Best Results Organizing

Last time, in Paper Doll Finds Your Lost Keys, Wallets, and Phones: Bluetooth Trackers 2019, we talked about the big names in Bluetooth trackers that can help you find your lost keys, wallets, purses, passports, luggage, phones, and any of a variety of items in your life. Certainly, it’s better to not to lose things in the first place. But how do you do that?

HOW TO NOT LOSE STUFF

As a professional organizer, I start by decluttering the backlog that hides things from clients. After that, the path to not losing things is pretty straightforward, in theory. Any good system has two parts: the location and the behavior:

1. Designate a home for every item. Think about the first place you’d go to look for something, and then make that the home. There’s your location. Ice cream goes in the freezer. Toothpaste goes in the bathroom. 
2. Don’t put things down; put them away. Too often, people randomly put their wallets or keys or whatever down near them instead of the home they’ve assigned. Stop that! Your wallet goes in your purse or your pocket when you’re out and about. Don’t set it down on the cashier’s counter or the restaurant table. When you’re home, keep it in your purse or designate a tray on your bedroom dresser (or wherever works for you).

That’s it. But if that’s all there is to it, why do so many people continue to misplace things? Sure, sometimes it happens as we saw at the start of last week’s post, when someone’s toddler (or pet, or “helpful” spouse) moves something. But usually, it’s because we fail to put things away because we’re focusing on things we deem more important in the moment. We have to pay attention!

No, this isn’t a post on mindfulness. Yes, if you practice mindfulness, stop multitasking, and focus on one thing at a time, you’re much more likely to put things away instead of randomly down. But unless you’re a fairly magical television character able to suddenly remember things that happened in the blurry background while you were focusing on something else, your lack of mindfulness up until now isn’t going to help you find what you’ve mislaid. 

So what will? That’s why we’re here. Last time, we saw how some of the big name general Bluetooth trackers can help us find a whole smattering of things we’ve lost. But those trackers, while not large, are still too big to attach to the one thing people are constantly losing (other than their minds, while searching for lost items). Eyeglasses!

ORBIT GLASSES

Last time, I pointed out that most of the various Orbit products, including Keys, Card, Wallet, and PowerBank all did double (or, with regard to the wallet and power bank, triple) duty. Not only do they help you track your lost items, but their buttons can be used as selfie remotes! Well, this special Orbit product doesn’t help you create a photo so you can look fabulous, but it does ensure that you can see how gorgeous you are in the mirror or in pictures.

Orbit Glasses work the same way most of the Bluetooth trackers we’ve already described. The company claims it’s the world’s smallest Bluetooth device. (Note: A number of trackers make similar claims – the smallest device, the loudest ring, the widest range. In general, claims about metrics are unimportant. However, when you want to hide a device somewhere on your eyeglass frame, size does matter.)

As with all Bluetooth tracking devices, you’re dealing with a device and an app. Start with the Orbit Glasses device, which is 1.2″ (28mm) long and 0.2″ (5mm) wide; it’s only a third of an ounce in weight, so it isn’t going weigh you down. 

Unlike most use cases for trackers, your device won’t be dangling from a string. (That would be annoying, like turning your glasses into a charm bracelet!) Instead, attach the device directly to your glasses. Affix it with the device’s 3M-brand double-sided adhesive, allegedly the strongest adhesive 3M makes. (Who knows better than the company that created Post-its® and Scotch tape?) The instructions note that while the device can be removed and repositioned, it should otherwise stay firmly affixed.

In most cases, Orbit Glasses will fit on the inside of the arm, either by your temple or on the back-most part of the earpiece. The surface needs to be at least 4mm wide. The arms of my glasses are extremely narrow, perhaps 1.5mm, but if you have more typical eyeglasses or sunglasses, the Orbit should stay discrete.

Next, download the Orbit app from the App Store or Google Play. As with all of the other Orbit trackers, if you misplace your glasses, whether on top of your head, in your car, or anywhere out in the world, you can use the app to make your glasses ring if they are within Bluetooth range; otherwise, check last known GPS location on the app’s map. The Orbit Net Crowdfinder community boosts your signal, so if an Orbit app user is anywhere near where you left your glasses, it will improve your chances of pinpointing where you need to go.

Orbit Glasses also has a nifty separation alarm, commonly known in the tech world as “geofencing.” That means that if you wander away from your glasses (or the cafeteria staff carries off your tray with the glasses still sitting on them), and the difference between you and your glasses exceeds Bluetooth range, it will proactively trigger an alert in your app.

Have a big house? You can turn on the SafeZone feature so the separation alarm won’t be triggered on your home WiFi. (However, if you tend to lose your glasses in your house, perhaps it’s better to suffer the indignity of a few alarms until you get used to using some mindfulness techniques?)

Orbit Glasses has a rechargeable battery with a one-month charge life, so there’s no need to make additional purchases or detach the Orbit from your specs. Just plug and charge, which should take two-to-three hours. Given that the charger goes where your face normally belongs (as indicated below), you can’t charge the device while wearing your glasses, so plan to charge it while you’re sleeping, wearing different glasses, or otherwise not needing the sharpest vision.

The Orbit Glasses device is a really teeny tracker, so it can’t be used in reverse to call your lost phone (as the other Orbit trackers can do). Paper Doll logic leads me to believe that if you have your glasses but not your phone, you can at least look for your phone, and if you have your phone (with the app), you can find your glasses. Of course, Orbit hopes you’ll buy multiple versions of their products, so if you have your glasses, you can use the button on any of those to find that pesky wandering phone!

Orbit Glasses will work with iPhone or Android. They come only in black, and are $39.99, whether directly from Orbit or Amazon. Orbit offers bulk discounts ranging from 25%-40% off for purchases of 4, 6, or 8 Orbit Glasses (or other Orbit products, in various combinations). Note: If you purchase from Orbit, remember to reset the drop-down from Australian to U.S. dollars.

FINDY

Orbit may be the bigger name in teeny eyeglass trackers, but they aren’t the only name. FoxSmart, a Swiss company which (incorrectly, and amusingly) claims it makes the only eyeglass tracker, sells FINDY.

At 28mm x 5mm, the same size as Orbit Glasses, FINDY claims to be the “smallest Bluetooth tracking device on the market.” Where have we heard that before? The website says:

“With our special adhesive FINDY is fitted on your eyewear frame. FINDY will not bother you in any way. In most cases FINDY is completely invisible to you or anyone else. FINDY disappears on the inner side of the temple or behind your ear. FINDY suits any frame material.”

FINDY comes in two colors, black and a sort of frosted white/clear. As with the Orbit Glasses, this isn’t the product for you if the temples or arms of your glasses are wires or very thin plastic.

Once you have the tracker in place, download the FINDY app from Google Play or the App Store. FoxSmart has concentrated all essential features on one main screen. Simply press the “buzzer” button on the app to force the FINDY tracker to begin beeping. If you are within range (the measurement of which FoxSmart does not specify), you will hear the beeping. 

Here’s where it gets interesting, though, as FINDY has some unusual approaches. What if you don’t WANT your glasses to beep? Maybe you’re in a library, or your spouse or children are sleeping, or you don’t want anyone to know that you’ve lost your glasses once again. FINDY has you covered. Press the “smart track” button on the app and it will display a silent “signal receipt meter” to help you locate your eyeglasses without using the buzzer.

BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE! The company recognizes that not everyone uses a smartphone. (Although they focus on use by seniors citizens, many people may lack smartphones and have no app access.) FINDY’s manufacturers have thought of that. The FINDY Smart Button (perhaps the European cousin of Staples’ Easy Button?), sold separately, is a one-touch button you can permanently attach to any smooth surface, like your fridge, filing cabinet, nightstand, etc. Just press the Smart Button and the buzzer function of FINDY will be activated. 

The company says that one Smart Button will cover a three-to-four room apartment, through for a multi-story home or larger apartment, one Smart Button on each floor in a centralized location might be wise.

FINDY devices operate on a single, standard coin cell battery. When the battery level goes below 7%, the FINDY App prompts users to replace the battery.

FINDY sells for $39.95; the Smart Button is $34.95. Shipping is free to the 48 contiguous states and to Canada. (Sorry, Hawaii and Alaska!)

LEVEL SMART GLASSES

What if keeping track of your spectacles is only one of the many things you want? What if you also desire:

• fashion-forward, precision-calibrated eyewear?
• fitness trackers built into your glasses so you can track your step count, distance traveled, overall active minutes, and calories burned?
• wireless syncing of your fitness tracker without having to remember to put on a smart-watch or clip on a device?

Level Smart Glasses takes all of these needs into account. VSP Global, a 60-year-old eyeglass company, has joined forces with the University of Southern California’s Center for Body Computing to develop eyeglasses that are for more than just vision correction.

These $328+ Level Techology glasses combine new technology, fashionable frame design, and smartphone app communication to create true 21st-century eyewear. And yes, one thing the technology can accomplish is finding your glasses when you’ve put them down and can’t locate them. (Somewhere, Geordi LaForge is smiling!) 

Think of it this way: If you don’t lose your glasses, you’re more likely to wear them. And if you’re wearing them, you’re more likely to get credit for your fitness behaviors since Level bakes fitness tracking right into the frames. So, the more you move, the more likely you are to get points for hitting your daily fitness goals and stretch goals – and here’s another advantage to Level Smart Glasses! Every time you accrue 50 points in the app, VSP will give a person in need both an eye exam and a pair of glasses, at no charge, through the Eyes of Hope charity.

So, if high-tech glasses that help you find them, track your fitness, and give charitably are what you’re looking for, find Level Smart Glasses near you or buy online. In many cases, you can use your vision insurance coverage to defray the cost.

AT-HOME SHORTCUTS

If you don’t have a tracker but can’t find your glasses at home, searching everywhere is counterproductive. There are still some low-tech and no-tech solutions.

If you’ve mislaid glasses for distance vision in your house, you probably wore them to watch TV. Go sit down as if you were watching television and feel around. If your distance vision is too wonky to find your glasses on your own, try taking a few snapshots on your cell phone and then carefully enlarge sections of the screen to see what would otherwise be blurry.

If you’re looking for your reading glasses, check the following locations where you tend to read:

• next to the computer
• next to/on top of the book or magazine you’ve been reading
• on your bedside table (reading at bedtime?)
• on the bathroom countertop (did you remove them to put on makeup or wash your face?)
• on the kitchen countertop (after reading a recipe)

When in doubt, there are always two more places to search

• Look down! Are they hooked to the neckline of your shirt?
• Look up! Are they on top of your head?

IN SUMMARY

Investing in multiple pairs of glasses to keep all around home ensures you can see what you’re doing, but at a cost. Wearing your glasses on lanyards will keep them close but may have a deleterious impact on how fashionable you seem (and will make hugging inconvenient). Using Bluetooth trackers invokes an additional cost but gives you peace of mind. Being more mindful is free, but requires some time and effort.

Cost, style, convenience – consider what you’re willing to sacrifice to stay organized and see clearly.

*Photo of doggie wearing glasses by Jamie Street on Unsplash

Good organizing skills can keep our lives from becoming a series of lost-and-found activities, but sometimes, though no fault of our own, things go missing. Last week, my friend Jennifer posted the following on her Facebook page:

Life with her 20-month old is an adventure! Eventually, she posted: “Update: I found them!!!!!!! In the dining room, under the runner on my table with a chair turned to the side… I’m officially blaming [toddler], but I could have easily done this too. ??‍♀️ I have been looking for 6 hours on and off! Going to Amazon to order the key Tile so I can find them for future mishaps!”

A few years ago, Paper Mommy lost her keys, too. She eventually found them in her potato storage bin, weeks later. Almost assuredly, she returned from the grocery store and as she was putting away a bag of potatoes, keys in hand, the keys got set in the potato bin. One night, changing her mind repeatedly about what she wanted to make for dinner, she eventually settled on something with potatoes got a side order of key-ring!

How often do you see social media posts by parents anguished when their child’s favorite stuffed animal has been left behind at an airport or theme park? If only more people had a solution like the friends of this lost, little panda. 

Today, we’re going to look at some big-name solutions for finding your lost keys, phone, wallet, or whatever you tend to randomly put down (instead of putting away).

Bluetooth Trackers

If you don’t love playing hide-and-seek with your possessions, you may want to consider a Bluetooth tracking system, which comes in two parts: a tiny device and a digital app.

A Bluetooth tracking device is a small, usually plastic, doo-dad that you attach to things you don’t want to lose. The device “talks” to your phone or tablet via Bluetooth, a wireless technology for exchanging data over short distances using short-wavelength UHF radio waves. If you have a wireless mouse or ear buds, or a fitness tracker like Fitbit, you’re already using Bluetooth. 

The tracker’s app on your phone can then locate and talk to your device with some GPS-esque precision, like how Find My iPhone helps you find your lost Apple products left at the coffeehouse, or trigger the device to set off a “find me” alarm there in your house (so you can find it under all the LEGO pieces your toddler has up-ended onto the floor).

TILE

Tile – Right at the end of Jennifer’s post, she noted, “I need one of those Tile things.” When I wrote about Seek (with Bluetooth) and Ye Shall Find back in 2014, Tile was already the first big name in Bluetooth trackers and it’s still the Big Kahuna. The product line has changed over the years, but the basics remain the same.

Physically, a Tile device is a small, fairly flat, rounded plastic square, about the size of a poker chip. Some Tiles have a small hole punched in one corner through which you can thread key chains and zipper-pulls (on purses, wallets, backpacks, or children’s jackets), or use their double-backed adhesive on the reverse of a Tile to stick it to virtually anything, from computers to toys. You can also just drop it in a pocket, your wallet’s change compartment, or the bottom of a purse. Allegedly, Tile is waterproof, but don’t go scuba diving, OK?

There are three products in the Tile line:

• Tile PRO – It’s louder, a bit heavier, and has the widest search range
• Tile MATE – It’s smaller, lighter, and has a moderate range
• Tile SLIM – It has the lowest price, narrowest range, and a non-replaceable battery; it’s best for items with a thinner profile, like stuck to a passport or tucked inside a wallet

The old Tile was designed so that you never had to charge it or replace the battery. But because a new Tile was pricier than a new coin-style battery, the obsolescence of each Tile was its major drawback. Nowadays, two versions of Tile (Pro and Mate) have replaceable batteries; only the larger (but flatter) Slim needs to be fully replaced (or you can upgrade at a discount through the reTile program).

Compatibility has really expanded since the last time Paper Doll looked at Tile, when it was limited to a few iOS devices. Now, it works with all devices (iPhone, iPad, or Apple Watch) using iOS 11 or higher, as well as Android devices using 6.0 or above. If it has Bluetooth 4.0 or BLE, you’re good.

Once you have a Tile device, download the Tile app and hold the device close to your phone. If you’ve ever paired an exercise tracker or Bluetooth keyboard to your phone or tablet, you know the drill.

When you look for your keys, phone, or whatever your Tile is attached to, direct the app to make the Tile ring. Or, you can ask Siri, Alexa, or Google Assistant to find your items. Can’t hear anything and figure your item is too far away? Check the app for your item’s last known location.

The Tile user community is connected, so if you’re two towns away from where you left your wallet but another Tile user’s phone or device is near enough to your Tile (300 feet from a Pro, 150 feet from a Mate, or 100 feet from a Slim), you’ll still get an update from your long-lost Tile to your phone! (Of course, you and everyone else only support this Tile community if you’re keeping the app running 24/7 in the background, something that may not be so appealing.)

If you have something with a Tile attached but can’t find your phone? It works in reverse. Push the button on your Tile, and your phone will ring!

Stylewise, if basic black and bright white don’t do it for you, Tile’s partner company sells customized skins for Tile devices. Be true to your school with college logos (though, sadly, not my beloved Cornell), pick textures, colors, or patterns, or select designs from the worlds of art and photography.

For a more in-depth and more rigorously researched review, check out The Wirecutter (my go-to for tech reviews), which pegs the Tile Pro as the best Bluetooth tracker on the market.

Individually, direct from Tile, the Pro is $35, the Mate is $25, and the Slim is $30. You can also buy 2-, 4- and 8-packs of each type, a Pro Combo (one white, one black), and a Mate and Slim combo pack. Tile products, in various combinations, are sold on Amazon, generally discounted 5-20%. 

Tile also offers a Premium plan ($2.99/month or $29.99/year), which offers smart alerts, free battery replacement, 30-day location histories, unlimited sharing, an extended warranty, and text-based customer service.

CHIPOLO

I first encountered the Chipolo tracker last Thanksgiving when I was wandering through a luggage store and spied this display. The features are very similar to Tile’s, and in fact, Chipolo beat Tile to the punch on the “Can’t find your phone? Reverse-the-charges” method of using your device to find your phone.

Tuck a Chipolo device into something you own (like the flat, rectangular Chipolo Card into your wallet) or use the hole in the Chipolo Classic and Plus discs, threaded through zipper pulls, onto key chains, or hooked to a collar on a pet or stuffed animal. Then download the app and pair the Bluetooth app to the device.

Use the Chipolo app to ring a Chipolo device attached to your possessions, or double-press a Chipolo device to make your phone ring, even if your phone is set to silent. If your item is too far away to make it ring, check the app for its last location. If it’s still not there, mark it as “lost” in the app, and the phones of any members of Chipolo community of users nearby the item will cause it to ping your app with the newest location.

If you share items (like car keys) with family members or roommates, you can set up one Chipolo in more than one person’s app account. When I was in grad school, we had key hooks set up with spare key sets; if a housemate’s car blocked us in while he was in class, we could easily grab keys, move the car, and get on with the day. Invariably, the one housemate who most often blocked us in would lose his keys in the house and take his spare set, leaving us trapped; Chipolo would have been great back then. (It would also have been great to not have 7 grad students living in one ancient house that resembled where the Addams Family lived, but that’s another blog post.)

Chipolo makes three devices:

• Chipolo CARD – Thinnest (2.15mm), 1-year life (replaceable at a discount through the Chipolo Renewal Program), white only, perfect for inserting in your wallet
• Chipolo CLASSIC – 9-month battery life (replaceable), 6 bright colors
• Chipolo PLUS – Loudest (100 dB), 1-year life (replaceable at a discount through the Chipolo Renewal Program), 6 bright colors, water-resistant 

The Classic and Plus come in green, yellow, red, blue, black, and white. The Chipolo devices are voice-controllable and work with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa on smart speakers, and on mobile devices when the Google Assistant or Amazon Alexa app installed. Although Chipolo works on both Android and iOS, it is apparently not on speaking terms with Siri except through iOS12’s Shortcuts.

Chipolo’s Card is $35 and the Plus is $25, from Chipolo, Amazon, and luggage stores; the Classic is $30 (but $25 on Amazon). (Disclaimer: the dude in yellow pants from the video is sold separately.)

According to news from January’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES2019), the Plus will be replaced at the end of 2019 with the Chipolo DOT, a golf-ball-shaped device with a built-in LED light and a replaceable battery good for three years, which is expected to have an alarm twice as loud as the Plus.

ORBIT

Orbit is an entire family of Bluetooth trackers in six different formats. They all work via an app and Bluetooth like Tile and Chipolo, and there’s a worldwide (Matrix-y) Orbit Net to help signal boost your search. But most of the family of Orbit devices have two unusual functions: a separation alarm if the device and your phone get too far from one another, and a selfie remote! Yes, you can use your tracker to take selfies and group photos with your camera at a distance and your thumb on the Orbit device.

Orbit Keys are the most like other trackers – the device round but a little puffier, more like an Oreo than a poker chip. It has a premium waterproof aluminum casing and comes in 12 different colors (Black, Space Grey, Dark Storm, Silver, Gold, Rose Gold, Shocking Pink, Azure, Candy Red, Emerald Green, Violet, and Sunset Orange). Orbit Keys have replaceable batteries and a Bluetooth range of 100 feet. It retails at Orbit for $29.99, or about 10% less on Amazon. (Note: all prices on the Orbit site default to Australian dollars; use the drop-down to select U.S. prices.)

Orbit Card is as thin as a credit card, has a rechargeable battery (with three months between recharging), comes only in black, and costs $39.99 (and $35 at Amazon).

Orbit Wallet is an RFID-blocking, genuine leather wallet with a built-in Orbit tracker. It has a 2800 mAh rechargeable battery and micro-USB and iPhone adapters, and sells for $109 from most retailers. (Oddly, the version sold in the U.S. only comes in black, while the Australian version is Navy Blue.)

Orbit makes three additional products: a Stick-On tracker, similar in size and shape to Orbit Keys, but with an adhesive backing (in black or grey for $24.99) to attach anywhere, and replaceable battery. The Orbit PowerBank has a tracker built into an anodized aluminum power bank charging (in Black, Dark Storm, Silver, or Rose Gold) for $49.99 from most retailers, including Amazon.

The final Orbit product, and the only one that does not operate as a selfie remote, is a secret. Well, a secret until our next post, which covers more trackers, including one specialized lost-and-found type of product. See you next time – if you don’t get lost!