Smart location company Tile has upgraded its range of Bluetooth trackers, revealing the all-new Tile Pro Series – and there’s one big reason you’re actually going to care.
The Pro Series is comprised of Tile’s two “most powerful trackers to date,” the Tile Style and the Tile Sport. The white Style tracker is the fashion-first option, coming etched with gold, while the Sport offers a texturised dark slate finish that should provide added durability.
The duo feature a handful of hardware upgrades over predecessors the Tile Mate and Tile Slim, including a “doubled” Bluetooth range of up to 200ft and improved waterproofing – the pair are now IP68 certified, so can be submerged in up to 1.5m of water for as long as 60 minutes.
Related: IP68 vs IP67
But it’s on the software side where things get really interesting, as the new trackers come with support for both Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant.
Later this month, there’ll be an Alexa skill you can enable letting you ask your Amazon Echo or Echo Dot smart home speaker to help you ring your keys. If you’re outside of the Bluetooth range, Alexa will let you know the last known location of the item you’re trying to locate.
Google Assistant is available right out of the box and offers similar functionality. A range of devices are supported including Google Home, Android phones and iPhones – just summon it with the usual “OK, Google” phrase, then ask for assistance finding whatever it is you’ve misplaced.
Sure, Bluetooth trackers aren’t ever likely to take pride of place in your gadget collection, but they’re quietly useful for the absent-minded among us, and the addition of voice control support means Tile’s offerings will slot nicely into that burgeoning smart home you’re building.
Other improvements in the Tile Pro Series include louder ringtones and a redesigned proximity metre.
The Tile Style and Tile Sport are available to buy immediately and will sell for £29.99 individually, or £49.99 for a two-pack direct from Tile.
Related: Best Alexa skills
Other UK retailer partners include Amazon, Argos, Currys PC World, John Lewis and Maplin.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
