Technologies
Best Apple AirTag Accessories
Looking for the best key ring or holder for your new AirTags? There are plenty of options, starting at well under $20.
You should buy an Apple AirTag if you’re notorious for losing wallets, phones and other personal belongings. AirTag accessories, like the best AirTag holder, key chain or collar, are must-haves for anyone who wants to make use of Apple’s nifty tracking devices. The leading Tile competitor, Apple’s AirTag helps you to track down important objects like bags, keys, wallets or whatever you attach your AirTag to. Just open up Apple’s Find My app. It’s a boon if you misplace things often. A single AirTag costs $29 (£29, AU$45), though you can get a four-pack for $99 (£99, AU$149).
The main downside is, AirTag discs don’t come with any kind of holder. This means, depending on how you plan to use it, you’re going to need some sort of accessory for what’s also, basically, an accessory. (Apple has a tendency to spur its own cottage industries for add-ons, even though they’re accessories to begin with — AirPods are a perfect example of this.) However, you can find tons of AirTag accessories in multiple styles for any budget.
In some cases you’ll be able to embed an AirTag into an object sans holder — just pop it in a purse or backpack, for instance — but some people like to keep an AirTag with their keys or attach it to a backpack or laptop bag. You may also want to stick your AirTag onto an object and plenty of AirTag mounts are available.
Note that CNET editors have tried most but not all of these accessories. If we haven’t tried a product, we’ve tested other accessories from those companies so we feel comfortable recommending them. We’ll be adding more AirTags accessories to the list as we test new products.
Read more: Apple AirTags Hands-On Evaluation
Key chains and straps
Belkin
Belkin’s Secure Holder for AirTags comes in key-ring or strap versions in four color options. There’s nothing terribly fancy about them, but at $11, they both cost less than Apple-branded options shown below. You can also get a two-pack for $20.
David Carnoy/CNET
While it launched a little later than some AirTags accessories, Otterbox’s key chain holder, which Otterbox calls a «Rugged Case,» is made of solid plastic and does indeed encase your AirTag (you unscrew the top piece, place your AirTag in the case, then screw the top piece back on to lock the AirTag in the holder). It’s available in black or white for $20 but is currently on sale for $15.
Amazon
While this faux leather key chain from Cyrill, a sub-brand of Korea-based Spigen, is nothing fancy, it’s currently available in stone and black color options.
Patrick Holland/CNET
The Apple-branded leather key ring costs $35 and comes in three colors: black, saddle brown and red.
Amazon
If you’re looking for a value option, your best bet may be to roll the dice on a no-name brand on Amazon. This Eusty key chain cover is available in a four-pack for just less than $15. Often, generic models like this are labeled as «leather» when in fact they are faux leather (sometimes referred to as PU leather or vegan leather). These look a lot like other basic faux leather AirTag key chains and come in a few color options.
There are dozens if not hundreds of generic AirTag holders available. Most should be fine, but don’t expect them to wear as well over time as the true leather models.
David Carnoy/CNET
Caseology’s AirTag Vault is another straightforward key chain option that’s affordable at $15 but could shave a few dollars off its price over time. (Caseology is also a sub-brand of Spigen.) It’s one of the few AirTag accessories that was available at launch and has been pretty popular as a result. It comes with a carabiner but you could attach a standard key chain if you wanted. It should be back in stock fairly soon.
Amazon
Spigen is also selling an attractively simple key-chain AirTag holder, the Valentinus, for around $18. It’s made of faux leather. Alas, it’s temporarily out of stock but should be back in the next few weeks.
Amazon
If you’re looking for a holder that sticks onto an object (like the underside of a bike seat or scooter), Pelican’s Stick-on AirTag Mount is designed to do just that. A single mount costs $16 while a pack of four sells for $30. It’s available in four different colors.
Apple
Apple’s Loop, made for attaching your AirTag to a bag, costs as much as an AirTag. But it’s Apple’s official loop option and this polyurethane option is cheaper than the leather $39 Leather Loop. (That doesn’t make it a good deal, but I’m just pointing it out.) It’s available in four different colors.
Nomad
I like the design of Nomad’s leather AirTag key chain better than Apple’s, which leaves the AirTag partially exposed. This AirTag key chain hides it and looks more like a standard key chain. It’s designed to «weather» over time, getting darker (particularly the brown version). It’s available in brown or black for $30, which is pricey but it is nice.
Nomad also makes a Leather Loop that’s also a key chain and lists for $20. I prefer the more expensive model pictured here.
Spigen
Spigen, known for its value iPhone cases, has its AirTag Case Rugged Armor ($16). It’s not quite as cheap as we hoped it would be, but maybe it will come down in price in time. It does have a rugged design with a nice carabiner and carbon-fiber elements.
David Carnoy/CNET
Casetify has a wide variety of AirTag holders. They’re made of hard plastic and are fairly basic but have some eye-catching art on the backside. You can also customize them with your name or choose from several emojis and other graphics. They’re expensive at $38 but sometimes go on sale.
Nomad
If you’re looking to AirTag your pet, Nomad’s upcoming Rugged Pet ID Tag fits the bill (Nomad’s AirTag key chain is essentially identical). According to Nomad, it’s constructed with a TPU-overmolded polycarbonate shell and comes with two enclosure options: an IP67 waterproof back and a speaker-hole back. For an extra $20, you can buy a customizable stainless steel insert cover that you can get engraved with your pet’s name and a way to contact you. No pet collar is included.
It’s worth bearing in mind that Apple says AirTags are not designed to track pets. Your pet would need to be within range of the Find My network for the AirTag to work, so if it runs off into the woods it won’t be much help.
Other AirTag options
Moment
Moment, which makes and sells photo and video accessories for Apple products, including lens attachments, will have an enclosure accessory that allows you to mount your AirTag. «Made from a rugged aramid fiber shell and backed with a super strong adhesive, you can stick an AirTag to any flat surface,» Moment says.
Moment also has to other mounts: The Curved Surface Mount for AirTags ($25) that’s made out of flexible silicone (rubber) and can adhere to surfaces that aren’t totally flat; and the Stretch Fabric Mount for AirTags ($25) that’s designed to stick to fabrics, such as the inside of a bag, and other flat surfaces.
Amazon
If you don’t want to spend $15-$20 for a mount, these Gorilla Mounting Tape Squares are a cheaper option at $6 and can be cut to size for AirTags. AirTags have an IPX67 water-resistance rating, which means it can be fully submerged in up to 1 meter of water for 30 minutes and is dust-proof. So it can withstand some punishment without a cover. After all, it doesn’t have a screen.
Amazon
The AirTag uses a CR2032 coin battery, which should last about a year. You can find a 10-pack of those batteries on Amazon for less than $10. That’s the way to go, especially if you have multiple AirTags, and other devices that use CR2032 coin batteries.
Always remember to keep coin batteries away from small children so they don’t accidentally swallow one. They can cause major injury if ingested.
Technologies
Before You Order a $20K Home Robot, There’s Something You Should See
It’s designed to do your chores — with some help from folks behind the curtain.
The robot stands 5 feet 6 inches tall, weighs about as much as a golden retriever and is nearly the price of a brand-new budget car.
This is Neo, the humanoid robot. It’s billed as a personal assistant you can talk to and eventually rely on to handle everyday tasks, including loading your dishwasher and folding your laundry.
Neo doesn’t come cheap: it’ll cost you $20,000. And even then, you’ll still have to train this new home bot, and possibly need a remote assist as well.
If that still sounds enticing, preorders are now open (for $200 down). You’ll be signing up as an early adopter for what Neo’s maker, a California-based company called 1X, is calling a «consumer-ready humanoid.» That’s opposed to other humanoids under development from the likes of Tesla and Figure, which are, for the moment at least, more focused on factory environments.
Neo is a whole order of magnitude different from robot vacuums like those from Roomba, Eufy and Ecovacs, and embodies a long-running sci-fi fantasy of robot maids and butlers doing chores and picking up after us. If this is the future, read on for more of what’s in store.
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What the Neo robot can do around the house
The pitch from 1X is that Neo can do all manner of household chores: fold laundry, run a vacuum, tidy shelves and bring in the groceries. It can open doors, climb stairs and even act as a home entertainment system.
Neo appears to move smoothly, with a soft, almost human-like gait, thanks to 1X’s tendon-driven motor system that gives it gentle motion and impressive strength. The company says it can lift up to 154 pounds and carry 55 pounds, but it is quieter than a refrigerator. It’s covered in soft materials and neutral colors, making it look less intimidating than metallic prototypes from other companies.
The company says Neo has a 4-hour runtime. Its hands are IP68-rated, meaning they’re submersible in water. It can connect via Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and 5G. For conversation, it has a built-in large language model (LLM), the same sort of AI technology that powers ChatGPT and Gemini.
The primary way to control the Neo robot will be by speaking to it, just as if it were a person.
Still, Neo’s usefulness today depends heavily on how you define useful. The Wall Street Journal’s Joanna Stern got an up-close look at Neo at 1X’s headquarters and found that, at least for now, it’s largely teleoperated, meaning a human often operates it remotely using a virtual-reality headset and controllers.
«I didn’t see Neo do anything autonomously, although the company did share a video of Neo opening a door on its own,» Stern wrote last week. 1X CEO Bernt Børnich reportedly told her that Neo will do most things autonomously in 2026, though he also acknowledged that the quality «may lag at first.»
The company’s FAQ says that if there’s a chore request Neo doesn’t know how to accomplish, you can schedule an expert from 1X to help the robot «learn while getting the job done.»
What you need to know about Neo and privacy
Part of what early adopters are signing up for is to allow Neo to learn from their environment, so that future versions can operate more independently.
That learning process raises questions about privacy and trust. The robot uses a mix of visual, audio and contextual intelligence — meaning it can see, hear and remember interactions with you in your home.
«If you buy this product, it is because you’re OK with that social contract,» Børnich told the Journal. «It’s less about Neo instantly doing your chores and more about you helping Neo learn to do them safely and effectively.»
Neo’s reliance on human operation behind the scenes prompted a response from John Carmack, a computer industry luminary known for his work with VR systems and the lead programmer of classic video games, including Doom and Quake.
«Companies selling the dream of autonomous household humanoid robots today would be better off embracing reality and selling ‘remote operated household help’,» he wrote in a post on the X social network.
1X says it’s taking steps to protect your privacy: Neo listens only when it recognizes it’s being addressed, and its cameras will blur out humans. You can restrict Neo from entering or viewing specific areas of your home, and the robot will never be teleoperated without owner approval, the company says.
But inviting an AI-equipped humanoid to observe your home life isn’t a small step.
The first units are expected to ship to customers in the US in 2026. There is a $499 monthly subscription alternative to the $20,000 full purchase price, although it will be available at an unspecified later date. A broader international rollout is promised for 2027.
Neo’s got a long road ahead of it to live up to the expectations set by Rosie the Robot in The Jetsons way back when. But this is no Hanna-Barbera cartoon. What we’re seeing now is a much more tangible harbinger of change.
Technologies
I Turned Off These 3 iOS Settings and My iPhone Battery Life Tripled
If you want your iPhone battery to last longer, these are the settings you should disable immediately.
Your iPhone is a crucial part of your routine. From staying in touch with friends or family, navigating around traffic snarls and snapping cute photos of your pets, you’re likely using it all day long. However, that can become tricky if your battery is down to low levels before you even leave the office. While phone batteries will degrade over time, it doesn’t mean you need to employ low power mode just to keep your phone from dying.
Your iPhone has a few key settings that are notorious for draining your battery in the background. The good news is, you can turn them off. Instead of watching your battery percentage plummet at the worst possible moment, a few simple tweaks will give you hours of extra life.
Before you even think about buying a new phone, check your Battery Health menu (anything above 80% is decent) and then turn off these three power-hungry settings. It’s the easiest way to make your iPhone battery last longer, starting right now.
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Turn off widgets on your iPhone lock screen
All the widgets on your lock screen force your apps to automatically run in the background, constantly fetching data to update the information the widgets display, like sports scores or the weather. Because these apps are constantly running in the background due to your widgets, that means they continuously drain power.
If you want to help preserve some battery on iOS 18, the best thing to do is simply avoid widgets on your lock screen (and home screen). The easiest way to do this is to switch to another lock screen profile: Press your finger down on your existing lock screen and then swipe around to choose one that doesn’t have any widgets.
If you want to just remove the widgets from your existing lock screen, press down on your lock screen, hit Customize, choose the Lock Screen option, tap on the widget box and then hit the «—« button on each widget to remove them.
Reduce the motion of your iPhone UI
Your iPhone user interface has some fun, sleek animations. There’s the fluid motion of opening and closing apps, and the burst of color that appears when you activate Siri with Apple Intelligence, just to name a couple. These visual tricks help bring the slab of metal and glass in your hand to life. Unfortunately, they can also reduce your phone’s battery life.
If you want subtler animations across iOS, you can enable the Reduce Motion setting. To do this, go to Settings > Accessibility > Motion and toggle on Reduce Motion.
Switch off your iPhone’s keyboard vibration
Surprisingly, the keyboard on the iPhone has never had the ability to vibrate as you type, an addition called «haptic feedback» that was added to iPhones with iOS 16. Instead of just hearing click-clack sounds, haptic feedback gives each key a vibration, providing a more immersive experience as you type. According to Apple, the very same feature may also affect battery life.
According to this Apple support page about the keyboard, haptic feedback «might affect the battery life of your iPhone.» No specifics are given as to how much battery life the keyboard feature drains, but if you want to conserve battery, it’s best to keep this feature disabled.
Fortunately, it is not enabled by default. If you’ve enabled it yourself, go to Settings > Sounds & Haptics > Keyboard Feedback and toggle off Haptic to turn off haptic feedback for your keyboard.
For more tips on iOS, read about how to access your Control Center more easily and why you might want to only charge your iPhone to 95%.
Technologies
Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Sunday, Nov. 23
Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Nov. 23.
Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.
Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? It includes a Jimi Hendrix reference, which I appreciated. Read on for the answers. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.
If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.
Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword
Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.
Mini across clues and answers
1A clue: LinkedIn listing
Answer: JOB
4A clue: Planet with an average surface temperature of around 860°F
Answer: VENUS
6A clue: Written with a pen
Answer: ININK
7A clue: Sheer torment
Answer: AGONY
8A clue: «___ thoughts?»
Answer: ANY
Mini down clues and answers
1D clue: Block tower
Answer: JENGA
2D clue: «Red» vegetable that’s really purple, if you ask me
Answer: ONION
3D clue: Word with Bad or Bugs
Answer: BUNNY
4D clue: By way of
Answer: VIA
5D clue: «Excuse me while I kiss the ___» (Hendrix lyric that’s famously misheard)
Answer: SKY
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