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If you’re like me, you freak out a little bit every time your adorable kitty decides to escape the house and go exploring. What if she encounters a car, a dog or a rainstorm? This is why I can’t have an indoor/outdoor cat, even though she loves being outside.
However, Tile — the company that went viral back in 2013 for helping people keep track of their property — is now selling something anxious cat owners like me definitely need. Late last month, it released its first product specifically for pets.
Tile for Cats comes in two colors, white and black, and is designed to fit into your cat’s existing collar (as long as it’s 3/8 inches to 3/4 inches wide) without dangling. You can use it with the Tile app without a premium subscription, and even link it to a Life360 member account so friends and family can track your fur babies, too.
The Tile tracker is water-resistant, lightweight and has a 250-foot Bluetooth range and a battery that should last up to three years. The Tile product works with Apple and Android devices, as well as voice-assisted AIs such as Siri, Alexa and Google.
So, basically, Tile for Cats isn’t a whole lot different than the $23.99 Tile Sticker, which has long been an option for Tile users. The Tile Sticker is a small button with a tracker inside and an adhesive on the back, so you can stick it to items like your phone or your remote control. Tile has also promoted the Tile sticker for use with pets, but until Tile for Cats, the best way to use it would have been sticking the Tile tracker to the back of a dangling tag, as seen below.
The difference is that Tile for Cats comes with a silicone collar accessory that the company claims is durable, safe and low-profile, with a special coating to protect from fur, dust and dirt. You slip your cat’s collar through the holes in the accessory to make sure it’s secure against your cat’s neck and won’t fall off or get dislodged.
Because Tile for Cats is a relatively new bundle and only sold on its site (for now), customers haven’t reviewed it much. However, the Tile Sticker has a 4.3 out of 5-star rating on Amazon, with more than 3,200 customers weighing in. Some reviewers have already used this particular Tile tracker to make their lives easier when trying to locate cats in and around their houses.
If you like Tile trackers but want different accessories to accompany them, head over to Amazon to find a variety options to outfit your favorite companion. Some of these third-party options may be less expensive, like these Counlisha Silicone Cases for Tile 2022 that come with four different colors to a pack for $12.99. They seem perfectly suitable, with a 4.5 out of 5-star rating from almost 290 reviews.
For the most part, though, these off-brand cases that sit on the collar like Tile for Cats are made for the larger, square Tile Mate, not the Tile Sticker, which makes them a bit too big for many cats. Currently, most of the silicone collar cases available for the Tile Sticker are ones that dangle.
These KJGLRSQH Case for Tile Sticker options, for example, are $9.99 for a two-pack, and they glow in the dark. They have a keychain attached so you can easily put it on a cat or dog collar. Amazon reviewers gave them a 4.4 out of 5-star rating overall.
Of course, you could go a totally different route and buy a different tracker, maybe one that uses GPS rather than depending on just Bluetooth to find pets. Besides figuring out how to attach Apple AirTags (which are not recommended for domestic animals due to the risk of ingestion) or Samsung’s SmartThings trackers to your pets, the Tractive GPS for Cats is a decent option on Amazon that’s available for $49.99.
The Tractive product can locate your cat anywhere in the world live, and lets you follow your feline friend’s steps in real-time. It lets you set safe zones and track activity, and it’s completely waterproof. The tracker is placed inside a rubber sleeve, and the collar is threaded through the loops. However, you will need a subscription plan starting at $5 a month.
More than 4,600 Amazon customers give this product 3.8 out of 5 stars. They say it gives them peace of mind and the battery life is good, but some had issues with accuracy.
Would something like this Tile tracker bundle make life with your cat overlord less stressful?
This story originally appeared on Simplemost. Check out Simplemost for additional stories.
