Before Air Tag For Kids Tracking Technology

Have you been in this heartstopping situation before? You turn around for a moment and turn back to find your child missing. Frantically running around calling their name, having no idea which direction they’ve gone and how far they’ve gotten … it’s a true experience of terror.

While I have experienced losing eye contact with my children for a few petrifying moments at a time, the worst situation I witnessed was at a playground in Central Park NYC. A mom we had noticed arrive with two kids was all of a sudden screaming and desperately running through the playground begging for people’s help in finding her child, … “have you seen him?”. The boy was not on the playground. My husband and others ran to help; the police came. We needed to leave after about 20 minutes so I have no idea where or if she was reunited with her child. It was awful and my heart went out to her. This was 2019, before AirTags.

I was surprised at how much I liked using an air tag for kids

I thought the AirTags would simply offer peace of mind knowing that I could track our child’s location if an unexpected separation arose. However, I found the AirTags proactively tracked for me, which was such a nice service.

I received an alert when my husband and daughter were heading out of Disneyland

This was amazing to me. My husband and young daughter were heading back to the hotel while my son and I stayed a bit longer. Shortly after we separated, I received a text that I had left my daughter behind. We had turned on the Notify When Left Behind feature. It’s meant to let you know if you forget an “item” you are tracking. However, it also works if your “item” is leaving you!

The Precision Finding feature blew my mind

I was initially thinking that the AigTags would track to the general vicinity and then I would have to look around. The Precise Finding feature had way better accuracy than I had expected, providing an arrow direction to walk and how many feet away the AirTag is located. It keeps directing you until you have found the “item”.

I loved the options for kids wearing AirTags

There were so many AirTag holder options for children to wear. Some fun options are wristbands and lanyards.

There are also more subtle or hidden options, like AirTag holders that pin to the inside of children’s clothing, hidden watches, necklaces, and fobs to attach in/on a child’s bag.

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What are Apple AirTags?

An AirTag (aka air tag) is a little, round disk that looks like a beautiful coin, approx. 1.25” wide and 0.3” high.

AirTags emit a secure Bluetooth signal to the Apple Find My network, relaying the AirTag’s location to your Find My app on your phone where you can view/track its location.

As described by Apple, “AirTag is a super-easy way to keep track of your stuff. Attach one to your keys. Put another in your backpack. And just like that, they’re on your radar in the Find My app, where you can also track down your Apple devices and keep up with friends and family.”

How To Set Up Your AirTag?

Setting up the AirTags was really easy.

Set up the AirTag on Your Phone

The instructions are literally two steps:

1. Update to the latest iOS. Turn on Bluetooth.

2. Pull battery tab when ready to use. Hold near device and follow onscreen instructions.

Customize Name and Emoji

You give each AirTag you connect to your phone its own name and emoji. For my daughter, I wrote her name and picked a teddy bear emoji. For my son, with his name I picked a jack-o-lantern emoji because he loves Halloween. So fun! For tracking items, I could name an AirTag “Keys” with a key emoji for example.

Share The AirTag’s Tracking (optional)

Both my husband and I were with the children at Disneyland, so I wanted both of us to be able to track their AirTags. After upgrading to iOS 17, I was able to easily use the Share an AirTag feature. It’s really helpful that you can share (and then unshare as needed) tracking the children’s AirTags with family members.

Some Considerations Tracking Your Kids with AirTags

The battery, be careful.

Unlike most Apple products that have a rechargeable battery, AirTags use coin batteries. Apple includes a warning on its website: “AirTag, the battery cover, and the battery might present a choking hazard or cause other injury to small children. Keep these items away from small children.” Coin batteries, or button batteries, can cause serious health issues if swallowed. When you are changing the battery, keep track and dispose of it vigilantly with great care to keep it away from younger kids and pets.

My 3-year-old got tired of the wristband when it got wet

My 3-year-old wanted to take the wristband off when it got wet (a cloth elastic band). We moved it to her ankle, over her sock, and she was then fine with that. Soon, she wanted it back on her wrist. It was nice to have the versatility. There are waterproof wristband holders too that can be dried off quickly.

AirTags Need to be near Apple devices to work

AirTags are great for location tracking of your kids in populated settings, but not for getting lost in the remote wilderness. AirTags use a network of Apple devices, like an iPhone or Apple Watch, to ping for tracking. In a place like an airport, for example, there are 1000s of Apple devices in Bluetooth range to ping and securely track AirTags. However, in the remote wilderness, if AirTags don’t have any nearby Apple devices to ping, they cannot be tracked.

My Conclusion About AirTags for Kids’ Safety, and Other Uses

I was pleasantly surprised by how much I liked using AirTags at Disneyland. I now carry the 2 children’s wristbands in my purse so the kids can wear them if ever we are in a setting that feels distractingly busy. The peace of mind of knowing I can instantly and precisely track the children’s location is soothing and takes some stress off of my plate. I still watch them as carefully as I ever did. The ability to track them if we get unexpectedly separated is the game-changer.

I have attached the two AirTags I bought to track checked luggage to my child’s backpack and sports bag. My son can be forgetful, and it will save so much grief the next time one of these bags goes missing with irreplaceable homework and/or needed sports gear inside. (For our next trip, I will temporarily move them back to our luggage.)

I plan on buying more AirTags. One for each of our cars (which will allow us to easily find them in large, crowded parking lots, like the airport) and one to hang on our dear Golden Retriever’s collar (just in case).

I would wholly recommend using AirTags for so many applications and I added AirTags to my list of The Most Useful Travel Accessories.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Are The Technology Requirements Apple AirTags?

1. Apple ID

2. Apple Device

   • iPhone with iOS 14.5 or later

   • iPod touch models with iOS 14.5 or later

   • iPad models with iPadOS 14.5 or later

Are My Apple AirTags Secure, Private, and Safe?

Yes. Apple is known for protecting user privacy. This holds true for AirTag technology, where they have privacy built in. Apple’s website reads: “Only you can see where your AirTag is. Your location data and history are never stored on the AirTag itself. Devices that relay the location of your AirTag also stay anonymous, and that location data is encrypted every step of the way. So not even Apple knows the location of your AirTag or the identity of the device that helps find it.”

Are Apple AirTags Waterproof?

AirTags are splash, water, and dust resistant (max depth 1 meter up to 30 minutes). Apple says that with normal wear, resistance might start to decrease over time. AirTags should hold up just fine in normal use settings like getting wet with rain or while washing your hands.

How Long Is The Battery Life? How Do I Know When The Battery Is Low?

AirTags are energy efficient with a long battery life. According to Apple, “AirTag is designed to keep going more than a year on a standard battery you can easily replace. And your iPhone lets you know when itʼs time to pop in a new one.” AirTags use CR2032 lithium 3V coin battery.