Amazon partners with Tile to enhance tracking network technology

Recently, Amazon announced that it will work with Tile, a company that makes lost item trackers , and Level, which makes smart locks, to use these devices to enhance its tracking network based on Wi-Fi and Bluetooth technology.

It’s important to understand that the strength and number of devices on a given tracking network is key to its accuracy. This is part of why many believe Apple’s tracking network is so powerful, as it relies on more than 1 billion iPhones, iPads, and Macs to help track lost items.

Tile will begin working with Amazon's network on June 14 , and Amazon's partnership will allow Tile and Level devices to tap into the Bluetooth network created by its millions of Echo products, thereby enhancing its tracking network called Sidewalk .

It is reported that Sidewalk was launched in the second half of last year and is described as a free service that shares the network throughout the community. The service uses Echo devices as "bridges" to share a small part of the user's low-bandwidth Wi-Fi with devices such as Echo devices and Ring cameras.

Tile will work with Sidewalk to further expand Tile’s network coverage by integrating compatible Echo devices to help users securely locate misplaced keys, wallets, and other items.

Amazon said Sidewalk will also enhance Tile's existing home discovery experience on Alexa. Customers can say "Alexa, find my keys" and their Tile tracker will ring from a coat pocket or under the bed, providing a hint of where to find the lost item . Users who connect multiple Echo devices to Sidewalk will be able to find misplaced items in their homes more quickly.

Alexa can tell users which Echo device their Tiled item is near, whether it's a kitchen speaker or a bedroom speaker, as well as the date and time it was last seen near that device.

Sidewalk’s second partnership with Level allows users to control their locks from both the Ring and Level apps without having to be within Bluetooth range of their mobile device. Rather than relying on a mobile device’s Bluetooth connection, Level locks will be able to connect directly to compatible Ring Video Doorbell Pro devices using the Amazon Sidewalk Bluetooth connection shared only between the two devices.

This means that even when a user is across town, their Level lock will remain connected, creating more functionality within the Ring app to talk and converse with whoever is at the entryway and easily lock or unlock their front door.

Amazon says its new Level feature for smart locks will be gradually rolled out through updates to the Ring and Level apps and will be available by the end of May. In response to privacy concerns, Amazon published a detailed white paper last September outlining the steps it took to ensure Sidewalk transmissions remain private and secure.

Amazon said Sidewalk has multiple layers of privacy and security, and data shared on its network is protected by triple-layer encryption , can only be accessed by devices chosen by consumers, and data is automatically deleted every 24 hours to protect privacy , while consumers can opt out of the feature by updating their preferences in the Ring or Alexa mobile app.

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Tile

Level