Samsung’s Galaxy SmartTag Plus with UWB to track items with AR is out April 16th

Samsung’s Galaxy SmartTag Plus, the souped-up model of the corporate’s Tile-like SmartTag Bluetooth tracker (which was launched earlier this yr), now has a launch date: it’ll be out on April 16th for $39.99.

That’s a $10 worth improve over the usual SmartTag, which runs for $29.99 — however the SmartTag Plus has one notable enchancment. It options an ultra-wideband (UWB) radio, permitting customers to trace it extra precisely when it’s close by than the usual Bluetooth setup. The UWB radio really permits a brand new AR mode, which will help present customers precisely the place their lacking tag is.

To make use of the brand new UWB mode, you’ll want each a Galaxy SmartTag Plus and a appropriate UWB-equipped Galaxy telephone, a listing that presently contains the Galaxy Notice 20 Extremely, Galaxy S21 Plus, Galaxy S21 Extremely, and the Galaxy Z Fold 2.

Apart from the flamboyant new UWB options, although, the SmartTag Plus nonetheless works identical to the common SmartTag, leveraging Samsung’s huge Bluetooth community of Galaxy units to assist observe lacking objects. It’s just like Apple’s Discover My community, which makes use of iPhones and iPads to create a Bluetooth community (and, because of a current enlargement to third-party units, will quickly supply a Discover My-compatible tracker from Chipolo).

The upcoming launch of the Galaxy SmartTag Plus implies that Samsung — and never Apple’s long-rumored AirTags — would be the first main AR-compatible UWB monitoring accent to hit the market. Apple has been reportedly engaged on an identical UWB-based AR characteristic for its upcoming tracker, however regardless of loads of leaks and rumors, there’s nonetheless no phrase on a launch date.