AirTags 2: No compatibility with macOS 15 and iOS 18

Those who use the "Find My" app on Sequoia Macs will not see the AirTags 2. The same applies to iPhones with iOS 18.

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AirTags

Several AirTags, here the first generation.

(Image: Sebastian Trepesch / heise medien)

3 min. read

macOS users are more resistant to change than iPhone owners: they usually take more time before upgrading to a new operating system. This will likely be the case even more often with macOS 26 than usual, as Apple's new Liquid Glass design is controversial. However, those who buy Apple's newly released AirTags 2 are running into a problem: macOS 15, also known as Sequoia, simply does not recognize the Bluetooth and Ultra-Wideband trackers. The same applies to iOS 18 and iPadOS 18.

In the “Find My“ app, which is responsible for locating devices (and other Apple devices), AirTags 2 that have been set up on an iPhone with iOS 26, for example, are omitted. They do not appear under “Items”, where they should normally be displayed; only AirTags 1 are listed. It is unclear why this is the case – the location data is forwarded to the computer via the Apple account, so Apple would technically have little problem passing on this information. No update was distributed for macOS 15 that could have prepared the “Find My” app for this. Corresponding updates were only available for macOS 26 and watchOS 26.

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It is possible that Apple is trying to encourage more users to upgrade with this incompatibility. This is also reminiscent of certain functions of new AirPods, which are often only compatible with the latest operating system. However, these can at least be connected to the device and used in principle, which is not possible at all with AirTags 2 on a Sequoia Mac. Meanwhile, the issue can also be seen with iPhones with iOS 18 and iPads with iPadOS 18: here, AirTags 2 cannot only not be added, but they are also not displayed in the “Find My” app. They are simply missing here too.

Now one might think that switching to the browser is an alternative. After all, devices can be tracked via iCloud.com/find after logging in with the Apple account. However, this does not help: Traditionally, only Macs, iPhones, iPads, or headphones are displayed here, but not AirTags, although this would technically probably not be a issue either.

To make AirTags findable via browser, they would have to be put into Lost Mode to share the location data with an airline, for example. There are corresponding links for this, but they expire.

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This article was originally published in German. It was translated with technical assistance and editorially reviewed before publication.