Tile Mate Bluetooth tracker review: Losing things won't be easy with this

The device helps you find your belongings in a range of 150 feet, and also tracks and updates locations on the map. So, if you lose something with the tracker attached to it, you can still retrieve it

Now that we carry our world in backpacks, quite often the keys, wallet and gadgets that we put in one place disappear just when we need them the most.

But technology always comes to the rescue, and this time, we reviewed a Bluetooth tracker that could be really helpful for people who keeps losing their belongings.

Tile Mate is a square-shaped tiny Bluetooth tracker that's easy to use as it can easily be hooked onto keys, wallets, gadgets, and such like. What's more, it can also be connected to Siri or Google Assistant. There is a hole at one corner on the tiny tracker that you can use to tag the device to your stuff. 

 

The tracker can find your belongings within a Bluetooth range of 150 feet, and also keeps track of the locations and updates them on the map. If you lose something even though the tracker is attached to it, you can open the app and look at the recorded locations. If you update the app about the loss of your the tracker, it alerts other Tile users. If it appears on their maps, the owner of the tracker gets an alert about its location.

There are four preset ringtones for alerts. It can also be used in reverse to ring the smartphone it is connected to, by just double pressing the button in the centre. The phone rings even if it is on silent mode.

You can also name the device on the app. I attached the tracker with my keys and simply named it 'my keys' on the app. I later kept the device in my wallet and changed the tracker's name on the app. If you have more than one tracker, it becomes easier to distinguish between them.

 

At first, I felt it was going to be a lengthy process, but I found the set-up straightforward -- all it required was Tile app and activating the tracker by pressing the button.

I attached the tracker to my keys and it was easy to find them as I just had to open the app and press 'Find', the tracker played a tone that was loud enough. However, I wanted to test it in Delhi's noisy streets and Tile Mate fared just fine.

But here's something one needs to pay attention to -- the tracker won't ring if it's beyond Bluetooth range.

The 'Smart Alerts' feature on the app is a saviour. It sends notifications on your phone when you leave your tracker behind.  I had set home and office locations on the app and it saved me twice, as I received the notifications on time. However, I had to subscribe to Premium Plan for that.

Verdict:

A single Tile Mate costs Rs 2,499, while a pack of four comes for Rs 7,999. The Bluetooth tracker is spot on when it comes to finding your belongings. However, considering such devices haven't yet caught people's fancy in India, it may be too early to say whether or not it is expensive, as the subscription to the premium service adds to the cost. I felt Tile Mate could be of great help for forgetful people, but its price may deter prospective customers in the initial phase.