Tile: Apple hasn’t adapted iOS for location tracking despite promises

Tile, a maker of devices to track keys over Bluetooth, for example, says Apple hasn’t made background location tracking any easier in iOS as promised. Adjustments in iOS 13 made Tile trackers less user-friendly.

For example, in iOS 13, users have to indicate deep in the settings that they allow Tile to keep track of the location in the background, after which the operating system regularly asks users if they really want that. This is not necessary with Apple’s own Find My app, says Tile, according to Reuters. According to many rumors, Apple is about to release a competing product called AirTags. These could be managed via the Find My app.

The change in how iOS 13 works is intended to ensure user privacy, Apple says. However, without tracking location in the background, the Tile app won’t know where the trackers are, making it impossible to operate. Apple promised to get better a few months ago, but the CEO of Tile informed a congressional committee that investigates abuses of power by tech giants that the company has not yet kept those promises.

Apple also decided last year to stop selling Tile trackers in its stores. The iOS maker has not confirmed that it plans to sell a competing product, but the devices have often appeared in the code of iOS builds. AirTags would not work via bluetooth, but via the ultrawideband chip U1 of the iPhone 11 phones.