LaView GPS Tracker claims to be the number one long-lasting

Humans like to be the number one at something. Being the best give them a sense of fulfilment. That’s understandable. But even being the richest man in the world can’t keep a girl’s attention on you. Right, Jeff?

What confuses me is how they know they are number one. Did they do enough research to prove that? Everyone has different standards, so which set of standards do they choose?

I get that Jeff Bezos is rich, but how do products like LaView GPS Tracker know they are the number one? Is it a false claim or is it just poor marketing?

What is it

LaView GPS Tracker is universal GPS tracker that lets you track kids, seniors, pets, and goods. GPS trackers are nothing new but they are known for having short battery life. Most have battery life between 48 to 72 hours. So I was intrigued when LaView claims to be the longest lasting GPS tracker.

Turns out, the advertised 15 months of battery life is rated for Bluetooth. Bluetooth trackers have long battery life. The use case for Bluetooth and GPS trackers are very different. The actual battery life for the GPS tracking function is only 8 days.

It is very misleading for them to only mention the 15 months of battery life without specifying that it is only for Bluetooth and not GPS. I wonder how many of the 600 over backers were fooled like I was initially.

Another misleading claim is that they are the number one long lasting GPS tracker. There are GPS trackers out there with a month-long battery life. I wonder what LaView means by number one.

Note how they tell backers to contact them via Kickstarter message if they have more questions. We don’t want public comments that might make them look bad, do we?

With a cutting-edge positioning system, it allows real-time positioning with high precision. Maybe Jeff Bezos needs one to keep track of his girlfriend. Just in case. (Ok, no more bullying Jeff, I promise 😉)

LaView comes with Bluetooth 5.2, giving it a range of 370 metres or 1,200 feet.

So besides tracking location of your things, LaView also can keep track of your body’s activities. It can monitor your biometric data, physical and mental activities, and see what you can do to improve your health. How does it do that if it is tracking my belongings and not me?

Who is it for

If you are looking for Bluetooth trackers, look elsewhere. Those in the Apple ecosystem might fancy an AirTag and Android users can rely on the trusty Tile. If these are still too pricey, there are many alternatives on Amazon.

Bluetooth trackers help you to find products and mark where you left them. GPS trackers, on the other hand, actually track your belongings.I’m an expert in losing important things. Door keys, wallets, boyfriends. You name it. I lose it. Good thing I don’t have any kids or pets

It’s for people who want to keep track of things but don’t have the time to keep them within their sight. A pet, a kid, a pretty girlfriend (ok, just kidding), or an elderly that you need to take care of.

I still remember when I was a kid, my mom brought me to the mall and forgot about me when she got excited about the discounts. When they broadcasted my name through that public announcement system, I desperately wanted to dig a hole on the floor and flee.

I could have avoided that kind of humiliation and being scarred for life if we had a tracking device like this back then. Funny thing is, in an anti-tracking world, we sometimes want to be tracked.

Is it innovative

Tracking devices are nothing new. GPS and Bluetooth trackers have been around for some time. However, they try to innovate by specialising in certain things such as being rechargeable or have a different form factor. An example is Innway that does both by being a slim card and is rechargeable instead of having to replace batteries that harms the environment.

I did some homework and check out what I found.

No, this is not the LaView GPS Tracker, but they look amazingly alike, don’t they? I don’t know what’s happening with the industrial designs here. Did the same designer design the two products? They look almost identical to me.

This doppelgänger is NutFind, a product that is already on the market for years. You can also customise it with your own logo. Hmmm.

Let’s have a closer look at them and see that, aside from their design, if there is anything else they have in common.NutFind uses Bluetooth Low Energy 4.0, giving it a range of has a range of around 10 metres or 30 feet and a battery life of up to 3 months. LaView GPS Tracker has an upgraded Bluetooth 5.2 chip, boosting the range to 370 metres or 1,200 feet and the battery life to 15 months in Bluetooth mode.

NutFind has a Community Search. When other Nut users approach your lost items, you will get a notification with the items’ locations. Other Bluetooth trackers also have these feature what Apple’s AirTag with its Find My network. Tile and Wistiki have their own community to help users find their trackers through the community’s network.

LaView GPS Tracker made some improvements in the hardware specs but it doesn’t have the software muscles of the other Bluetooth trackers. Apple turned into the market leader as soon as it entered the market because every iPhone in the world with Find My enabled becomes a node to help you find your AirTag if it goes out of Bluetooth range.

But LaView is more than just a Bluetooth tracker. It is also a GPS tracker. By extending battery life to almost 8 days while keeping the device so small is quite a feat. However, I would take the rated battery life with a pinch of salt and wait for actual battery life from real world usage.

Is it worth it

In the real world, instead of life and death, money is the eternal question.

During their crowdfunding period, you can get a LaView GPS Tracker with protective holder and case for $99. It retails at $158 after the campaign ends. LaView GPS requires a cellular plan to work but they claim that the subscription fee is not mandatory. Yes, you don’t have to pay if you don’t want to, but the GPS won’t work if you don’t. So you can choose not to pay but your tracker will turn into paperweight.

GPS trackers on Amazon range from $17 to $170. The larger the battery, the more expensive it is. But LaView’s GPS mode only has 8 days of battery life. That is far shorter than the 1 month battery life of some of the more expensive GPS trackers on Amazon.

Sure, you get Bluetooth functions and health tracking but do you really need those in a GPS tracker? It’s like buying a bicycle that can fly and ride on water.

Conclusion

Bluetooth trackers work in certain conditions. When you are within Bluetooth range. Once out of the range, your phone records the location it was disconnected to help you locate where to start looking for the tracker. With luck, you will reconnect with the tracker when you get back in range.

GPS trackers are supposed to track your things without having to connect to your phone. But this means you need to pay for a cellular plan so it can update is location. Bear in mind that you’ll need to charge the LaView tracker once a week. It doesn’t say how long the charging time is but it should be around an hour or so.

All that said, I have to say I’m rather disappointed with LaView. It’s tall claim of being the number one long lasting GPS tracker was found to be… just a tall claim. Using such misleading marketing copy is a big no-no for us Critical Bears.

And the more aggravating issue I have with the LaView GPS Tracker is that it keeps showing the 15-month battery life without specifying that it is only for Bluetooth mode. If you are selling it primarily as a GPS tracker with Bluetooth as a secondary feature, you should be putting the GPS battery life as the main selling point. Shame on you.

With all the things mentioned above, I still have another huge concern: I believe you need to use LaView or any other trackers with a phone, so, what if you lost your phone?

Hi, I’m Rainee.

I’m a reindeer that identifies as a bear. I’m the Critical Bear that does standup comedy.