Pogue\'s 12 Days of Gadgets: Cirago iAlert Tag and Cobra Tag

December 19, 2012, 3:12 pm

Oh, holy night - you've forgotten your phone!

Why can't somebody invent a little beeper for your key ring? If you walk away from your smartphone (iPhone, Android phone or BlackBerry), your key chain beeps to alert you.

And it could work the other way, too. If you leave your keys somewhere, the phone beeps to alert you as you walk away!

That's exactly the point of the Cirago iAlert Tag ($50) and the similar but more polished Cobra Tag ($70), the subjects of Day 10 in Pogue's 12 Days of Gadgets Under $100.< /p>

They look like cheap black key fobs of the sort that unlock your car. Each pairs to your phone using the battery-frugal Bluetooth 4.0. (The iAlert uses a hearing-aid battery; the Cobra Tag has a built-in five- to seven-day battery that recharges from a USB cord.)

Then, if you ever leave your phone behind - on a cafe table, for example - your keys start beeping. It's a high, insistent beep. You'll smack your forehead and go back to get the phone before it's too late.

It works the other way, too: if you pick up your phone but leave your keys behind, the phone beeps to let you know. In the case of the Cobra, it can actually start playing a song of your choice.

And if the phone is lost somewhere in your living room, you can press a button on the fob to make it start beeping, as long as it's within about 30 feet.

The Cobra has a backup feature, too: if your keys and your phone are separated and, for some reason, you don't notice, the phone sends an e -mail notification that records the last known time it was near the key chain, along with GPS coordinates. You can specify multiple e-mail addresses for this purpose, or even request that it auto-post your little phone distress call to Facebook or Twitter. (“Hey, world - help me find my keys?”)

Neither one is exactly built like a Lexus. (The iAlert is especially flimsy.) But maybe small, light and cheap is just the point; if something weighs nothing, you won't mind adding it to your key ring. You'll forget all about it - until the moment comes when you desperately need it.