March 2021 • Macworld 59silicon, don’t sport ultra-wideband
either – it’s unclear whether the
company thinks it simply wouldn’t
be useful on those devices, whether
it’s being saved for a future update,
or whether it’s decided the ship has
sailed on the technology.TAG, YOU’RE IT
With ultra-wideband’s focus on
locating and directing you to objects,
the killer product for the U1 is one that
Apple still hasn’t released, though its
existence is well attested.
There have been plenty of rumours
and leaks about what’s been dubbed
‘AirTags’, Apple’s competitor to
tracking fobs like the kind sold by Tile.
Existing models of these fobs haveoften relied on other
radio technology,
such as a low-power
Bluetooth variant.
Ultra-wideband
promises to make
finding devices
more precise; it
can also operate at
faster speeds than
Bluetooth, work
through walls and
doesn’t interfere
with Wi-Fi, or vice
versa. Plus, Apple’s
variants – and possibly compatible
third-party versions – will also
probably be able to take advantage
of Apple’s expansive Find My
network, which uses Apple devices to
anonymously locate any nearby lost
objects and report their location.
In short, AirTags are exactly
what U1 was designed for. From all
indications, the launch is getting
closer and closer – it would seem
surprising if it didn’t launch in 2021,
but then again, that’s what we said
about 2020.U1’S EDGE
Apple has explored one or two other
features that could take advantage
of the proximity sensing capabilitiesThe HomePod mini has a U1 chip.March 2021 • Macworld 59silicon, don’t sport ultra-wideband
either – it’s unclear whether the
company thinks it simply wouldn’t
be useful on those devices, whether
it’s being saved for a future update,
or whether it’s decided the ship has
sailed on the technology.
TAG, YOU’RE IT
With ultra-wideband’s focus on
locating and directing you to objects,
the killer product for the U1 is one that
Apple still hasn’t released, though its
existence is well attested.
There have been plenty of rumours
and leaks about what’s been dubbed
‘AirTags’, Apple’s competitor to
tracking fobs like the kind sold by Tile.
Existing models of these fobs have
often relied on other
radio technology,
such as a low-power
Bluetooth variant.
Ultra-wideband
promises to make
finding devices
more precise; it
can also operate at
faster speeds than
Bluetooth, work
through walls and
doesn’t interfere
with Wi-Fi, or vice
versa. Plus, Apple’s
variants – and possibly compatible
third-party versions – will also
probably be able to take advantage
of Apple’s expansive Find My
network, which uses Apple devices to
anonymously locate any nearby lost
objects and report their location.
In short, AirTags are exactly
what U1 was designed for. From all
indications, the launch is getting
closer and closer – it would seem
surprising if it didn’t launch in 2021,
but then again, that’s what we said
about 2020.U1’S EDGE
Apple has explored one or two other
features that could take advantage
of the proximity sensing capabilitiesThe HomePod mini has a U1 chip.