Frequently Asked Questions
The questions we are asked most often about the BlueTag. If yours is not covered, write to hello@bluetooth-tracker.co.uk and a person who has handled one will answer it.
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Why do you quote 60 m when my last Bluetooth tracker barely managed ten?
Because 60 m / 200 ft is the line-of-sight figure, and most cheap tags quote the same thing without saying so. In a flat, with walls and a body between the phone and the tag, you should expect a fraction of it — enough to ring a tag anywhere in a normal house, not enough to reach one across a car park. The number worth judging a tag on is not its Bluetooth range at all but what happens past it, which on this one is the Apple Find My network rather than nothing.
If the Bluetooth link stops at 60 m, how do I find something two towns away?
The tag never stops broadcasting an anonymous, rotating identifier. Any passing iPhone or iPad that hears it uploads an encrypted position to Apple, which only your Apple Account can decrypt. So a bag in a taxi across the city keeps updating on your map without the driver knowing, without you contacting anyone and without either of you installing anything. There is no SIM in the tag and no mobile data cost — it is other people’s phones doing the carrying.
Can I pair a BlueTag with an Android phone, a Windows laptop or a Bluetooth speaker?
No to all three, and we would rather lose the sale than the trust. It is not a general-purpose Bluetooth accessory: it is an Apple Find My accessory that speaks Apple’s protocol, so it registers only in the Find My app on an iPhone or iPad running iOS 14.5 or later. It will not show up in a Windows or Android Bluetooth pairing list at all. If it is a gift, check which phone they carry first.
Does leaving Bluetooth on all day flatten my iPhone battery?
No measurable amount. Your iPhone keeps its Bluetooth radio on permanently anyway for AirPods, your watch, your car and Find My itself, and a tag like this exchanges only tiny, infrequent advertising packets. The battery you should think about is the one in the tag: a single CR2032 coin cell, good for up to 2 years.
How much of the 60 m survives walls, pockets and a full rucksack?
Bluetooth at this power level is line-of-sight-friendly and obstacle-shy. A brick wall, a body, a metal toolbox or a car boot will each cut it noticeably, so treat 60 m as the best case in the open and a good part of a house or garden as the realistic case. This is also why the buzzer matters: at 80–100 dB it is audible well past the point where a map is still useful.
Why is there no on-screen arrow guiding me the last few metres?
Because that arrow is Ultra Wideband, a second radio that AirTag has and this tag does not — it is a large part of why one costs £29 and this works out at £7.24. You get the map, the left-behind alert and the buzzer. In practice the buzzer does the same job in a room; it is on a wide-open field that you would miss the arrow, and we would rather say that here than have you discover it.
Will the radio still work after it has been rained on?
Yes. The case is sealed to IP67 — dust-tight, and rated for immersion in a metre of water for thirty minutes — so rain, a spilled bottle in a bag and a dropped-in-a-puddle afternoon are all within spec. It is not armour. A car tyre, a washing machine cycle or salt water over a long period will still finish it.
What powers it, and does it warn me before the cell dies?
A CR2032 coin cell, fitted at the factory and good for up to 2 years. Find My shows a low-battery state for the item before it goes flat, so you get notice rather than silence. Replacements cost a couple of pounds in any supermarket: twist the back off, swap the cell, twist it shut. There are no spares in the box — you get 2 BlueTag trackers, 2 key rings and a setup sheet, and that is the whole list.
Who else can read the signal my tag is broadcasting?
Nobody who can make sense of it. The identifier it advertises rotates and carries no name, and the position a passing device reports is end-to-end encrypted through Apple Find My — readable by your Apple Account and not by us, not by the manufacturer and not by Apple. The flip side is built in too: if a tag that is not yours travels with you for a while, your iPhone warns you and can make it play a sound so you can find it.
When does it ship, and what happens if I send it back?
We dispatch within 1 working day and UK orders usually arrive 2–4 working days after that, with delivery free at any quantity and no minimum spend. If it is not what you expected, send it back within 30 days for a full refund — you do not have to give a reason. The full policy is on our Shipping & Returns page.
Want to check the detail first?
Our shipping & returns policy sets out dispatch times, delivery windows and refunds in full, or you can ask us directly — replies land within 1 working day.
Ready to put one on the bike?
2 tags per box, free UK delivery, and a 30-day return window.
Order the BlueTag – £14.48