StuckInYYZ

Yeah, I don't think cell signals will carry that far off the coast. I was thinking of 1-2km off the coast.

draver

They carrier up to around 20 miles in my experience. On cruises I monitor when I begin to get a signal from ports as we approach or are passing. I assume the carriers are configured for the locals who are in sporting or pleasure craft. Almost always get a usable signal at 10-12 miles, which is generally much faster than the WiFi from the ship. The cruise lines are supposed to shut off their signal at 12 miles from the coast while approaching a port, but they frequently "Forget" this rule. I am on T-Mobile and get the new, free 5Gb roaming data with each line. We have a total of 7 lines that get this perk, so I may never have to buy roaming service again. A couple of my voice lines get high speed data in iPads, so that is also very useful.

StuckInYYZ

Good to know. However, I don't think the signal reaches out as far when you're five or six miles up in the air. That said, I've never been on a cruise or been across a large body of water from a tower. I just know from some documentaries that the signal reaches further out when there is a large body of water inbetween.

n125kl

I recently travelled on AC from Toronto to London with a Samsung Smart Tag in my luggage for the first time . Due to a last minute, aircraft switch, my bag was left behind and I knew it when we took-off as I could see the bag still at the terminal updated by a nearby galaxy phone after we left the gate.

I could monitor the progress of the bag for the next 3 days with frequent updates from nearby galaxy devices.
First day (Day after my Arrival in London) : Bag arrived in London on the first AC flight at 0630 and spent the rest of the day in the terminal area
Second day: Was moved overnight to a warehouse north of the airport for the rest of the day
Third day: Left the airport on a delivery vehicle at 1030 for a 6 hour drive through Oxford, Aylesbury, Milton Keynes and Watford, finally getting to me near Elstree being the final delivery for the day.

Buying the "Smart" tag was a "Smart" move and worth the cost.

draver

On cruises I usually am looking for cellular service early in the morning since I rise daily bet. 4-5AM. Coffee service and a comfy observation post will typically be found on the upper levels, generally decks 14-16. These are around 100-125 ft. above the sea surface, which might also account for better line of sight reception of distant cellular signals. I have also seen cell signals while flying for the first few thousand feet of altitude. This reminds me that I need to put my iPad into Airplane Mode after unpacking it from my carry on backpack. Any pilots out there who can attest to what AGL still can connect with cell service?

Loren Pechtel

It might help rather than hinder. In my experience in the wilderness it's typically terrain that limits the range rather than signal strength. It is rare for me to find a spot where I can see an area with service and yet not have service.

GUWonder

Happens on the surface and sometimes also in the air, as there are times when things just align in atypical ways to make reception happen where it would otherwise be assumed to not exist.

HDQDD

All things being equal*, signals travel significantly further when you're up in the air due to the curvature of the Earth. That's why antennas are usually on towers. *However, when it comes to cell signals, I believe the transceivers are pointed downward as that's where people typically use their mobile devices. So it may not apply in the case of cell phones.

In my boat (a 28 foot fishing boat), I can get a signal reliably at about 10mi/16km offshore (but I'm AGL (at ground level)). After that it's hit or miss.

draver

That statement tends to support my observations from upper decks on cruise ships. I will also speculate that cell towers positioned for optimum maritime use are quite possibly angled for marine users. There could also be a “Skip Effect” at play in this situation.

HDQDD

For sure, the higher you are (to a point) the farther you have a direct line of sight. I too have used that trick of going up top near land to check emails and such as we approach land.

From my boat, you pretty much lose sight of land at about 8-9 miles as well

GUWonder

Off the edge of Greenland, over by Devon Island, Nunavut, Canada, AirTag locations for checked-in luggage on a flight from Germany that left earlier today showed up on the Find My App while I was in California. After that point in Canada, AirTag reception has gone silent. While AirTag and TilePro did a reasonably good job with the locations on the ground in Germany, Airtag updates were more frequent than TilePro except for a couple of times when TilePro was more current. In the air, if a Bluetooth tracker is picked up by a device once already in air, the AirTag location is more frequently updated than Tile trackers. I still have both trackers stuffed into each item, as the Tile tracker sounds are definitely more noticeable to my ears than AirTag beeps.

DMSFCA

I shipped a Pelican case cross-country to a hotel a few weeks ago, setting it to arrive a couple days before I did to give a little wiggle room. The last thing I did before shipping it on a lark was tape an AirTag to the inside cover of the Pelican.

Fedex says Pelican was delivered to the hotel two days prior. When I arrive at the hotel, I ask for Pelican. They go in back and look. No Pelican. FedEx says they delivered it, "I said. They say it's not here because FedEx delivered it to the wrong address.

Then I remembered the AirTag inside. Pull out the phone. After a few seconds, the phone says the Pelican Case is 27' away. I ask again at the front desk. They say it's not here. I show them the phone. After a bit of eye rolling, they reluctantly go back to look again.

They're gone for a solid ten minutes (yes, ten earth minutes, not "I was on hold for an "hour" emotional minutes), and I'm watching the phone.

27 feet away. Suddenly, 20 feet away Then it was 14 feet away. then 10 feet away. Then someone emerges from the back room with my Pelican. No explanation, but whatever.

A co-worker was with me and was in awe. "I'm putting in an order to put those in everything we ship."

Bandicoot

Not directly connected with this thread, but I once experienced my cell phone connecting to cell towers in Libya (presumably Tobruk) from the southern side of Crete. That's at least 350km if I'm not mistaken. Freak occurrence for sure.

StuckInYYZ

Kinda curious. For those who have bought Airtags and have flown, if anyone has decided to take a "stroll" through the cabins just to see if their luggage actually made it onto the plane?

GUWonder

Yes. Earlier this week my TilePro was registering its location in the Tile App such that it was obvious to me that my checked bag had been brought over plane-side for loading on the airline or had already been loaded; the airline app’s baggage tracker at the same time was non-informative about the bag’s location (except for informing me that it had been checked in there for the flight); and my AirTag in the same bag showed the bag as still being at the other terminal for a while until just before the bag was loaded on the plane. Once the bags were loaded on the plane and some people wandered around the plane and nearly the whole passenger load got situated, all three tracking sources were already indicating the same thing to me on my phone: safe to conclude that the bag was with me on the plane.