The one major drawback with cool tiny gadgets these days is that they can easily get lost. If you need some help keeping tabs on the small stuff, Tile Mate item finders are just the ticket. The keychain-sized Tile Mate is a diminutive 1.3 inches long and is just 0.2 inches thick. Simply attach a tracker to any item and you can use the Tile companion app to locate it virtually anywhere. Even without the app, you can still find nearby items by remotely making the Tile vibrate, flash, or ring.
A single Tile costs around $22, but this four-pack of Tile Mate trackers is available from Amazon for under $60 with free shipping. Also, be sure to take a look at some of the best Bluetooth trackers for more options.
The Tile Mate is a small, square, battery-powered tile designed to live on your keychain, or maybe attached to your purse or backpack or what have you. The Slim is slightly larger, but also thinner, and therefore better-suited to slipping into a wallet or sticking to the back of, say, your tablet or even passport.
They connect via Bluetooth to your phone, establishing a full-time connection.Yes, your phone might end up needing to be recharged a little more often. Totally worth it.
When you can’t find your phone, you double-press the button on the Tile. That makes the phone ring loudly, even if it’s set to mute. Can’t find your keys/bag/wallet/what-have-you? Use the locator feature in the Tile app to make the Tile itself beep.
There’s also a community feature that can help you recover Tile-attached items that are really lost (or even stolen). Mostly, however, these trackers are great for “local” finding, like when you can’t remember where you put your phone and don’t want to turn the house upside-down looking for it.
Unlike previous Tiles, these 2018 versions let you replace the battery (which you’ll need to do every year or so). They also promise better range.
