Apple has introduced a new app, Find My Certification Asst., Designed for use by MFi (Made for iPhone) licensees, who need to test the interoperability of their accessories with Apple’s Find My network. The network helps users locate lost Apple devices, such as iPhones, AirPods, and Macs, but is ready to provide support for finding other compatible third-party accessories.
The launch of the test program indicates that Apple may be ready to announce the launch of the third-party program in the near future.
According to the description of the app, MFi licensees can use Find My Certification Asst. to test the “discovery, connectivity, and other key requirements” for their accessories that include Apple’s Find My Network technology. It also points to information about the Find My Network certification program on Apple’s MFi portal at mfi.apple.com, which currently refers to Find My Network as an ‘soon to launch’ MFi program technology.
The screenshots of the new app indicate that it enables device manufacturers to perform a wide range of tests in areas such as connectivity, audio (for example, if the item may make a noise if misplaced), firmware, key management, NFC, power and more.
Image credits: App Store- Screenshot
The information became available in the iOS App Store on Sunday, April 4, according to Sensor Tower data. It’s brand new and so is not yet in any App Store category, including its own, ‘Developer Tools’, or others. It also has no ratings and reviews at the moment.
The launch of the app is a step towards the larger goal of opening up Apple Find My network to third parties and Apple’s planned launch of its own new accessory, AirTags.
Apple announced at last year’s global developer conference for the first time that it would open Find Me to third-party devices after being confronted by regulators in the US and Europe, who among other things looked at whether Apple intended to give itself a benefit from its upcoming launch of AirTags, a competitor to Tile’s lost item finder.
Image credits: screenshot of FMCA app
A leading Apple critic, Tile, complained that AirTags would be able to connect with Apple’s U1 chips, which use UWB (ultra-broadband) technology for more precise finding possibilities, and noted during a congressional hearing that AirTags with Apple’s own Find My would work. app, which comes standard on Apple devices. Tile believes this would give Apple a first-party advantage in the market for lost items that Tile has successfully established and dominated for years.
In response, Apple last year opened access to third-party developers to its U1 chip via its “NearInteraction” framework. As a result, in January 2021, Tile announced its plan to launch a new tracker powered by UWB.
More recently, Apple has updated its Find My app to include a new tab called ‘Items’ in preparation for the app’s extensive support for AirTags and other third-party accessories, such as those of Tile and others. This ‘Items’ tab has been enabled in the latest Apple version of iOS 14.5, where the app explains how the Find My app users will be able to keep track of their everyday items – including accessories and other items compatible with Find Me.
However, Tile (and probably others) feel that Apple’s concessions are still hurting their businesses because participating in Apple’s FindMy program means that the third-party manufacturer will have to abandon its existing app and instead require its customers to download the FindMy app from Apple uses. about its customers and their data to Apple.
Notably, at launch, the app includes an icon that contains three items: headphones, a backpack, and a suitcase. Not coincidentally, perhaps, were Tile’s first integrations with Bose headphones and luggage and suitcase manufacturers, Away and Herschel.
Apple did not respond to a request for comment on the launch of the new app.