Finding lost items could be about to get a whole lot easier thanks to upcoming trackers from Tile, which will reportedly let you use augmented reality to find lost items.
The new trackers are an improvement on Tile’s previous Bluetooth gadgets that helped users find their stuff, TechCrunch reports, using ultra-wideband (UWB) technology to make missing items easier to find. The Tile app will also use augmented reality (AR) to help users pinpoint the location of the lost item. Experts say AR has big potential for finding everything from keys to computers.
“AR makes it possible to overlay visual information on top of a user’s phone camera,” Nicolas Robbe, CEO of augmented reality development company Hoverlay, said in an email interview. “Adding visual arrows in the user’s field of view dramatically simplifies the task of navigating to a specific location where the item can be found.”
Previous Tile models could be attached to items and tracked via a Bluetooth signal, but the new UWB technology offers spatial awareness capabilities that make finding items even easier, the company said. Users will be able to see an AR camera view using the Tile app. The camera will show directional arrows and an AR view of the item’s location, the report said.