- New Ultra Wideband chip boosts Precision Finding range by about 1.5x
- Louder speaker and clearer chime make items easier to locate
- Apple Watch can now guide you to nearby AirTags
- Same price, same design, same battery life
Apple has finally refreshed AirTag, and the update is one of those quietly meaningful ones that feels far more impactful in daily life than it looks on paper. The familiar white disc remains exactly the same size, shape, and price, but what is happening inside makes this the most substantial AirTag upgrade since the tracker first launched back in 2021.
This is not a flashy redesign or a rebrand. Instead, Apple has taken the original formula and refined the parts that matter most: range, sound, and how easily you can locate your stuff when it has gone missing.
Same AirTag, much smarter inside
At first glance, the new AirTag looks identical to the original. It fits every existing keyring, holder, and luggage tag accessory, and Apple has wisely kept the price locked at $29 for a single tracker or $99 for a four pack. That consistency alone will make this an easy upgrade for people already invested in the ecosystem.
The real change is the chip. Apple has added its second generation Ultra Wideband technology, the same class of hardware found in recent iPhones and Apple Watches. In practical terms, this dramatically improves Precision Finding.
Apple says the new AirTag can be detected from up to one and a half times farther away than before, and that extra distance matters more than you might think.
Instead of pacing around a room waiting for your phone to catch the signal, the guidance now kicks in sooner. Arrows appear earlier, directions feel more confident, and finding something tucked between couch cushions or buried in a backpack becomes less of a guessing game and more of a guided walk.
Precision Finding goes beyond the iPhone
One of the most useful additions is support for Precision Finding on newer Apple Watch models. If you have a recent Series or an Ultra, you can now locate a nearby AirTag using visual cues and haptic feedback right on your wrist.
It feels intuitive and familiar if you have ever used your iPhone to track down a lost item, and it makes quick searches easier when pulling out your phone feels unnecessary.
This turns the Apple Watch into a genuinely practical finding tool rather than just a passive notification device. When you are moving through your house or navigating a busy space like an airport lounge, that convenience adds up quickly.
Louder, clearer, and harder to ignore
Range alone would have been a welcome improvement, but Apple also tackled one of the most common AirTag complaints: the sound.
The speaker has been reengineered and is now claimed to be fifty percent louder. More importantly, the chime itself has been redesigned to be more recognizable and distinct.
That matters when your keys are wedged under furniture or your luggage is sitting among dozens of identical suitcases. The new sound cuts through ambient noise more effectively, and the upgraded Bluetooth hardware allows you to trigger that sound from farther away than before.
It is a small quality of life change that makes AirTag feel far less subtle when you actually want it to be heard.
Still familiar, still secure
Despite the internal upgrades, much about AirTag remains unchanged, and that is largely a good thing. Battery life stays at over a year using a standard CR2032 cell, and replacement is just as simple as before. Privacy and safety protections also remain intact.
Unknown AirTags traveling with you still trigger alerts on both iOS and Android devices. AirTags that have been separated from their owner for too long will continue to emit sound, and anyone who finds an unfamiliar AirTag can tap it with their phone to learn how to disable it. Apple has not loosened any of its safeguards in the pursuit of better tracking.
AirTag also continues to work with a growing list of airlines, allowing travelers to share a location link when luggage goes missing. With more airline partners planned, AirTag’s usefulness for frequent flyers keeps expanding.
A quiet upgrade that matters
This update will not grab attention the way a new iPhone does, but it is arguably more important for people who rely on AirTags every day. The improved range, louder audio, and expanded Precision Finding turn an already useful accessory into something noticeably more dependable.
If you already own AirTags, this is not an urgent replacement. The original model still works well. But if you are buying your first tracker, or replacing one that has lived too long at the bottom of a bag with a dead battery, the new AirTag feels like the version Apple always intended to make.
It does not reinvent the idea. It simply makes losing things a little less stressful, and finding them a lot easier.
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