Pebblebee Tag, Clip and Card Review: A tracking option for the Android crowd

The new crowd-sourced Find My Device network from Google leverages the many Android devices in the world to help track third-party tags. The first wave includes a trio of devices from Pebblebee, which are shipping to Australia.

The new Find My Device tags aren’t available at retailers in Australia, but you can ship any, or all of the Pebblebee tags. There are three Pebblebee tags compatible with the Find My Device network including, the Card ($53 AUD), the Clip ($46 AUD) and the Tag ($53 AUD) – each with it’s own unique form factor and use case. 

I’ve gotten a hold of the three tags and been using them for a couple of weeks to check them out, and the Find My Device network. Here’s how it went.

Devices

The Pebblebee Find My Device trackers are a nicely designed set of kit with a particular function in mind for each.

Each tag is made from a soft-touch plastic with the Pebblebee logo etched into the middle showing where the activation button on each is located. All three tags are rated IPx6 for water protection, so while you shouldn’t immerse them they can survive being splashed.

Each Pebblebee tracker is packed with tech, including indicator lights, speakers and of course bluetooth for connecting to the wider Find My Device Network.

Card

At $53, the Pebblebee Card is tied with the Pebblebee Tag for the most expensive of the three. The form factor is instantly recognisable for its main function – to sit in your wallet. 

Resembling a credit card and measuring 54x85mm, the Card is the same shape – though at 2.8mm it’s around the thickness of three of my cards, so it requires a slot to itself. 

Pebblebee says the Card can also be used for ‘narrow spaces’, which includes spaces like your passport for storage, jackets or camera gear and at just 15 grams, it’s lightweight to slip in with almost anything.

Despite the compact size, the Pebblebee Card includes a lot of tech including Bluetooth with a range of up to 500 feet, as well as five LED indicator lights to show power status and to easily find it in the dark. There’s also a decently loud speaker on board to help locate it with audible cues.

The Card charges using a proprietary magnetic charger included in the box which plugs into any handy USB-C port for charging. The two prong charger easily aligns and attaches magnetically to the rear of the Card when you get it close. 

Pebblebee says the batter lasts up to 18 months on a single charge, so it’ll be a while before I can confirm that – but it’s decently impressive.

Tag

Looking like a shrunk down version of the Card, the Tag is a tiny little tracker designed for tracking remotes, luggage, and, judging from the included silicon strap/collar attachment in the box – your pets.

It’s compact, and well, it’s a cute little tracker, weighing just 6.5 grams and measuring 26x40mm, though it’s thicker than the Card at 4.5 mm – though this smaller size sees a drop in Bluetooth range to 300 feet. 

To help track all your things, the Pebblebee Tag also includes a double sided adhesive pad for you to attach it to things like your remote control, a nice inclusion – though I’m not sure how many trips down the back of the couch this pad can survive.

The Tag ships with the same proprietary magnetic charger as the Pebblebee Card, a handy tip if you have both and need to charge them. It’s just as easy to charge the Tag with the charger aligning with the contacts on the tracker easily.

While it is only small, you still get the speaker included which is fairly loud given its size, though there is only a single LED on the Tag but it’s fairly bright, allowing you to easily see it in the dark.

The speaker on the Tag is decently loud, so be careful about setting it off while on your dog’s collar. It works really well in the collar attachment, and fairly easy to get in and out of once it’s on there.

You shouldn’t need to remove it too often though as Pebblebee says the battery in the Tag lasts for 12 months, so I’ll report back then ;).

Clip

Finally, the Pebblebee Clip, the cheapest of the range at just $46. 

Designed to attach to loads of items, this ultra-light tracker weighs just 8 grams and includes a hole in the top of the circular body which you can attach to a keyring.

A nice inclusion is the nicely chunky spring-loaded carabiner-like ring for easily attaching anywhere including your keys, bags and more. 

The Clip is a fairly chunky device at 8.5mm thick, though it includes the 500 foot Bluetooth range, as well as very bright LEDs on the base and a speaker for audible alerts when you get nearby.

Out of the three Find My Device compatible tags, the Pebblebee Clip is by far the most convenient to charge. It simply charges using USB-C, with a short cable included in the box, however any cable will work. 

The Clip will last for 12 months on a charge and it’s doing pretty well so far.

Setup

The Setup of the Find My Device tags is incredibly simple. You will need to set up the Find My Device app from Google, available on the Play Store and once setup it’s a matter of scanning the QR code on the setup card included in the box, or the sticker on each device. 

The QR code will take you to the Pebblebee website for setup, where you can register your Pebblebee tag as part of the setup or skip it and get underway. It’s a follow-the-bouncing ball type procedure for each one, taking less than three minutes for each one. 

The setup uses Google’s Fast Pair protocol and it works super well linking it to your Google account. 

To get it under way, you double tap the Pebblebee logo (a slow double press) and the fast pairing notification pops up for each tag and away you go.

Find My Device App

The Find My Device app from Google requires you to login each time, though has the option for a guest to use your device to locate theirs – so a win on that front, and while it is secure, it’s a pain to sign in each time.

Once you sign in though, it’s easy to see all the devices you have enrolled in the Find My Device Network – which if you review phones is a lot! The device list is easy to scroll though, with each device displayed by name with an icon matching the device.

Tapping on the device allows you to then track the device, as well as play a sound or share access to it with another person. You can also hit the settings cog on the right and change the name, and what it’s tracking – bag, bike, keys, wallet etc.

If the tracker is nearby, you’ll get a ‘Find Nearby’ option in the app, however if the tracker or device has moved out of range of your home, you’ll see an option to track the device which will bring up a map.

Find My Device Network

As part of the setting up process you’ll enrol in the Find My Device Network. This means you’ll also be pinging for tags or other people’s devices to help locate them.

Participation in the network requires Android 9.0 and above, and uses aggregated data protected by end-to-end encryption. 

The Find My Device Network is a crowdsourced tracking network, making use of the many Android devices out in the wild. Google says if you’ve ever ‘added a Google Account to your device, Find My Device is automatically turned on – which is a lot of devices.’

If you do want to adjust your Find My Device security settings, you can find them by going to Settings > Security > Find My Device. You’ll find the option to turn it on and off, as well as the settings for Unknown Tracker Alerts which Google rolled out last year.

There are four settings for the Find My Device Network, though by default you will be opted-in using the ‘With network in high-traffic areas only’. Google says this setting means ‘your Android device helps others find their items in higher-traffic areas. You also receive help finding your items in higher-traffic areas’. This option requires several pings on your lost device to get a location,  

The other options include Off which completely turns off your ability to find your devices, or use your aggregated location data to help others. There’s also Without network which opts out of the Find My Device network, but uses the old Find My Phone to find your ‘Android device and the Fast Pair accessories connected to it, like earbuds’.

The last option: ‘With network in all areas’, Google says ‘may help you find your lost items more quickly’, and will track devices in the Find My Devices network near you with a single ping instead of requiring several. 

Ok – so all that out of the way, with the cards set to the default “With network in high-traffic areas” only setting, I set off with my son to find him around several locations. 

I took him to an Ikea, shopping centre and a park, then dropped him off at a mates place. Each time I gave him a half hour before requesting the location and it found him pretty easily.

There’s a few ways to help find your device. First is when you’re at home, it will tell you which of your Google devices like your smart speaker or display the item was seen near last.

From there you can find nearby, which includes an animation that fills faster as you get nearer the item – Aliens vibes! You can also hit the Play Sound button, which will initiate a chime and the on-board LEDs (if any), giving you an audible and visual indicator.

If the device is further afield you’ll be able to see a map with the item’s location, and then it’s a matter of tracking it down as above using the map on your device and alerts. 

I’ve seen other reviews which had less than stellar results with the Pebblebee Find My Device network tags but I had no issues here – and around the home it was fantastic.

Should you buy it?

In my testing the Pebblebee trackers were quite handy, offering accurate tracking with a decent system of audible and visual alerts, as well as an animation to narrow down the location of these small tags, and the items they’re attached to as you get nearer. 

Pricing wise, they’re all hitting around the sweet spot that the Galaxy SmartTag2 ($55) and Apple AirTag ($49) are at. The only barrier to me is the shipping – around $32 AUD – on top of your order, but it’s not too bad if you’re grabbing a few tags. 

The different form factors offer a good array of options, from tracking your keys or backpacks with the clip, through to the remote, or your pooch with the Tag and your wallet with the Card. The lengthy battery life up to 1 year means you won’t have to think about them too often, but I have a reminder set in the calendar to check in 10 months or so.

Google is continuing to invest in developing the Find My Device network, so we’ll hopefully see even more refinements in the accuracy and finding items as you near them in the future. Until then, the Find My Device tags offer a good option for Android users to tag up their gear and find it easily if they lose it.

You can check the Pebblebee Find My Device network compatible tags over on the Pebblebee store.