Key points of ZDNET
- by Invoxia Minitailz Health tracking and GPS retails for $99 on Amazon or The company’s web site. An additional registration fee is required.
- The tracker takes the guesswork out of your dog’s whereabouts by tracking its location, activities, and even some biometrics.
- The subscription cost to use the tracker is more expensive than the actual hardware, making this a long-term investment.
A year ago, I adopted my first dog, a Yorkshire Terrier named Jimmy. Little did I know that with a cute face and poor years also came a ton of parenting anxiety, which was made possible by a $2,000 emergency vet bill . As a result, when I see Minitailz GPS & Fitness Tracker In CES 2024I must have it.
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Leveraging AI and other advanced technology, this gadget will track your dog’s location, activities and biometrics, such as walks, plays, runs, sleep and meal times as well as heart rate and resting breathing rate. These capabilities helped it be recognized as “the best innovation in the AI category” at CES.
In the box, you get the Minitailz, a USB-C charger, and a collar to attach it to your dog’s collar. To place it on your dog’s neck, simply slide it through the opening. Then simply download the app, create an account, choose a subscription of $129.95 for one year or $229.95 for two years, and you’re ready to go.
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To get the most out of Minitailz, you need to let it collect as much information about your dog as possible, so it must be watched over your dog day and night. To ensure that my experience with this device was as accurate and optimal as possible, I kept it on Jimmy’s collar for over three months, and the information it collected during that time was impressive.
As advertised, it presents all the health and activity details in an easy-to-read, accessible and easy-to-understand manner, as shown in the photos below. However, while it’s great to have access to all this data, to be honest, I rarely look at it. My favorite feature of this app is the daily reports.
The reports present all the data collected over the last 24 hours in an interesting, comprehensive way, adding necessary context that can be useful, such as comparing your dog’s vitals with lives of others in the Minitailz community. This was especially helpful because according to the company, a higher-than-normal resting breathing rate can indicate impending heart failure, so gaining insight into Jimmy’s health gave me peace of mind.
As a crazy dog mom, this feature alone is worth the investment because it helps bridge the communication gap with my four-legged friend. It shows me things Jimmy can’t describe, like whether he gets enough time to play, walk, exercise, and sleep well.
The second best feature is activity notifications. When I write stories in the office, my partner works at home and takes care of Jimmy. Instead of feeling like I’m missing out, I get notifications on my phone that Jimmy is out for a walk, in the car, or currently playing. This feature will be especially helpful if you leave your pet at doggie daycare or with a sitter to make sure everything runs on schedule.
The only catch is that sometimes it can’t accurately decipher whether Jimmy is zooming or actually walking. This caused my partner to call me once in a panic, thinking Jimmy had escaped the apartment when in fact, he was running around the living room playing with his toys.
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Another great feature for interested dog owners is the GPS feature, which tracks your pet’s location. Compare to Apple Air Card, it refreshes more slowly. However, the advantage is that it won’t beep if you’re away from home for too long. Another benefit is that, unlike the AirTag, it’s rechargeable, ensuring you control the battery level instead of dying randomly.
The Minitailz’s excellent battery life is also a highlight. It’s advertised to last a full two weeks, and in my experience, that’s accurate. My favorite part is that it notifies you via email and phone that your puppy’s battery is running low, making it impossible to miss. I also shared my account login information with my partner, which doubled the number of people who had access to all of Jimmy’s details and needs.
ZDNET Buying Tips
If you are a data enthusiast and therefore a lover of wearables, then this gadget is for you and your pet. With Minitailz, you can access the same insights you get on your smartwatch or fitness tracker for your furry friend. Ultimately, this data has helped me learn more about my pet’s needs through comprehensive health data. However, if you don’t see the value in having a lot of metrics that aren’t necessarily usable due to high subscription costs, then I’d pass it up.
