Apple’s been sitting on the original AirTag since April 2021, and frankly, it’s about time we saw a refresh. The first-gen tracker has been solid, sure, but four years without an update feels like an eternity in the Apple hardware cycle. Now we’re hearing credible whispers that AirTag 2 could drop this October alongside a surprisingly stacked lineup of accessories and mid-tier hardware refreshes. If the rumors hold up, we’re looking at the M5 iPad Pro, a redesigned Apple TV, and potentially a beefier HomePod mini that could actually compete with Amazon’s newly announced Echo lineup instead of sitting in isolation while the other smart speakers forge ahead.
The timing makes sense when you consider Apple’s recent pattern of holding October events for non-flagship releases. The AirTag 2 isn’t going to headline a September iPhone showcase, but bundling it with iPad Pro updates and smart home gear? That’s a coherent story about Apple’s ecosystem expansion, and it gives Tim Cook’s team a chance to own the holiday shopping narrative beyond just phones and watches.
Designer: Sarang Sheth
Let’s talk about what’s actually changing with the AirTag 2, because the upgrades sound incremental but consequential. The big one is the new Ultra Wideband chip, which supposedly pushes the precision finding range from roughly 30-40 meters up to 90 meters. That’s a 125% increase in effective range, and it fundamentally changes how useful these things are in sprawling parking lots or multi-story buildings. The current AirTag’s range works fine if you’re searching your apartment, but it starts to fall apart in larger spaces where you need that extra distance to get a directional ping. Pair that with improved Bluetooth connectivity between the tracker and your iPhone, and you’re looking at a device that should feel noticeably more reliable in real-world scenarios where walls, interference, and crowd density mess with signal strength.
A personal gripe I’ve had with the AirTag has been its ridiculous thickness. At 8mm thick, it’s now fatter than the iPad lineup and even the iPhone Air. For a tracking device, this feels sort of embarrassing considering this is the one product that benefits from slimness (as opposed to smartphones). Although this is probably wishful thinking, a slimmer AirTag 2 is also probably in the works. Will it retain the CR2032 battery or move onto something more fixed that charges wirelessly? Honestly, the CR2032 replaceable battery is a solid choice, although imagine just leaving your AirTag on a charging mat (or on a wireless power bank) and having it topped off in just mere minutes. Here’s to hoping that the AirTag does justice to the ‘Air’ in its name, with a slimmer, sleeker, more pocket-friendly design.
The anti-stalking improvements are where Apple’s clearly trying to get ahead of the bad press that’s plagued the original AirTag. We’re hearing about a tamper-resistant speaker that’s harder to disable, which addresses one of the most legitimate criticisms of the first model. Bad actors figured out pretty quickly that they could pop open an AirTag and yank the speaker, turning it into a silent tracker. Apple’s solution sounds like it involves better internal securing or possibly adhesive that makes disassembly destructive. They’re also adding a “very low” battery warning on top of the existing low battery alert, which is a small quality-of-life thing but saves you from that moment when your AirTag dies mid-trip because you ignored the first warning.
The cynic in me wonders if the AirTag 2’s improvements are enough to justify upgrading if you already own the original. Probably not, unless you’re constantly losing things in large spaces or you’re paranoid about the stalking vulnerabilities. But for anyone who skipped the first generation (or just wants to add new AirTags to their existing portfolio), this looks like the tracker to get. October can’t come soon enough.
