According to this article you use Google's "Find My Device" app to find tags, not the manufacturer's app. Google's app needs to support UWB tags and display appropriate direction finding UI. Like Apple's has for years.
It doesn't have to, and you don't have to. There is zero reason why you can't just have the UWB direction finding UI in a different app, even should they not add the hook. The UI/UX change between map oriented passive direction finding from anywhere in the world and camera oriented UWB direction finding only when you're within range is very sharp.
If it could eventually do it within the app that could be pretty neat, but even if it doesn't and just has a button to open the manufacturer's app - just like it currently does to open the maps app - it would be basically as good.
Alternatively, the manufacturer's app can just show a notification to get you into the UWB UI when active proximity mode is enabled and when you are within UWB range.
Apple isn't the only manufacturer to do UWB, and Samsung's UX is pretty similar to this and works just as well.
It is ridiculous for Google to release a new tag finding app today without UWB support and without even mentioning UWB at all as a future feature. Sure, Google could link to third party apps, but they're not. Sure, manufacturers could do it themselves, they could have done it three years ago, but they didn't and they still aren't. I'm asking why none of this happened. It's irrelevant whether someone theoretically could have done it or might do it later.
But manufacturers have? Samsung tags have UWB and they work well. There are also Chinese UWB enabled trackers you can buy.
Other manufacturers like Pebblebee, Chipolo and Tile decided not to include it - neither on Android nor iOS. They could have added it for years now, they just decided not to. Chipolo says they think it's just not worth the tradeoff. I don't necessarily disagree - I rarely use it with my samsung tags or airtags, it's just more convenient to use sound 95% of the time. Only time I'll use it is if I'm afraid of waking someone up.
I could definitely see it being useful for people with hearing limitations, though.
> There are also Chinese UWB enabled trackers you can buy.
Where can I buy a UWB tracker that supports direction finding on Pixel phones? I have looked and didn't find a single one. Or literally any other product of any kind with UWB that works on Pixel at all for any purpose, for that matter.
You can buy plenty of Chinese UWB trackers, but they are for industrial applications. Without an open network (this being the first that comes with an UWB API) there's no way to make a compelling product so no one's going to try.
I'm guessing the reason you can't find anything compatible is because there was no way to make anything worthwhile before the Find My network economically. It made no sense for Tile to add UWB only for Pixels (since the Smarttags are better), and no one else could make their own network.
Once this rolls out, there will probably be trackers with UWB trackers. Otherwise, you can make your own - the chips are pretty cheap and it's a relatively accessible DIY project that has been done before.
