We’re big fans of Bluetooth trackers, as they help you quickly find stuff you might otherwise spend half-a-day trying to locate in your home or office. Problem is, Bluetooth has a very limited range, so while those trackers are useful in enclosed spaces, they don’t make it easy to find stuff that you lost somewhere during transit. The AirBolt GPS offers a more far-ranging alternative.
A GPS tracker, the device uses a GPS chip to let you pinpoint the location of any object you attach it onto. You know, just like other GPS trackers in the market. Unlike them, though, this one is compact enough to put on your cat’s collar without being cumbersome, all while having a battery that can keep it working for an entire year. Basically, it’s the first GPS tracker that’s actually viable in situations where they couldn’t prove useful in the past.
The AirBolt GPS isn’t as small as a Bluetooth tracker. It is, however, small enough to use as a key fob at 1.5 x 1.3 x 0.4 inches (width x height x thickness), as it’s around the same size as those keychains you can buy at the airport when you go on vacation. That makes it compact enough to put on the collar of your dogs and cats without creating any discomfort, allowing you to easily locate pets whenever they wander outside the house, walk out of the neighborhood, and even cross into the next city. It’s also small enough to attach to almost anything you can think of, from your luggage and your bicycle to your expensive 8K camera and any other equipment you would like to consistently track.
The device comes with GPS/AGPS for outdoor tracking, LTE-M for indoor tracking, NB-IoT (wherever it is available), and Bluetooth 5 for proximity tracking. Basically, you use GPS to find your stuff’s location, then use LTE-M and Bluetooth to find its exact position in the vicinity. According to the outfit, it can switch the kind of signals it emits as needed, with the system handling management of everything to strike the delicate balance of making it easy to find without using up too much power. It has a global tracking range, too, with coverage in 141 countries and counting, so you can find stuff that you lost during last week’s out-of-country vacation just as you can find that bag you misplaced somewhere at the company warehouse you visited yesterday.
Speaking of power, the AirBolt GPS is actually rechargeable via a USB-C cable, so you don’t have to get rid of it once battery is depleted the way you would with a regular Bluetooth tracker. Even better, a full charge can last it up to 12 months, so you can keep it out of mind for long periods of time. Other features include a durable shell made from ABS and anodized aluminum, waterproof construction (can be submerged in three feet of water up to 30 minutes), a variety of sensors (accelerometer, temperature), and built-in buzzer (for audible alerts).
A Kickstarter campaign is currently running for the AirBolt GPS. You can reserve a unit for pledges starting at $83.