ORLANDO, Fla. – Carla, Rocio and Lori are all working moms who are on the go. Local 6 dropped off two Tiles from the new Tile app for them to try out and see how well it locates missing items -- something they said they can all relate to.
"I couldn't find my key, so I had to look for my spare," Carla said.
"I lose my phone all the time in the house," Lori said.
"I'm excited to use it," Rocio said.
Each mom used the devices for two weeks.
Rocio said she put the device on her keys.
"This was a great product, where I could have it on my keys and be able to track it through my iPhone," she said. "It's very user friendly, so it's basically setting up a user ID and password."
Here's how
it works: Attach the Tile device to the item you want to track. The phone tracks the Bluetooth signal from the Tile. As you get closer, the apps' tracking circle fills, in letting you know exactly where the missing item is.
"I had my boys hide them -- they are real good at hiding stuff -- and there was one time I did misplace my keys, so it worked both times, so I was really impressed with it," Rocio said.
The other Tile that Rocio placed in her cup holder in her car.
Rocio said, "I misplace my car all the time."
The phone did pick up on the Tile, but keep in mind Bluetooth's signal is only 100 feet.
"I was still within range and I was able to find where my car is at in a specific row," Rocio said.
Carla used a Tile for her TV remote control.
"Sometimes I'm making the bed and it's in there or it's under the bed. I'm always looking for that and that worked out beautifully," Carla said.
However, one time the Tile didn't work on her keys.
"I had also left the keys in another one of our vehicles. I couldn't find them," Carla said.
That's because the car was driven away, so the Tile was out of range.
"The Tile would work really well if we had a large user community using it in the local area and their network would pick it up and I'd be able to locate it," Carla said.
Lori tried to put her Tile on her phone.
"But it was too bulky, it was too big," Lori said. "I did it for a week and I said I couldn't live with this on the back of my phone, it just wouldn't work."
The other problem for Lori was the Bluetooth range was too short.
"The radius for me was pretty small if I was in my bedroom until I walked out to the kitchen it wouldn't pick up that it was in the house," Lori said.
One consistent complaint was the Tile was too big to stick on iPads, iPhones and a case wouldn't fit on it. If it was thinner both Carla and Lori said it would be better.
The battery life is one year, so you'll have to purchase a new Tile, which will cost you $25. You can save money if you buy more at a time. GO HERE for more information on how it works and purchasing Tile.