Worried about losing your batteries? Now they can track themselves
This clever camera battery has built-in GPS so you can find it when it inevitably disappears into a drawer
Quick Summary
A new camera battery called the iPower X has built-in tracking technology that lets you locate it when it goes missing.
The $69.99 rechargeable battery is designed for photographers who want to keep tabs on expensive spare batteries without adding another tracker to their kit.
Camera batteries have a habit of disappearing just when you need them. They get left in camera bags, forgotten in chargers or buried in a drawer somewhere, and by the time you find them, they're often completely flat.
The iPower X is designed to solve that problem by putting the tracking hardware directly inside the battery. That means there's no separate AirTag-style tracker to attach, and nothing extra hanging off the camera or battery case.
The iPower X is a rechargeable camera battery with a built-in GPS module and Bluetooth connectivity. Its companion app can show you the battery's location, giving you a much better chance of finding it when it disappears from your kit.
That's useful for photographers carrying several batteries at once. Rather than trying to remember which camera bag or drawer you last put one in, you can check the app and locate it.
The tracker is integrated into the battery itself, so it doesn't take up additional space on the outside. That's important for camera gear, where even a small accessory can become annoying when you're trying to keep a compact setup.
The battery is available in versions compatible with several popular camera systems, including Sony, Canon and Nikon. That makes the idea more useful than a generic tracker designed for your keys or wallet.
The obvious problem with putting GPS inside a rechargeable battery is that the tracking hardware itself needs power. The iPower X therefore has its own internal power management system designed to keep tracking available without completely ruining the battery's usefulness as a camera power source.
The company says the battery can be monitored through its app, with location information available when you need to find it. Bluetooth can also help with shorter-range locating, while GPS provides a way to track the battery when it's further away.
At $69.99, it's not exactly a cheap replacement battery, but photographers already spending hundreds or thousands on camera equipment may see the appeal. Losing a spare battery isn't just annoying when you're shooting, it can leave you without enough power to finish the job.
There is, however, one important limitation: this isn't a magic battery that can report its location indefinitely. Like any tracking device, its usefulness ultimately depends on having enough power and connectivity to communicate its position.
Still, putting the tracker inside the thing you're trying not to lose is a very sensible idea. If it catches on, the days of rummaging through every camera bag looking for that one missing battery could finally be over.
