added peace of mind, PebbleBee further assures your privacy by promising that they’ll never sell your data, nor do they have access to your tracking information. Thankfully then, you could now rest easy knowing that Big Brother won’t be watching! As far as the setup process goes, I’ve found that these PebbleBee trackers (we’ll have more to say on each one in a bit) are superbly easy to get up and running, which is a nice bonus.
For context, I have an Android phone, though the set-up process will be identical, even if you’re using an Apple device. Regardless, once you’ve attached a PebbleBee tracker (or two) to whatever you’re trying to keep track of, synching and connecting the tracker – via Bluetooth 4.0 and up – to Google’s ‘Find My Device’ network was a literal breeze. Do bear in mind, though, that you can only set it up on either network at a time. As such, you can’t sync your PebbleBee trackers with both Apple’s and Google’s networks simultaneously. Nevertheless, this does give PebbleBee’s Universal trackers – the Clip, Card, and Tag – a massive advantage over its rivals.
Dependable & Robust Bluetooth Tracking Performance
Just for comparison, your run-of-the-mill Tile trackers exist on their own, separate network, and Apple’s AirTag trackers are limited to just Apple’s network, without being able to make good use of Google’s ever-growing and expansive network of Android users, either. One cool bit of design on the PebbleBee Clip tracker, in particular, is its inclusion of several different alarm types. For instance, there are bright lights around the shell of the tracker, so if you’re trying to find it in the dark, these ought to light it up for you. Equally, there are a couple of very loud buzzers, allowing you to ring them up and be able to locate the trackers more easily in loud or crowded areas.
Between them, you now have visual and auditory cues to make your missing stuff easier to find. Besides that, I also quite like just how far and widespread the Bluetooth range on PebbleBee’s Universal trackers is. To be specific, the Clip and Card both boast up to 500ft of range, and even the tinier Tag punches far above its size, easily managing up to 300ft of range. So, even if your PebbleBee tracker does end up in fairly remote locations – as long as they’re not literally in the middle of nowhere – with such wide coverage on either Apple’s or Google’s networks, you’re very likely to be able to track them down and find those trackers in no time at all!
With such high certainty on the reliability and accuracy of PebbleBee’s trackers, all that’s left for you to think about and consider is each tracker’s size, shape, and how you’re able to uniquely use each one. In my case, I have the PebbleBee Clip attached to my key ring, just in case I’d misplaced or lose track of my car keys, again. Meanwhile, the Card could be neatly slipped into one of my wallet’s card slots, adding at least some peace of mind should I lose my wallet somewhere. Then, we have the diminutive PebbleBee Tag, allowing me to hide it rather neatly inside my car to track it down in case it gets stolen, or if I forgot where I parked it.
Long-Lasting Battery Life, And Now It’s Rechargeable!
Sure, these PebbleBee trackers won’t be able to offer real-time tracking like proper car trackers would, but hey, it’s better than nothing at all, and just having it no doubt increases the chances of recovering a stolen car. Last but not least, there’s the other elephant in the room that I’ve yet to mention with PebbleBee’s new Clip, Card, and Tag Universal trackers – the batteries. In particular, PebbleBee uses rechargeable batteries, which I think are rather neat ideas. Namely, this would make it easier for you to top up your tracker’s batteries in a pinch, and you’re far less likely to end up with a dead (tracker) battery anytime when you need it most.
I can’t describe just how nice it is to not have to hunt down every local corner shop for a button cell, which is what most Bluetooth trackers use, such as Tile trackers and Apple’s AirTag. In addition, it would also help with reducing the wastage and environmental impact of having to throw away a depleted button cell battery each time. Now, the process of charging it does differ between each PebbleBee tracker. Most notably, as you might have spotted, the bigger and chunkier PebbleBee Clip is large enough to host a handy USB-C charging port, while the Card and Clip trackers both feature metal pins that connect to the included charger wirelessly.
You should also bear in mind that these different trackers, with their vastly varied form factors, do come with distinct battery capacities. As such, their battery life won’t be the same. To give you an idea, the Clip has a 12-month battery life on a full-charge, while the bigger credit card-sized PebbleBee Card has an 18-month battery life. On the other hand, PebbleBee’s smallest tracker, the Tag, manages a shorter, though still respectable 8-month battery life on a full charge. On the bright side, if you’re worried about that exposed USB-C port, you’ll be glad to hear that the Clip, Card, and Tag have an IPX6 water-resistance rating, so they’ll easily survive a splash of water.
The Best Bluetooth Trackers Money Could Buy?
All in all, PebbleBee’s Clip, Card, and Tag ‘Universal’ trackers are some of the handiest and most useful trackers that you can find on the market today. They make great use of Apple’s and Google’s sprawling networks, with a seamless level of coverage in large parts of the globe. And, with a rechargeable battery in mind, it’s a lot easier to manage and top-up, too! Best of all, they’re also extremely cost-effective, with the PebbleBee Clip, Card, and Tag each starting at just £33 for a 1-pack, though you could save a bit by buying in bulk, with the 2-pack and 4-pack options offering you additional discounts. So, if you are checking out a Tile tracker or an Apple AirTag, it’s absolutely worth checking out PebbleBee’s Clip, Card, and Tag trackers, too.
