Key Takeaways
- Samsung's updated Galaxy SmartTag2 offers improved battery life and water resistance, making it a viable option for those in need of an item tracker.
- The item tracker features Bluetooth Low Energy and Ultra Wideband technology, making it easier to find lost items.
- Samsung prioritizes user privacy by allowing location sharing with user permission only and providing encryption and security measures. However, the SmartTag2 requires a Samsung phone for full functionality.
Item trackers can be a wonderful way to make sure that you never have to go sofa-diving for your car keys again, but which should you choose? The Apple AirTag is perhaps the most famous, but Samsung's updated Galaxy SmartTag is a viable option for many - and the new SmartTag2 is even better.
The updated item tracker has been announced and it comes in black and white colours, although those hoping for any more customisation beyond that are going to be left disappointed. But that's the end of the bad news. The good news begins with improved battery life, better water resistance, and more. And the Galaxy SmartTag2 will go on sale on 11 October for $29.99.
Never lose a thing again
Samsung announced its newly updated item tracker via press release, saying that it features both Bluetooth Low Energy and Ultra Wideband technology to make it easier to find when needed. The batteries are good for up to 500 days which is a huge boost over the previous model, while that can be extended to 700 days if you enable the power-saving mode.
The improvements continue with a new IP67 water and dust resistance rating, improved over the previous IP52 rating of the older model. That means you'll be able to find your items even if they find themselves in more challenging environments.
In terms of privacy, Samsung says that it "remains committed to securing the privacy of Samsung Galaxy users, with the device’s location only to be made available with the user’s permission." It goes on to say that "SmartThings Find also encrypts user data and is supported by Samsung Knox for an extra layer of security. Furthermore, disabling Lost Mode immediately hides the owners’ contact information and wipes the message left by the owner from the device."
That all sounds promising, but there's a catch to note - there's no mention of Google's Find My network support, which means that you will need a Samsung phone to use the Ultra Wideband tech.
There is some integration to be had, though. Samsung says that the Galaxy SmartTag2 integrates with the SmartThings Station and SmartThings Find, at least.