so if you want to track people/pet, are the word that spring to mind "GPS tracker" or "air tag"? What happens when you google "GPS tracker"? NOTHING shows up?
Before AirTag which was only a year ago, did bad actors just sit there thinking to themselves: "man I wish there was a technology to track people, I wish I knew what it's called"?
I thought that too. Google GPS tracker and the first result are trackers for about $30. They come with a SIM Card and and a Online Service for $5 so you can track the tracker. Also comes with an alarm if someone removes the tracker.
This is really trivial...
But still not as trivial as an Airtag. You need an iPhone and an Airtag. That’s it. No extra service. No waiting non-Prime or non-Apple shipping for a tracker to arrive.
The first results in Google for me are $50 and are about 10-20x the size as an Airtag. Also multiple parts.
And, the units off Amazon have to be purchased with a credit card + shipped to your house.
AirTags can be bought with cash much more anonymously. (Though I’m not sure how/if Apple can identify the associated iPhone if presented with a warrant.)
But now anyone with an iPhone can buy a $25 device and track anyone. I would guess that Airtags are also smaller than gps trackers.