Atuvos Smart Bluetooth Tracker 2022 REVIEW

A Bluetooth Tracker like an AirTag but cheaper.

I know I am not alone in wondering how people survived before smartphones.  As a Xennial, born into an Analog world, I had the luxury of growing up alongside the tech revolution.  I can remember maps, lost keys, books, and filling time with one’s imagination.  My children have asked how people used to navigate.  How did they pass the time?  I have stated several times that people survived just fine without the tech.  However, this does not mean that technology has not solved problems and made life much easier.  

One piece of tech that has truly helped reduce stress within my family has been the keyring tracker.  I remember asking my wife where she left her keys only to spend precious time hunting them down.  I would like to think back and imagine that the scenario was a rarity.  It was a common enough occurrence that I became a keyring finder early adopter and sampled various types. With the release of the Apple AirTag in April of 2021 and the integration with the Find My feature, I thought that I had found the holy grail of trackers.  Imagine my excitement when I found a device that provided easy pairing, Find My integration, and saved some money. 

Unboxing

The Atuvos Bluetooth trackers arrived in a 4 1/4 inches wide by 3 inches tall by 1/2 inches thick retail package.  The avocado-green ATUVOS product name was listed at the top left corner of the sterile-white cover panel.  Along the bottom edge of the panel, you will find a vibrant blue Bluetooth 5.2 icon, and the green/black “Works with Apple Find My” icon.  The main showcase of the panel was the 1 1/2 inches tall by 2 inches wide image of the Atuvos trackers. 

The grey edge provided a bit of contrast with the cover but the etched product name proved difficult to see due to the color choice.  A grey or off-white background color would have been a superior choice to display the white-colored trackers.  Despite the limitation, the cover provided a good impression of the key ring, activation button, etched product name, and approximate size of the trackers.  

Turning to the side panels, you will find a few sentences regarding trademark and legal statements. The rear white-colored panel listed the product name, the AT2101 model number, and then seven product-specific icons: 1. Range up to 400ft(120m). 2. NFC tap for Lost mode. 3. Voice Control with Siri. 4. Loud Ring. 5. Water Resistant. 6. Replaceable battery (CR2032). 7. Privacy is built in.  The bottom edge of the panel displayed the manufacturer information, Made in China, and product manufacturing labels. 

Lastly, you will find UPC/SKU barcodes and a AR code along the top right of the panel.  I was pleased with the empty space on the back cover as well as with both the top/bottom panels.  With so many companies attempting to bombard the consumer with details/facts/imagery, it was refreshing to find a succinct presentation.

Device

I removed the tape at the top edge of the packaging, opened the top flap, gripped the tiny pull tab, then removed the 2 7/8 inches tall by 4 3/16 inches long by 7/16 inches thick foam pad and instruction manual from the main box.  The 0.3-ounce Atuvos trackers measured just under 1 3/8 inches square by 5/16 inches thick. 

The device had an oval 5/16 inches wide by 3/16 inches tall keychain ring at the top rounded corner, the ATUVOS name etched into the center, and a 3/8 inches diameter button along the bottom rounded corner.  The rear pane provided a QR code and serial number along the lower corner.  The edges were slightly beveled inward, while the bottom edge/corner had a small access gap.  

Instruction Manual

The bilingual (English/German) accordion-style instruction manual was more involved than I expected for a tracker.  The eleven panel English section provided a quick overview overview of the device, followed by a panel detailing the method to return the device to factory reset.  Although the first panel was a bit wordy, it provided a fair representation of the device.  The factory reset panel provided a helpful labeled diagram and prose commentary regarding the ability to factory reset. 

The third through seventh panels proved to be the most useful.  The third panel provided a button action table which detailed the quick press/power on/two short beeps, the press and hold for 3 seconds/Power Off/Long beep, and the press and hold for 10 seconds/reset/two long beeps separated by seven seconds then two short beeps.  I appreciated the tabular format and the easy-to-follow layout.  The lower segment repeated the key features that were presented on the back panel, but also added “compact design” plus listed the contents of the box.  

The fourth panel provided a Specification List for the CR2032/DC3V Battery, the Find My OTA firmware update, 2402-2480MHz operating frequency, 8dBm Max. transmit power, 0-40C Operation temperature (32-104F), and a Quick Start guide.  The manual recommended updating your iOS, and then ensuring that Bluetooth was active (navigating to Settings, then to Bluetooth).  Next, pull the tab when ready to use and ensure it is closely approximated to your iPhone/iPad. 

Lastly, tap the “+” icon to add the item and then follow the onscreen prompts.  Interestingly, I did not find a pull tab on the trackers.  The fifth panel provided instructions to update the firmware through the Find My App, while the sixth panel showed how to change the battery.  The seventh panel provided an important button cell battery warning, while the remaining panels listed FCC/IC/CE statements, and legal notice information.  

Testing

I navigated to the Find My App on my new iPhone 14 Pro Max, selected the “+,” selected “Add Other Item,” then quick pressed the button on the ATUVOS tracker. The iPhone screen showed a large “Atuvos Tag” connected panel.  I navigated to the subsequent screen and named the item “She Shed Keys,” added an emoji (monkey see), and then agreed to the Item Link information.  I placed the device five feet from me and activated the “Play Sound” feature of the find my App. Using the Decibel X App, I found the device reached 52.7 dB.  At 1 foot away the decibel meter registered 79 dB.

I repeated the test with a small pillow placed atop the device and found a max of 43.4 dB.  For a subsequent test, I had my kids hide the keys in the grass of the backyard.  Since the keys move between our home and outdoor shed, we have either left them in the lock of the shed, the kids have dropped them somewhere in the grass, or they have been left in a coat/pants pocket in our entryway. I was pleased with the dB output, the size/shape of the device and the built in Keyring.  I was able to use the Find My App to navigate and found that I could find the device easily on my acre plot of land.

With the Find My App, you can get directions, play sound, add notifications (when found/left behind), see the manufacturer, serial number, model, and firmware. Some may dislike the inability to change the tracker ringtone, but I did not find this to be a desired feature. I was pleased with the seamless integration with the Find My App and found it was just a tad more difficult to use than the AirTag automatic add-on ability.  My only complaint was with the battery removal. 

With too-short fingernails, I turned to other options to attempt to pry open the small opening. Since a quarter was too big, I turned to the edge of a butter knife.  Unfortunately, the metal proved to be too robust for the plastic and marred the edge of the plastic.  With some effort, I was able to remove the plastic battery shell, easily remove the battery, and replace the battery. The Find My App did tell me the battery indicator level, which proved fairly accurate.  I replaced the battery with a nearly depleted one and found the battery indicator displayed a lower power battery icon.  

The product claimed water resistance and I wanted to test the feature.  After watering my yard, I tossed my keys into a puddle of water that was ~1/4 foot deep, and left it for about ten minutes.  I searched for the keys with the App and was able to approximate the location and even heard the jingle.  I repeated the test with a large bowl of water; after 30 minutes, the tracker still worked.  I was rather impressed with the sound output in the water and was confident with the durability if left outdoors by mistake.  

Summary

If you are looking for an inexpensive, budget-friendly key-finder, consider the Atuvos Tracker.  At ~$18.99 each or ~$34.99 for the duo pack, you can enjoy many of the features of the Apple AirTag while saving ~$10 per tracker.  You can either place the device inside of your luggage, backpack, jacket, clothing pocket, or add to your keyring.  Add a small carabiner (not included) to place onto other devices. 

I would have liked some 3M tape to adhere to remotes or other easily lost items, but this was not a deal breaker.  I liked the clean, sterile packaging, the product design/orientation, and the shape/color of the tracker.  I found that the sound output was adequate for indoor/outdoor search/recovery, and the waterproofing should ensure survival in an outdoor environment.  As noted above, the only negative that I had with the tracker was with the soft plastic edging material while removing the battery compartment. 

It is important to note that this product is an iOS-specific device and will not work with Android devices.  Having tested various trackers, I enjoyed the Atuvos tracker and have since added the two-pack to our army of keyrings.  

Learn more about the Atuvos tracker