The Ridge Tracker Card and Apple’s AirTag rank among the most favored tracking gadgets available for keeping tabs on your belongings. However, these devices present significantly different designs—there’s a good rationale for this—and even with its drawbacks, the Ridge Tracker Card can sometimes surpass the AirTag.
Why The Sleek Design?
The Ridge Tracker Card is designed to fit seamlessly in wallets due to its ID card size, while the AirTag has a compact puck shape, roughly the size of a U.S. quarter or a 50 cent Euro coin. However, AirTags are bulkier, making them inconvenient for wallets. The Tracker Card’s form factor is more suitable for narrow spaces, albeit without Apple’s Ultra-wideband (UWB) chip.
The UWB enables you to track a device visually within approximately 10-20 meters (more with the AirTag 2), but otherwise, you must depend on Bluetooth and Apple’s Find My network. In many scenarios, the downsides of the Ridge Tracker Card are compensated by its design—particularly if it increases the chances you’ll utilize it instead of having no tracker whatsoever.
The Clear Choice
Ridge Tracker Cards are perfect for wallets and slim purses due to their credit card shape. Conversely, AirTags don’t fit well in card slots, and your wallet is likely among your prized belongings. You can still emit a sound from the Ridge Tracker Card through Find My, so even if you can’t visually pinpoint it when your wallet is misplaced indoors, the audio can assist you in locating it.
Additional useful applications include letters and vital documents you may have mailed or dispatched through a courier. You can achieve more accurate tracking for those documents, and in scenarios involving returns (such as legal or financial paperwork), you’ll benefit from the peace of mind of knowing exactly where they’re located.
On The Move
Athletic gear like belt packs and vests is another suitable area to utilize a Ridge Tracker Card over an AirTag. The lighter weight and thin design minimize bounce, and during extended runs or cycling sessions, every small nuisance can accumulate. With an IP67 rating, the Ridge Tracker Card can withstand submersion in water for up to 30 minutes in shallow conditions, making it a viable option for swimming or kayaking equipment.
Books, vinyl records, and notebooks also present situations where a Ridge Tracker Card could be preferable to an AirTag. But the Apple device is impressive; there are 8 innovative methods to use AirTags.