Google fixed the ‘Find My Device’ name problem, but now Android needs better AirTags

Ben Schoon | May 18 2025 - 9:00 am PT

The “Find My Device” network has suffered from bad branding long enough. That’s why I was glad to see the transition over to “Find Hub” this week, but I think Google still has one more pillar to take care of, and that’s offering better AirTag competitors for Android users.

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The “Find My Device” app wasn’t always what it has been over the past couple of years. For ages, it truly was an app to find your device, as its sole function was locating other Android smartphones, tablets, and watches tied to your Google account. The branding was immediately outgrown as soon as trackers came into the fray, though, and even more so when Google added the ability to share user locations as well.

That’s why the new “Find Hub” name introduced this week makes so much sense. It’s clean and easy to understand, better hinting at what it’s actually capable of versus the prior branding. While it might seem minor, this contributes to building out a better understanding of what Google’s network can do.

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But there’s still a much bigger problem.

Trackers.

Put simply, AirTag-like trackers for Android are a bit of a mess right now. The network itself is improving. Google recently offered some real numbers for this, with the network being four times as fast as it was at launch, and more users activating the “in all locations” setting that’s needed to get the most out of the network. Yet, complaints still come up frequently.

A recent thread on Reddit brought this out nicely with a user’s tracker not pinging in their car for over 24 hours. I’ve been in the same boat many times. One instance that immediately comes to mind is when I was searching the house for my wallet and decided to try and use the Pebblebee Card inside to activate a sound to help track it down. It never connected, and still never connects to this day. The tracker is fully charged and still pings its location regularly, but it never connects to my phone to start an alarm.

That’s just one example of many instances where I’ve run into what I consider unnecessary headaches with existing “Find Hub” trackers. Some don’t go into pairing mode properly, some don’t connect to the app reliably, and some don’t get pinged as frequently as others. That’s why it’s hard to say if one is “better” than the other, because they all have their own sets of pros and cons.

I’d really like to see newer products address this. Pebblebee and Chipolo have both addressed a pain point in developing new hardware that works with both Google and Apple’s networks (not at the same time), and Motorola stepped up to be the first with UWB (which is finally going live soon). But I’d like to see some trackers that maybe give up a little bit of battery life for more reliable pings and connections. Ultimately, though, the only way we’re going to get the “shining example” of Find Hub trackers is if Google makes a first-party option, which it absolutely should do.

Hopefully, we’ll see these devices in time. Personally, I’m currently testing out trackers from MiLi and Rolling Square, and I’m intrigued to see what comes of the trackers built into suitcases that were announced this week.

How has your experience with Find My Device – now Find Hub – been lately? Let’s discuss!

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Top comment by DJA

Liked by 20 people

The problem is not the trackers; the problem is Google's decision to make effective location reporting an opt-in requirement for users.

The default permission requires multiple pings from different devices before the network/tracker can aggregate a location. This all but guarantees poor location reporting. Google knows that an effective network needs individual phones to allow location reporting but believes this is something users must enable on an individual basis. This will either never happen or take years to become widespread. I'd bet the vast majority of Android users have no idea this is even a thing.

I don't understand why Google is arbitrarily using this stance to claim concern over personal data. Google is scraping as much user data as possible but suddenly feels that a single phone allowing a tracker to anonymously use its location is unacceptable? But then also suggests users should override their default to allow this?! It's ridiculous. Why is Apple not concerned with allowing this location reporting?

Don't blame the trackers for the poor FMD (Find Hub?) network performance; this is all on Google.

EDIT: I wonder if this might be due to a fear of litigation? Could Google be forcing users to change the setting themselves to be protected if lawyers should try to blame them for some harm done? Even though the location ping is encrypted, lawyers looking to find someone to blame may try to claim Google enabled harm by having a phone report location to trackers. I dunno...

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