TF Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo has revealed that Apple’s plans for releasing the AirTag 2 have been pushed back to 2025. This news comes after several shifting release dates, with the original projection for late 2023, later pushed to late 2024.
Apple postpones AirTag 2 release to 2025
While Ming-Chi Kuo did not offer explicit details in his statement, we can deduce some potential reasons from earlier insights. In August, the analyst suggested that the AirTag 2 would be part of a broader spatial computing ecosystem Apple is developing.
I believe that spatial computing is a new ecosystem that Apple wants to build, using Vision Pro as the core to integrate other devices, including AirTag 2.
This ecosystem is centered around the Vision Pro headset, promising a new way to blend the digital and physical worlds. The specific role the AirTag 2 will play in this ecosystem remains uncertain. However, speculation suggests that it may utilize the Ultra Wideband chip to relay positional information to the Vision Pro headset. Apple has equipped its latest iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Pro with Ultra Wideband chips.
Vision Pro integration and U2 chip
Theoretically, the AirTag 2 could assist the Vision Pro in establishing a virtual space or offering enhanced tracking capabilities. The exact implementation is currently anyone’s guess, and Apple has yet to confirm these speculations.
The first-generation AirTag offers a U1 chip for precise location tracking and finding. It is likely that the AirTag 2 will come with an upgraded version of this chip, likely the U2 chip.
Competition
As Apple readies the AirTag 2 for a 2025 release, it faces competition from rivals who have already introduced their own tracking devices. For instance, Samsung launched the Galaxy SmartTag2, boasting an impressive battery life of up to 700 days and a sleek, ring-shaped design that makes it easy to attach to various objects.
Google was also expected to reveal its own tracking device during the Pixel 8 event, but it was noticeably absent. The delay might be an indication that Google is waiting for Apple to make strides in iOS that enable the Android Find My Device network update. This could pave the way for the launch of Google’s tracking device, dubbed the Google AirTag.
