Like every year Apple brings many features in its iOS update, this time with the iOS 17 update, Apple announced a small but incredibly attractive feature “Share AirTag”. That’s right, now the nifty little tracker isn’t the only Ranger that can share its location with others, as Apple now allows you to share AirTag and its location with your family.
In this blog post, we will explore the simple yet ingenious process of sharing AirTag. If you’ve ever wanted to double the tracking capabilities of your little Apple AirTag across multiple iPhones, you can enjoy it with this exciting update.
What is AirTag?
AirTag is a small, coin-shaped device made by Apple that uses Bluetooth and GPS technology to help you find your lost items. By pairing this AirTag with the Find My app on your iPhone, you can track the location of your tagged items or sound a siren to locate them.
Uses
- Finding lost items around the house like keys, remotes, or wallets
- Tracking luggage during travel
- Keeping tabs on pets
- Locating your parked car
- Tracking valuable items like your purse or laptop
Sharing an Airtag with the family allows anyone in the family to keep track of shared items such as car keys, pets, or even bags while on a camping trip, reducing the fear of them being lost or stolen. This feature eliminates the headache of one person and allows multiple people to stay in the loop by knowing where a common item is.
Benefits of sharing AirTag
- Collective Tracking: Sharing an AirTag allows others to track the location of a shared item collectively, reducing the burden on a single individual.
- Shared responsibility: Items such as the family car, shared tools, or pets can be tracked by all family members, ensuring everyone takes equal responsibility for their safety and whereabouts.
- Security of valuables: Shared valuables such as jewelry or important documents can be tracked by all members, reducing the risk of them being lost or misplaced.
- Convenience: If an item goes missing, all members with a shared AirTag can use Find My Network to find it, making the search quick and easy.
- Efficient use of resources: Instead of purchasing multiple AirTags for the same item for different family members, one AirTag can be used and shared with everyone.
Limitations
- Limited Sharing: You can share an AirTag with only five people.
- Apple Ecosystem Dependencies: Sharing is only possible between Apple devices.
- Battery life: Frequent location updates with multiple users can drain battery life quickly.
- Dependence on network coverage: Tracking effectiveness depends on my network and internet coverage.
Sharing AirTag with someone on your iPhone is a straightforward and simple process, especially with the release of iOS 17. Follow the steps below to do this:
Open the “Find My” app on your iPhone. If you haven’t downloaded it yet, first you download it from App Store. Once in the app, tap on the “Items tab” at the bottom.
In the list of items, select the AirTag you want to share with someone else.
Scroll down until you see the “Share This AirTag” section. Then click on “Add Person”.
Tap on the “Continue” button to proceed with the process of sharing the selected AirTag with others.
The app will then open a prompt to select the contacts you want to share the AirTag with. Here you can select up to 5 contacts to share the AirTag with. Then select the desired contact(s).
Once the desired contact is selected press “Send”.
The screen will now return to the “Share This AirTag” section and will show the list of people the AirTag is being shared with.
Note: Remember, the people with whom you share your AirTag must have an iPhone with the Find My app-enabled, and they must accept your sharing request.
To delete or remove a shared AirTag, tap on the contact’s name and tap the “Remove” option from the overlay menu at the bottom of the screen.
How Does AirTag Sharing Work in iOS 17?
AirTag Sharing in iOS 17 allows you to share your AirTag with up to five people. These members can track a shared item using the Find My app, play a sound to find it, or even use Precision Finding to pinpoint its exact location. This feature extends to all Find My Network accessories, so any device connected to the network can be shared and tracked by multiple people.
Conclusion
With the release of iOS 17, Apple has added a game-changing feature to its AirTag, making it an even more indispensable tool for families and groups. The ability to share AirTag with up to five people not only increases its functionality but also its appeal to a wider audience. So go ahead and share AirTag with your friends and family.
FAQ
AirTag sharing is compatible with all other Find My Network accessories. So you can track an AirTag shared with an iPad, iPod touch, or Mac that’s signed in to iCloud with your Apple ID. However, certain features like Precision Finding are only available for iPhone 11 and newer models.
In the event an AirTag is lost, any user it’s shared with can put it in lost mode. In Lost Mode, when someone else’s device comes within range of your lost AirTag, they can use their device to report its location to you.
