Let’s face it, we have all lost our keys at some point. Some of us misplace our keys on a daily basis and then become embroiled in turning the house or office upside down – don’t ask me how I know. It’s an all too regular occurence, you get back home after a stressful journey and dump your keys somewhere random. Then, when it’s time to venture out again, you can’t find them and end up searching frantically for them making a mess and causing stress in the process. Thankfully, there’s an extremely cheap and simple solution to this problem which will make frantic key finding a thing of the past, a key finder. Key finders have evolved dramatically over the past few years due to advances in technology and now do the job that they are intended to do, perfectly.

Let’s jump straight in and take a look at the best key finders to buy and then explain how they work, what to look out for and their differences.

1. Tile Pro Bluetooth Key Finder

The Tile Pro bluetooth key finder is Tile’s best offering in their extensive and superb range of key / item finders. Tile are undoubtedly the market leader when it comes to bluetooth item finders and their pro is certainly worthy of being dubbed their latest and greatest.

With a range of extremely impressive features, the Tile Pro enures you’ll never struggle to find your keys again. The Tile pro is lightweight, small and easy to use. Simply attach it to your keys or any other item for that matter) via a conventional keyring and you’re good to go. Measuring at 42mm x 42mm, you won’t even notice it’s there, simplicity at it’s best.

Powered a simple CR2032 battery, the pro will give over a year of continuous service before it may need replacement. Replacing the battery is childs play, super simple.

Tile define their various key finders as having three different ring volumes – Loud, Louder and Loudest. The pro sports the loudest ring, it’s extremely loud and makes it a doddle to locate your keys even if they are upstairs. And on that note, the pro has a distance range of a whopping 400ft!

It’s water resistant and available in a choice of black or white depending on your preference.

Finally, the Tile Pro impressive features home integration with Amazon Alexa and Google Home. This means that if you do need to locate your keys, you can simply ask your Alexa or Google enabled speakers to “find my keys” and a loud audible sound will emit from your keys wherver they are.

The key features of the Tile Pro Bluetooth Key Finder are;

• 400ft range
• Alexa and Google Home integration
• CR2032 user replaceable battery (1 year or more life span)
• Loudest ring of all Tile key finder products
• Available in black or white
• Water resistant

2. Tile Mate Bluetooth Key Finder

Narrowly beaten to the top spot it’s slighly beafier bigger brother, the Tile Mate takes our second spot. The tile mate packs some impressive features of it’s own and costs less than the pro model.

Measuring just 35m x 35mm, and weighing just 30 grams, the Tile mate is a remarkably sleek and unassuming key finder which won’t add any unnecesary size and weight to your keys. It attaches to your keys (or any other item for that matter) via a traditional keyring loop system and can easily be attached to a range of other items too.

The Tile Mate is powered a small CR1632 battery which is completely user replaceable and will provide more than a year of continual usage before it needs replacement.

It’s water resistant which means it’s suitable for attaching to a bag for outdoor use, however you’ll need to make sure it isn’t subjected to a large covering of water.

A working range of 200ft provides great coverage and the Tile Mate also has an impressively loud ringtone, not quite as loud as the pro model but more than adequate to alert you to it’s location.

Finally, just like the Pro model, the Tile Mate works with Amazon Alexa and Google Home. This means that you could locate your keys without even having to reach for your phone, simply ask Alexa or Google Home to “Find my keys” and an audible ringtone will sound out from the Mate.

The key features of then Tile Mate Bluetooth Key Finder are;

• 200ft range
• Amazon Alexa and Google Home integration
• CR1632 user replaceable battery (1 year or more battery life span)
• Loud ring
• Water resistant

3. Vazillio Bluetooth Key Finder

Available in white, orange and green, the Vazillio Bluetooth Key Finder offers superb value for money and great performance.

The Vazillio bluetooth key finder has an impressive range of up to 50m. This is subject to walls and interference ofcourse, but it’s an impressive feature at this price point.

A really nice and handy feature of this key finder is it’s instant alert system. When paired with your phone via bluetooth, it can automatically send you an alert when your phone and keys become seperated a certain distance. This is extremely useful and can alert you to potentially losing your keys before you even realise.

Measuring just 36mm x 36mm, it’s extremely small and it’s also lightweight too at just 8g. This means it’s extremly unobstrusive and don’t get in your way.

A single CR2032 battery powers the device and should provide service for over a year.

Integration with Siri on iPhone means you can simply ask Siri, “Hey Siri, where are my keys” in the event of needing to locate them, it couldn’t be easier.

The key features of the Vazillio Bluetooth Key Finder are;

• 50m range
• Instant alert mode
• 36mm x 36mm dimensions
• Weighs 8g
• Uses a single CR2032 battery
• Siri integration on iPhone

4. Simjar RF Key Finder

The Simjar RF key finder utilises radio frequency signals from a remote to instantly locate your keys.

With a range of up to 40m, the key finder is easily able to locate your keys and other items via a loud audible tone and also incorporates a flashing LED light which is useful when locating.

Included in the package are 4 extra long chains which provides flexibility to attach the key finders to a range of different items such as keys, bags, electrical items etc.

The transmitter requires 2 x aa batteries and the receiver requires a single CR2032 battery. The transmitter measures in at 105 x 46mm, and the receiver measures 50 x 36mm.

The receiver can produce an impressive 80 decibels of sound when playing it’s audible ringtone, this makes it extremely easy to locate your lost item.

The key features of the Simjar RF Key finder are;

• Package contains 4 receivers and 1 transmitter
• 40m range
• Inlcudes 4 extra long chains
• 80 decibels of sound produced receivers

5. Kimfly Bluetooth Key Finder

The Kimfly bluetooth key finder contains 2 key finders, impressive for the low price point.

With a distance range of 25m and an impressive set of features, this bluetooth key finder certainly doesn’t feel like a budget option.

A rather quirky but impressive feature of this key finder is it’s abilty to double up as a mobile phone camera remote. Much like the way a selfie stick works, you can take photos on your mobile phone via a simple press of the button on your small and lightweight key finder.

It works with iOS and Android and is bluetooth 4.0 compatible.

The key features of the Kimfly Bluetooth Key Finder are;

• 2 key finders included
• Easy to use
• Works with iPhone and Android
• 25m range
• Can be used to take mobile phone photos

What Are Key Finders?

Key finders are a small, electronic device which attaches to your keys via a keyring and can help locate your keys when you’ve misplaced them. Whilst all key finders do pretty much the same thing, there are two different types of technology used – bluetooth and radio controlled RF key finders.

Bluetooth Key Finders – As the name suggests, these types of key finders utilise bluetooth technology to communicate with other devices. Bluetooth key finders are now the most commonly used type of key finders due to their excellent reliability and pin point accuracy. They also consume minimal power too, which means that battery life is excellent. Pretty much every single mobile phone this day in age comes with bluetooth as standard so there’s no need to worry about compatability with your particular phone.

Radio Controlled / RF Key Finders – This particular type of key finder use a radio signal transmitter to send out signals to the key finder. Often, they’ll feature LED lights to illuminate the key finder it’s location as obvious as possible. Once the button on the transmitter is pressed, the receiver will play an audible soundand the LED lights will illuminate to help easily locate your keys.

What Are The Benefits Of A Key Finder?

As well as being extremely stressful and inconvenient, this day in age, losing your keys can be an extremely costly mistake. The biggest benefits of using a key finder are;

Save Money – Modern cars all use extremely complicated technology for their keys and replacing them can often run into thousands of pounds. This is due to the fact that the keys are crammed with so much technology they have to be re progammed via a computer and because new keys can only be issued the vehicle manufacturer for security reasons, their charges are often extremely expensive. As well as the costs for the replacement keys, you’ll also have to pay lots of money to a recovery company to have your car towed to the nearest manufacturer dealership. This will cost lots more than your average recovery cost as you won’t be able to get into the car to start the engine and drive it onto the back of the truck.

Less Stress – We all know how stressful and frustrating it is whenever we lose our keys, and it always seems to happen when we are in a rush to get out of the house. Scrabbling around the house to find your keys results in extremely high stress levels and anxiety which aren’t good for your health and can result in long term health problems. A key finder can help massively with this. In the event of losing your keys, simply send the locate keys signal via an app on your phone and you’ll be able to locate your missing keys in no time. Some key finders also feature integration with services such as Amazon Alexa and Google Home. This means that you don’t even need to reach for your phone, simply ask Alexa or Google Home to “Find my keys”, the key finder will then play a loud audible ringone allowing you to easily locate them. Once you’ve located your keys, you can then carry on with your plans without the stress and anxiety of frantically searching for them.

What Should I Consider When Buying A Key Finder?

Buying a key finder is pretty straight forward but be sure to consider these important points before making your decision;

Bluetooth or Radio – As we explained earlier, there are predominantly two types of key finders, bluetooth and radio controlled key finders. A bluetooth key finder requires a compatible smart phone to communicate with it via bluetooth technology. Pretty much every smart phone nowadays will come with bluetooth as standard but if you’re using a really old phone which doesn’t have bluetooth, you’ll want to opt for a radio controlled key finder. Radio controlled key finders use RF signals sent from a transmitter to the key finder. You’ll have a small remote control which will send signals to the key finder via RF, these particular types of key finders quite often have LED lights to help locate them too.

Battery Life – It’s important to check the expected battery life of a key finder before purchasing. Most key finders use a small battery such as a CR2032 or a CR1632. These batteries should last for over a year which is fantastic and provide peace of mind that you’re key finder is going to have enough battery power as and when you need it.

Size – Key finders have evolved lots in the last few years and in doing so, have reduced in size massively. This means that they are no longer the oversized and cumbersome objects that they used to be. Key finders such as the Tile Mate measure just 32mm x 32mm. That’s extremely small and you won’t even notice it, or feel it when added to your keyring. Consider this when buying as you don’t want something that going to take up a lot of space and provide added weight.

Range – Key finders will differ between the range that they can work within. Some key finders may work up to 400ft, while some cheaper models may only work within a 100ft radius. It’s important to consider this when buying.

Loudness – Be sure to check the loudness of the ringer that the key finder can produce. This is predominantly how you’re going to locate your keys, via the audible sound that the key finder omits, it’s important that you can hear the key finder and you’ll massively increase your chances of finding them.

Key Finder FAQ’s

Q. Do key finders consume a lot of power?

A. Generally, no, key finders do not use a lot of power. Most key finders will last for over a year on a standard CR2032 battery. This makes them extremely economical and cheap to run.

Q. How does a key finder attach to my keys?

A. In most circumstances, a key finder will attach to your keys via a traditional key ring loop. They are extremely easy to attach, simply slide the hook over you key ring and you’re done. Some key finders come in a card format, like a credit or debit card.

Q. Do bluetooth key finders link to my phone’s location?

A. Yes, a bluetooth key finder will use the location service of your phone to determine it’s location and broadcast on a map. In order for this to work, you need to have location services switched on and you need to give the app permission to read your location.

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