We’ve all been there, you’re on your way to your long-awaited vacation only to find that your baggage has gone missing at the airport.
As far as travel nightmares go, lost baggage has to be one of the worst. Thanks to Apple’s coin-sized tracker, the AirTag, losing your luggage doesn’t have to be a nightmare.
In this article, I offer 5 reasons why AirTags help with lost luggage and can also help with getting your luggage back from an airline quicker.
- With an AirTag you can track your luggage location while at the airport
- An airline baggage agent can get your contact info from an AirTag in Lost Mode
- AirTags work virtually anywhere worldwide
- Use hundreds of millions of Apple devices to find your AirTag
- You’ll get a year’s worth of battery life from an AirTag
AirTags Are The Ultimate Travel Gadget?
It’s almost impossible to prevent lost luggage while flying. However, an AirTag can significantly help to improve your chances of finding your lost suitcase. Using an Apple AirTag for lost luggage gives you access to hundreds of millions of Apple devices worldwide. Therefore, you can easily track your bag’s location right from your device, making AirTags the ultimate must-have luggage travel gadget.
Still wondering can an AirTag find lost luggage? Well, before you jet off on your next vacation flight, consider these 5 strong reasons for using an Apple AirTag with your checked luggage:
1. Track Your Luggage Location While At The Airport
You might just be looking for reassurance that your bag is somewhere at the airport. An AirTag is perfect for this, pop an AirTag inside your luggage, and you can easily track its whereabouts right from your iPhone. Knowing where your luggage is at is a key piece of information to give an airline baggage agent to help with baggage recovery.
2. An Airline Baggage Agent Can Easily Get Your Contact Info
One cool feature of an AirTag is that an airline baggage agent can get your contact info by tapping your AirTag with an NFC-capable smartphone regardless if its running iOS or Android. This feature is super helpful, especially if your bag becomes lost at the airport due to a missing bag tag. With no bag tag, there is very little for a baggage agent to go on, so this is where an AirTag can also prove its worth.
3. AirTags Work Virtually Anywhere Worldwide
An AirTag will essentially work anywhere abroad. However, to be effective an AirTags Bluetooth signal needs to be detected by a nearby device in the Apple Find My network. If your AirTag is in a less densely populated area where no one passes frequently, it’s less likely that your AirTag’s location will be updated.
4. Use Hundreds Of Millions Of Apple Devices To Find Your AirTag
The Find My app makes it easy to see an AirTag. The Find My app allows you to locate the AirTag on a map or play a sound to pinpoint its location. The Find My network is a crowd-sourced network of hundreds of millions of Apple devices that use Bluetooth technology to detect AirTags and report their approximate location. The entire process is encrypted and anonymous, so no one else, not even Apple can view your AirTag’s location or information.
5. You’ll Get A Year’s Worth Of Battery Life From An AirTag
Besides all the tracking benefits you get from an AirTag, another great feature for travelers is that an AirTag is a set-it-and-forget-it gadget. Once you’ve paired and set up an AirTag, you can attach it to your suitcase and forget about it. That’s because an AirTags battery life will last around one year before it needs to be replaced.
How Exactly Do AirTags Work?
An AirTag sends out anonymous secure Bluetooth signals that are discoverable by nearby Apple devices on the Find My network. These Apple devices then send the location of the AirTag to iCloud so the AirTag’s location can be seen within the Find My app map.
If your AirTag is close to you, your iPhone, using Precision Finding, will lead you straight to it. Precision Finding uses Ultra-Wideband technology to provide spacial and directional information on your supported Apple iPhone.
Top tech tip: Apple’s Precision Finding feature relies on Ultra Wideband technology, however, not all countries currently support this technology.
If however, your AirTag is not near, your AirTag can also be put into Lost Mode, just like other Apple products. When your AirTag is in Lost Mode, when it’s detected by a nearby Apple device on the Find My network, you’ll automatically receive a notification on your iPhone.
Let’s Not Forget About AirTag Luggage And Baggage Accessories
One negative of an AirTag is the lack of a pre-drilled hole for attaching it to stuff. The lack of a pre-drilled hole means that you’ll likely need to use an AirTag accessory to keep your new tracking gadget safe and secure.
That being said, its not necessary to use an accessory. In fact when I travel I place my AirTag in a Ziploc bag and place it in a pocket inside my suitcase. I do this for two reasons, one, I do not want my AirTag to be torn off while traveling through an airport’s baggage handing system, and two, I don’t want it to be stolen.
Frequently Asked Questions
Hopefully, I have answered all of your questions related to, why you should use an AirTag on your next vacation flight. You may still have other questions surrounding AirTags. If you do, below, I have answered some popular AirTag frequently asked questions, or check out my other article for tips on preventing lost luggage.
Can I Share AirTags via Family Sharing?
Is a battery included with the purchase of an AirTag?
Can I disable an AirTag’s sound?
Are AirTags FAA compliant?
Are AirTags TSA approved?
Final Thoughts On Why You Should Use An AirTag On Your Next Vacation Flight
So, why should you use an AirTag on your next vacation flight? Losing your baggage at an airport is everyone’s worst vacation nightmare. With an AirTag inside or attached to your luggage what you’re getting is peace of mind of its whereabouts, that alone is indeed reason enough why you should use an AirTag on your next vacation flight.