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  For Samsung owners

  Samsung Galaxy SmartTag 2

  The Samsung Galaxy SmartTag2 is the Korean giant's second item tracker, featuring 50% longer battery life, a new design, and SmartThings Find integration. The tracker is IP67 certified and can last up to 700 days for extended item tracking with the new Power Saving Mode.

  Pros

  • Precise and fast-updating
  • Local, directional device finding via UWB
  • Helpful location history logging

  Cons

  • Only Samsung devices can use or detect it

• 

  For everybody else

  Pebblebee Clip for Android

  One of the first trackers designed specifically for Google's Find My Device network, the Pebblebee Clip is essentially a Bluetooth-enabled keychain made for all Android users. It doesn't have the same advanced features as the Samsung, but it's one of the best choices for those using anything but a Galaxy device.

  Pros

  • Rechargeable, long-lasting battery
  • Convenient form factor
  • Supports Google's Find My Device network

  Cons

  • Google's network barely works
  • No UWB, NFC, or reverse phone locating

The increasing variety of competent Bluetooth trackers has seen a major resurgence since Samsung and Google developed their own tracking networks. In fact, for anybody unwilling to switch to iOS, Samsung SmartTags and Google Find My Device-compatible trackers (like the new Chipolo One Point) are the only worthwhile options if you want any hope of finding things outside your home.

Samsung's had some time to refine its trackers, and the SmartTag 2 is one of today's top options. Pebblebee's upping its commitment to the field, too, with an updated lineup of trackers tailored to take advantage of Google's improving network.

While owners of Galaxy phones will probably find Samsung's trackers more useful, other Android users could be reasonably satisfied with the Pebblebee Clip — as long as Google keeps working on improving its Find My Device network.

Price, availability, and specs

Same price, but very different availability

Both cost $30 from their respective manufacturers (where you'll save a few bucks by buying up to four at a time), while Samsung's is readily available through additional major retailers in most markets.

After an extensive wait for Google to actually launch its network, Pebblebee has released and begun shipping trackers with firmware updated to support it. Being a little newer to the game, though, Pebblebee trackers, including the Clip, tend to go in and out of stock.

A word of caution when buying a Pebblebee tracker at the moment: while you'll probably see a Pebblebee Clip for Android for sale at a third-party retailer, as of the time of writing, the only Clip that works with Google's Find My Device is the one sold directly by Pebblebee.

Lastly, neither tracker offers any kind of subscription, meaning you'll get access to all features upfront, and there aren't any hidden costs.

• 	Samsung Galaxy SmartTag 2	Pebblebee Clip for Android
  Connectivity	Bluetooth LE, Ultra Wideband	Bluetooth LE
  Battery	Up to 700 days	Up to 1 year, rechargeable
  Range	120m	Up to 150m
  Water Resistance	IP67	IP67
  Dimensions	29 × 52 × 8mm	45 × 38 × 8.5mm

Design, build, and battery

They're both relatively rugged keychains, for starters

The Samsung SmartTag 2 is a little taller and narrower, and sports a large attachment loop reinforced by a metal band. The Pebblebee Clip looks and feels a little more like a simple, nondescript keychain. Its attachment point is comparatively small, but it comes with a spring-loaded, circular clip for affixing it to larger devices.

Both sport IP67 ratings, meaning they're impervious to dust and can withstand a few minutes of being underwater, although we don't recommend actually testing the waterproof status. They each measure about 8mm thick, which combines with precision-manufactured plastic bodies to withstand the rigors of day-to-day life.

As for how long these trackers will last, the Galaxy's CR2032 cell should persist for well over a year — almost 2 years with low-power mode enabled — and you can easily replace it yourself when it eventually gives out. Pebblebee's Clip can only power itself for a year at most, but it's rechargeable and will let you know when the battery's getting low.

Performance and features

The more established line brings a few more neat tricks

While their basic operation uses similar technology and concepts, these are about as different as two Android Bluetooth trackers could be, at least for now. The SmartTag 2 may only have access to Samsung phones for location purposes, but that's the biggest segment of Android devices in many regions, including North America and Europe.

Functionally speaking, SmartTags update with nearly the precision and quickness of an Apple AirTag when in moderately to heavily populated areas.

The Clip relies on Google's Find My Device network, which took an exceptionally long time to finally roll out, and still isn't ready for prime time. Pings are rare, and if they do manage to register, they're often tardy, with considerable time elapsing before any notification that your device was spotted somewhere else. At one point, it even warned me a tracker was following me, when it was clearly talking about itself.

So, why even bother with the Pebblebee Clip for Android? Well, it does work when the network allows it, which in fact happened the first time I took it to the park shortly after I started testing it. I had an iPhone-loving friend carry it around for 24 hours, and it pinged 3 times, while warning him of a tracker once.

It sure seems like all its misbehavior could theoretically be chalked up to Google's confusingly implemented network. Plus, the local Bluetooth range tracking works well, including the proximity indicator. So, we'll wait patiently, with the understanding that most Find My Device trackers are similar right now, and also that Google is working on it.

The rest of the feature set isn't exactly surprising, given Samsung's tendency to push the envelope, and Pebblebee's relatively simple approach to its previous Bluetooth trackers. Samsung's SmartTag 2 offers directional guidance toward nearby lost devices using ultra-wideband connectivity, including an augmented reality mode that makes it far less awful to, for example, extricate something accidentally dropped in a trash can.

It also sports an NFC tag, chiefly so someone who finds it can easily locate your contact information. The SmartTag also offers in-depth location history that, combined with its respectable precision, actually gives you a good chance of finding your device. And if you have the tag, but can't find your phone, clicking the SmartTag 2's button will cause an alert notification on your Galaxy device.

The Pebblebee Clip offers no such features. UWB-based directional AR tracking might be a little gimmicky, but location history would be immensely helpful on a device like this. Considering the state of Google's Find My Device network, in-range Bluetooth tracking — using the tag or your phone to play a sound on the other so you can find it — is the only consistently effective function right now.

Which one should you buy?

If you own a Galaxy device, get the Samsung SmartTag 2. The only downside is its general restriction to Samsung devices. Otherwise, it's comparable to, or better than, the Pebblebee Clip in every way. Its precision, quickness, and feature set can't yet be beat.

But it's not the Clip's fault it barely works right now, and Google's working on fixes. There's always the chance its network expands in range and enrollment enough to rival what Samsung or Apple do with their Bluetooth trackers.

And, not for nothing, but I have used the Clip several times in the last couple of weeks to shave minutes of frustration off the inevitable search for my elusive house keys. Plus, if you don't use a Samsung phone, the Pebblebee's just about your only choice.