Apple warns against using bitter coated batteries in AirTags

(Paradigm credit: Apple)

You lot're going to need to change the batteries on your AirTags at some point, and according to Apple it's a good idea to avoid bitter-coated batteries.

The bitter coating on your batteries may stop children (or pets) from eating the batteries, merely Apple'due south support page claims that they might not work. Why? Because the coating itself may interfere with the battery'southward contacts.

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"CR2032 batteries with bitterant coatings might not work with AirTag or other battery-powered products, depending on the alignment of the blanket in relation to the battery contacts," the page states.

In simple terms the biting-coating on these types of CR2032 batteries could cause alignment bug within the AirTag. That in turn would finish the Tag from working, which is the last thing you want to discover when you've lost your keys.

Apple has come under fire for the batteries in its AirTags, especially in Australia where retailers pulled the products from shelves over rubber concerns. This was followed by a safety alert from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.

Those fears were spurred by the fact children can (and do) eat the batteries, which in plow causes serious injury and, in farthermost cases, decease. Every parents' worst nightmare, basically, and you lot can sympathize the appeal of using bitter coated batteries.

The idea is that the coating smells and tastes bad, so kids and animals are more probable to spit them directly out. Nintendo fifty-fifty uses a bitter blanket on its Switch cartridges for this very reason.

AirTags don't accept rechargeable batteries and likely never will, because their pocket-sized size would brand the job of adding a recharge port or wireless charging coil impractical. Non to mention the fact an open port would make it much harder for Apple to ensure the tags had the same IP67 dust and h2o resistance rating they practice now.

If yous are concerned about the safety of your kids (or pets) then y'all are still welcome to requite bitter coated batteries a try. You only demand to conduct in heed that they may not piece of work correctly.

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Tom is the Tom's Guide's Automotive Editor, which ways he can usually be plant knee deep in stats the latest and all-time electric cars, or checking out some sort of driving gadget. It's long way from his days every bit editor of Gizmodo United kingdom, when pretty much everything was on the table. He's usually found trying to squeeze another giant Lego set onto the shelf, draining very large cups of coffee, or lament that Ikea won't permit him purchase the stuff he really needs online.