Since before the iPhone event in September this year, we’ve been hearing rumours and reports about Apple introducing its own tile-like tracking device. The device was spotted in beta builds for iOS 13, and now, references have been spotted in the stable release for iOS 13.2.
9to5Mac spotted these references in iOS 13.2 to a device named “AirTag” which, it now seems could be the name Apple chooses to go with for its tracking devices.
According to 9to5Mac, the references currently hold placeholder images of the Cupertino giant’s recently announced AirPods Pro, but adds that these images can be updated remotely by Apple. This hints that the company might be inching closer to announcing the AirTag, and it would most probably choose to announce them via a simple press release, much like it did the AirPods Pro.
Even though Apple’s “AirTag” would most likely be compared to Tile’s Bluetooth tracking beacons, the Cupertino giant might have a leg-up against Tile, thanks to the new U1 chip found inside the new iPhone 11 line-up that allows the phone to be spatially aware of its surroundings. With this, the AirTag could be more accurate than any Bluetooth-enabled tracking accessory, at least with the new iPhones.
There’s currently no more information about the AirTag, or Apple Tag, or whatever the company decides to call it, but the fact that references have been spotted in the codebase for a stable iOS release does make it sound like the company is just adding some finishing touches to its press release for the AirTag and might launch it sooner rather than later.
