Tracki (2021) Mini GPS Tracker Magnetic. Canada, USA & Full Worldwide Coverage. Monthly fee Required. for Vehicles, Car, Kids, Elderly, Dogs &…

I wanted to like this and I will start out with the only positive I can think about this product. It’s small and easy to hide.

Originally I was going to give this three stars but the negatives added up and then they updated the app and made things much worse. You can view history and set alarms on both the phone app and the web interface. However each interface has different abilities with some options on one but not the other. The maps looked similar until the phone app updated. The mess of lines when tracking history became even more unbearable as it lost the function of telling you the direction of travel on the phone app. You can export a log file but it has no real support for viewing on google earth, you loose all track lines and are stuck with random dot points. Pulling up history often limits you to pulling up a full days worth of tracking. So it’s not easy to single out a hour or two of when you knew a particular event happened or perhaps the time a particular person was driving unless you want to download the file and alter it using third party software..

Battery life was bad. If you are actually tracking a moving object it takes more power. I did stretch it out to 2.5 days once or twice but many days I had to charge it everyday. To overcome this I was going to hard wire it into the vehicle… until they updated the app. Also note that being discrete in removing and installing it so often to charge the tracker is difficult to do. Also hard wiring it in defeats the purpose of having a small device. I even tried the low power setting turning the device off for 15 minutes then on for 5 to take a reading but it did not help much. Instructions for doing that are pretty much non existent but you can make these changes on the web interface but not the app. The app was slightly better at giving you more options for past history as long as it was in the past 24 hours. But no matter what way you checked history after a day went past you only could view full days at a time.

At it’s best this tracker can update once a minute. This is actually the slowest setting for other trackers, some update every 3 to 5 seconds. What this means is that often the track will not follow roads. I also used other trackers that easily lasted 2 full weeks vs 1 day this unit often gave me. At one minute intervals it was possible to see many stops when other people got into the car. But reducing the intervals in attempt to save battery life lost the ability to see people pull over to pick somebody up. It also makes it impossible to determine what roads were actually used. It does not track data like miles driven like others do.

In terms of functionally I had better luck with free apps on an old cell phone. Oops I dropped my phone in the car again? Silly me. The “magnetic mount” is actually a magnet attached to velcro and made no sense to me. The app lost functionality after they updated it. It also changed to a very plain looking map by default that actually makes it difficult to figure out the location. You can change the view to something more viewable but it always changes itself back to the default view I dislike.

Update 10/17/2019

As mentioned before originally I was going to give this a three star review but ended up giving it one star for all the things I already mentioned. So how did we get to this point? I am actually giving it five stars at this point.

A representative reached out to me. He was very professional and actually appreciated my negative input. But more importantly I was under the impression that they strive to make the product better. I waited to update this review though, perhaps a little too long. I wanted to see the actions and improvements first. But yeah, customer service and attention to detail really impressed me.

So what about those improvements that I am talking about? Both the web interface and the Android app received updates. The battery saving function is now available on all formats and it was simplified to set up. History can now be looked up without the cluttered mess of looking at a full day. The map now retains your preferred method of viewing it, the arrows are back indicating direction of travel. I added another photo so you can see for yourself the difference between the old app map and the new one that indicates direction of travel. The app is also less cluttered looking but at the same time gives you more available information. I no longer have to switch from the app to pc to get all features as everything is more uniform. I was told they would attempt to add even more features and I believe they will.

The unit itself is currently selling below the competitors. It accurate. The monthly fee is also below most competitors. Battery life is still somewhat of a disappointment to me. But it normally falls between what they claim. For me usually two days as this point but at times it surprises me with a third day. I can’t take a star off for this as it is in a normal variance and as advertised. However the thing with this device is that you can choose what you want. A small device that is very lightweight for a kid to carry in a backpack or…… Get the optional battery pack/water proof holder with magnetic mount. The choice is up to you. I have not used the the extended battery pack yet but it’s charging now as I write this. Although it does add size to the small tracker it does not make it any larger than the competitors in other waterproof cases. I will perhaps update after I get familiar with how well the case/extended battery works. For now though this company has completely turned my opinion around with great customer service.

Update 12/03/2020

I just cancelled my service. I just wanted to say that this company changed so much in the time I started to use them. I originally hated this product but it has given me piece of mind many times. The reason I cancelled it is because my kid turned 18 and has a job now. I no longer feel I should track his every movement as he is now an adult.

With the extended battery I had no problem going weeks before it needed a recharge. When the battery level dropped down to 10% I would get a low batt warning. The battery would still last about 5 days after getting the first warning (with the optional pack). The standard battery is poor though.

I found the service itself to be accurate. They added many things such as running mileage and other reports. In some areas sometimes it gives you readings of KPH instead of MPH despite everything being set up correctly.

Overall I am now a happy customer. Customer service always responded quickly to my concerns. Perhaps come spring time I will install this unit to track my motorcycle and get service for it turned back on but at this point it’s no longer needed.

I am moving house, across country and bought these to track the movement of my vehicle and belongings which are being shipped – separately. The instructions clearly state to charge the battery for 12 hours until the blinking light, stops blinking and is constant. I charged the battery for 24 hours and the light had stopped blinking. I was delighted to see how accurate the device was sitting in my home, it placed the device perfectly. I set the device to send a signal ever 4 hours, this according to the instructions should have given me close to 30 days of tracking.
I put the device in my car and drove it 20 miles to the vehicle carrier depot. Checked the app, and it still showed it back in my house, I wasn’t concerned because it hadn’t yet been 4 hours. Later that night it was still showing it at my house and I knew something was wrong. The next morning I call Tracki and asked what could be wrong. The person who answered the phone was pleasant and logged in to my device and told me 1) the device was set to wifi, not GPS and this is why it showed in my home where it had been set up – THERE IS NOTHING ANYWHERE IN THE INSTRUCTIONS THAT MENTIONS WIFI, OR ENSURING THAT IT IS SET TO GPS. I was told that they could reset it remotely but that I might have to power down the device and restart it. PROBLEM WAS THAT MY DEVICE WAS SOMEWHERE ELSE NOW, where I didn’t know because Tracki wasn’t tracking. 2) THE BATTERY IS NOW 31% – this is 24 hours, not 24 days after I had activated the device. Even if it was working it wouldn’t last 2 days. That device is lost my only hope of seeing it again is if my car makes it to its destination. If and when it does is now anyone’s guess. Thank you Tracki.
The other 2 devices that I planned to place along with my belongings to be taken by the movers I am returning. Everything that is stated on Amazon about the battery life is a fallacy. The instructions are so incomplete that it renders the device useless. Buy at your own risk.
One last thing, the person who answered my call at Tracki told me that their supervisor would call me back later when they arrived at the office. I’m still waiting. Thanks again Tracki.

This is an amazing product!

I don’t know why most people don’t use this in their car.

100% worth it.

Update:

August 10th, 2021

Mia helped me on the phone, as my unit stopped working, after 2yrs, and set up a full replacement for me.

Great customer service.

Highly recommend.

Works well. Canadian buyers you may purchase your Tracki in Canadian dollars (CAD), but pay attention to the monthly/yearly payments, which are charged in USD.

Updated Jan 19, 2020: Looks like they upgraded the software about 4-5 weeks ago, and since then, the iOS app and the online browser version update sporadically if at all. If it is inconsistent, then it is useless for its intended purpose of tracking. I have downgraded my original rating from 4 stars to 1 star. If the software gets fixed, will report back with details, and possible a new ranting. Until then, recommend not buying for now. Pity, it was working so well before the update.

I purchased the Tracki with suspicion of my husband’s activity and thanks for the Tracki I was correct, it was a great device and works amazing, I highly recommend it ❗️

Don’t waste your money and time on this product. I ordered Tracki with the waterproof magnetic box but the GPS reception was very week – the device simply did not work when mounted under my van. It even did not work on the back side of my van. It only momentarily worked when placed by the driver’s seat but I needed it mounted under the van. The customer service was very bad; they had no idea why it was not working. I spent 4 hours on the phone to a US number (calling from Canada – I’ll probably have to pay huge cell phone bill this month), they put me on hold multiple times and for very long time and they finally hung up on me. I called again and same exact same scenario happened: they didn’t know, put me on hold for long time and they hung up.
To be fair, I enjoyed the music played while being on hold. I will return the products and will ask for a reund of the monthly fee and additional SMS alerts I purchased. What a waste of time!