Summary
- UWB gives Find Hub tags on-screen directional precision for finding lost items.
- Google confirmed Pixel 6 Pro and 7 Pro won’t get UWB precision finding despite having the hardware.
- If you own older Pixels, avoid buying Moto Tag or other UWB trackers for now.
Find Hub trackers are getting better… As long as you have one of just a handful of phones. See, as long as your phone supports UWB, you should be able to track a tag way more easily and with pointers in the right direction. Even if you do have UWB, though, it might not work. And this is what Pixel 6 Pro and Pixel 7 Pro users are now encountering.
Google has confirmed that its Ultra-Wideband (UWB) hardware, embedded in the Pixel 6 Pro and Pixel 7 Pro, will not support the new precision finding feature for Find Hub Bluetooth trackers. The confirmation comes as the Android ecosystem finally gets its first UWB-compatible tracker, the Moto Tag. This device is the first and only tracker designed to work with Android’s “Find Hub” app, leveraging UWB to provide a highly accurate, directional location—a feature that was first popularized by Apple’s AirTags and one we’ve been longing for in the Android world.
UWB allows a device not only to know that a tracker is nearby but to determine its exact direction and distance, enabling an on-screen arrow that guides the user directly to the lost item. Google added UWB to its Pro-series lineup starting with the Pixel 6 Pro in 2021. It was viewed as a strong signal of the company’s commitment to building out this new ecosystem. The problem, however, is that UWB is apparently only supported from the Pixel 8 series onwards, which means the feature is limited to the Pixel 8, the Pixel 9, and the Pixel 10. The Pixel 6 Pro and the Pixel 7 Pro support UWB just like these newer phones, but it’s being excluded from this list.
We know this thanks to a complaint on Google’s Pixel support forums, where a user detailed that their Pixel 7 Pro, despite having the latest firmware, could not activate the precision finding feature with a new Moto Tag. A Google product expert later responded, linking to a support page that stated UWB precision finding is only available on the “Pixel 8 series and above (Pro models only).” Google also went on to confirm to Android Authority that support is indeed limited to the Pixel 8 Pro and future Pro models, including the Pixel 9 and Pixel 10 lines. The company did not provide an official explanation as to why the Pixel 6 Pro and Pixel 7 Pro, both of which possess the UWB hardware, were excluded from the feature.
It’s a bummer, but if you have an older Pixel, maybe steer clear from buying a Moto Tag or any other UWB tracker that might pop up going forward.
Source: Android Authority