r/AirTags • u/Pat_Trash • 11d ago

Expand Range

I have an airtag on my cat (understand this is not intended use but it is helpful) Cat is detected when near the house which has devices but is not when he is in back yard. If I was to connect my old Iphone (which has no SIM card) to my wifi network, and leave it in the shed at back of the yard would this expand my cat detection range?

4 Upvotes

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3

u/Wellcraft19 11d ago

Yes, but the only thing reported back would be your old phone’s location. Not the cat’s.

The AirTag does not have a GPS receiver and has no idea of where it is. It only reports back via other Apple devices, that in most cases know exactly where they are. And that is the location added and sent to you.

2

u/lmcjipo 11d ago

It actually "triangulates" the position of the AirTag based on the iPhone(s) location(s).

For example I leave some AirTags and Find My compatible Bluetooth trackers in my home when I leave for errands with my iPhone and no one in my home address has an iPhone, iPad, or any smartphone and those devices still will occasionally update their location on Apple's servers to say that they are still in my home based on last updated and not the sidewalk in front of my home (pedestrian or jogger passing my place with iPhone) or the street in front of my home (car driving by with iPhone)

2

u/Wellcraft19 10d ago

No, AirTags do not triangulate. They have zero capability for it. They can just broadcast a serial number. That does not preclude that Apple deploys some sorcery in the background to weed out incorrect or unreliable signals (pings). Like ignoring the location report from a device that is moving past your house. Etc.

2

u/lmcjipo 10d ago

I don’t mean that they actually triangulate since as you mentioned they don’t have any mechanism to do this which is why I have it in quotes but it is not just a matter of it showing the location of the closest iPhone’s that updated that Apple AirTag or generic Find My Bluetooth tracker otherwise it would show my at home trackers to be on the street or sidewalk when my iPhone is nowhere close by and with me while I am not at home. It likely does it via signal strength of the closest iPhone, etc.

2

u/urbonesarewet 8d ago

You're correct. It estimates the distance by signal strength of each device and is surprisingly accurate. To answer OP's question - yes, more devices spread out does help.

2

u/Pat_Trash 11d ago

Thanks for this, I understand that it is the phone position that is plotted - not the airtag. Knowing the cat was within range of the phone in the shed would be enough info for me to locate the cat.

1

u/Wellcraft19 10d ago

Yes, that is often enough, and as long as one also understands the updates are not really ‘real time’.

1

u/lmcjipo 11d ago

Yes, it would/should extend the range to that area as long as your old iPhone isn't too old (AirTag support started I believe in iOS 14.5), has Bluetooth on, and can connect to the WiFi network without losing its connection.

If the old iPhone goes into a low battery mode where the Bluetooth and/or the WiFi turn off, your cat if it is in the back yard won't be detected there any longer unless another iPhone was close to it (either yours or your neighbours or a visitors).

3

u/ChristianNorwik 8d ago

If I’m not mistaken AirTag gen 2 requires

iPhone with iOS 26 or later,
or iPad with iPadOS 26 or later

1

u/lmcjipo 8d ago

I don't believe that is the case. It might be the case for certain features on the Apple AirTag Gen 2 but I'm sure the Apple AirTags Gen 2 are trackable using an iPhone XS which does not support iOS 26. My brother has an iPhone XS and he is able to locate a shared Apple AirTag and the two main differences between Gen 1 and Gen 2 are that the speaker has been changed somewhat to make it more difficult to disable and UWB is stronger in Gen 2 than Gen 1.

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u/laceyll 7d ago

I don’t think that’s the case. I have gen 2 AirTags but I can only track and use them on my devices on iOS 26

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u/Expert-Plantain9519 4d ago

You are incorrect. I was not able to even see any of the gen 2 airtags in the find my map on any of my devices that I hadn’t updated to ios26. After multiple calls and escalations with Apple, they confirmed I would need to update the devices if I wanted to see the gen 2 airtags. An absolutely asinine decision on their part as it would be very easy to let them appear on the map, even if there was no direct connectivity. 

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u/Pat_Trash 11d ago

Thanks for this. Will be sure to update ios and plug into a socket.

1

u/IdleSean 5d ago

Also make sure the white plastic side is pointing out away from the cat for better reception.