Google likely to introduce a smart tracker: Here’s what we know so far

Google is reportedly working on a device to help track your belongings or alternatively, your loved ones’ locations, akin to Apple’s AirTags, according to a tipster. The tipster makes these claims after finding references to a ‘Locator tag’ in the developer console for Google’s Fast Pair.

The tracker, the tipster says, is internally named “Grogu” (the name of the baby Yoda character from the Star Wars series The Mandalorian). Alternatively, it is also called “GR10” and “Groguaudio,” and is currently being developed by the Google Nest team, he says.

Grogu, he says, supports UWB (Ultra-Wideband) and Bluetooth Low Energy (LE). The tipster has also speculated that it has a speaker, just like the Apple AirTag does, helping locate it via audio when the tracker is close. It could also be made available in various colors, he adds.

ALSO READ: 5 ways to use AirTags when you’re heading for a holiday

Google’s flagship Pixel 7 Pro smartphone supports UWB connectivity, but its application so far has been limited to basic functions such as Nearby Share. UWB has been known offers far greater precision than Bluetooth for locating lost items, and therefore could prove to be extremely effective in Grogu.

Interestingly though, smart tracking devices such as the Grogu are not quite as new as you may think. American consumer electronics company, Tile, has been producing tracking devices that users can attach to their belongings such as keys and backpacks, and track the same via a smartphone app available on both Android and iOS, since as long as 2013.

However, not much was known about these devices at the time they were introduced. Even their updated line-up launched in 2015 failed to garner any attention. Things, however, did turn around in January 2021 when industry bigwig Samsung launched its SmarTags tracking devices. Apple jumped on the bandwagon a few months later, launching its AirTags devices in April 2021.