Telstra launches locator devices to find your keys, your dog and your car

By Jacqui Dent

Last updated 24 August 2018

Today Telstra announced the launch of a new range of locator devices to help consumer and business customers find lost valuables such as keys, wallets, purses, pets, phones, bikes, cars and business equipment. Telstra Locator devices will be available for Telstra postpaid mobile customers to purchase on a subscription basis.

According to Telstra research, in the past 12 months one in three Australians has lost their keys, one in four Australians has lost their mobile phone and one in seven Australians has lost their wallet. Despite this, right now only 3% of Australians use a locator device for their valuables.

This may be because rival locator devices offer limited depth of coverage and battery life, according to Michele Garra, Telstra's Head of Innovation & Strategy. Such devices also come with limited customer support, she said, whereas Telstra will offer its national sales team to help Australians adopt the new technology.

The Telstra Locator tags will come in three categories:

A lightweight Bluetooth tag for keys and purses
A Bluetooth and WiFi tag for pets, bikes and bags
A premium 4G LTE tag for high value items such as vehicles and business equipment

The Bluetooth tag will come with a 12 month, replaceable battery along with a ringer that you can activate to help locate lost items. The WiFi tag will be rechargeable and water-resistant. The tags can be set up to alert you if they stray beyond a certain perimeter (for example, your home) and they will work in conjunction with a Telstra app that will allow users to see their device's last known location within a range of 30 metres, along with their device's location history.

The Bluetooth and WiFi tags will be available before the end of the year, while the 4G LTE tag will launch in 2019. Telstra has yet to confirm pricing but has said that customers will be offered subscription access to a "starter kit" which they can add to by purchasing additional devices. Telstra does not rule out offering family bundles down the line.

Crowdsourced connectivity

Telstra will achieve depth of coverage for its locator devices using a combination of its Telstra Air WiFi network, its 4GX network which utilises Category M1 Internet of Things (IoT) technology, and a new "Bluetooth Locator Community" which will comprise largely of Telstra mobile customers' phones and tablets acting as a crowdsourced network.

The Bluetooth Locator Community uses the same concept behind Telstra Air, which requires Telstra broadband customers to agree for their modem to become part of the Telstra Air WiFi network before they can access the network themselves.

In the case of the Bluetooth Locator Community, four million Telstra mobile and tablet customers using the Telstra 24/7 app will be asked to opt in to the community, in exchange for which they will be given access to a new "find my phone" service for Telstra customers that will launch in September.

While many "find my phone" apps are available for iPhone and Android users already, Garra said that these apps are not suitable for families using a mix of iOS and Android devices and that the Telstra "find my phone" service will work across operating systems.

Also joining the Bluetooth Locator Community will be a fleet of 6,000 Telstra vehicles and Telstra's 6,000 taxis, which will be fitted with Bluetooth locator technology and which collectively travel more than 1 million kilometres per day.

Telstra Track and Monitor for Enterprises

Telstra will also be launching an LTE Track and Monitor solution for enterprise customers, which will be designed to track items in transit and provide information on item location and temperature. Further down the line the Track and Monitor solution will also be able to provide information on the humidity of the item's storage area.

Telstra envisages the Track and Monitor service will enable low-cost, high-volume tracking of assets such as fresh produce and even blood. The technology will manage assets across multiple warehouses and retail sites, as well as in transit, and will be available from October.