Hacker News Reader

Comment by seltzered_ | Hacker News Reader

"We plan to update our unwanted tracking alert system to notify users earlier that an unknown AirTag or Find My network accessory may be traveling with them."

How does this work if one doesn't own an iPhone?

View on HN

There is an Android app which allows Android users to see the same notifications.

Yea, but philosophically, you shouldn't have to opt in (to opt out) - if I don't want to any part of apple's ecosystem, this forces me to actively opt out.

What about Tile and other AirTag competitors? None of them even have an app to alert you to unwanted trackers at all.

No love for them either - but your retort is pure whatabout-ism - it doesn't address my core complaint.

What do you want them to do? Shoot brain waves in to your skull to notify you without any device?

There's really nothing they can do short of not doing the airtags at all. The spectrum does not belong to them, it's leased to them and they are a user. We can ask for oversight.

No, the airtag owner is the user.

Google/Android already scans for BLE beacons. It could add a notification for a BLE beacon it sees following users.

I mean, you could be hanging out with a friend who has chosen to wear a tracking device. I'm not really sure how far you can go with this idea.

Does it also conveniently increase the coverage of the network?

Nope, that requires their magic low power networking chip thing

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.apple.trac...

With 100.000+ installs it seems only a very small percentage of Android users is aware or cares

Look at the reviews. It doesn't seem to work. It requires manual scanning and does not work in the background.

That doesn't help people who don't use Android either.

Funnily enough, the app that works like iPhones (AirGuard, open source) was created by people from a German university.

Apple's own app is almost useless as it only works if the user performs manual scans... but who does that?

Reply on news.ycombinator.com