Pod 3 VS Pawscout
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Pod 3 and Pawscout are both highly rated pet tracking solutions, but they greatly differ in terms of the features they offer. In this Pod 3 VS Pawscout review, we list their top qualities side by side and determine which of these two pet trackers offers greater value for your money.
VS
Highlights
Pawscout is a Bluetooth pet tracker that lets you track your pet within a range of 300 feet, get an alert if he or she is out of range, and locate your wandering pal with the help of other Pawscout users.
- Small, waterproof smart tag weighing just about 0.2 ounces
- Mobile Virtual Leash safe zone centered in your position
- Keep vet records, track walks & discover pet-friendly spots
- Price: $19.95
- Shipping: $2.95
Pod 3 is a GPS pet tracker that uses GPS, cellular, WiFi, and Bluetooth technologies for outdoor and indoor tracking. It works in 175+ world countries and has a virtually unlimited communication range.
- Waterproof & shockproof tracking unit weighing just 1.1 oz.
- Minimum location update interval of just 10 seconds
- Activity and movement monitoring and adventure recording
- Price: $129.00
- Shipping: $0 *
*free shipping in the US, the UK, and Australia, other countries qualify for flat rate shipping of up to $15.35
Compare Features
Highlights
Pawscout is an affordable Bluetooth pet tracker with great battery life that allows you to keep track of your pet’s location within a range of 300 feet. It relies on its fast-growing user community to help you locate your pet when he or she is out of range.
Type
Bluetooth Pet Tracker
Design
Pawscout comes in the form of a small tag attached to your pet’s collar. The tag is attached using a circular hanging mount (standard) or flush mount (better for small pets and pets who like to roughhouse). It is round, black, and roughly the size of a silver dollar (1.6’’ x 2.0’’ x 0.4’’). It comes with a black nameplate, but you can replace the original nameplate with any of around 2 dozen custom ones available for purchase in the Pawscout online store.
Available Sizes
Pawscout does not come in different sizes, but it fits virtually all collars.
Suitable For Cats
Durability
Pawscout is an inexpensive pet tracker that is resistant to water but not to impact. It may last for a year or more if your pet is not prone to rough play. Slight damages are to be expected if your pet is highly active.
Key Tracking Features
The essential location tracking features available with Pawscout include:
- Active location tracking within a range of 300 feet,
- Community location tracking, with notifications sent if your pet is found by another Pawscout user;
- Virtual Leash, which allows you to set up a mobile safe zone around your location;
- Tracking walks, with information on the distance walked and time spent walking;
- Sharing, which lets you enable your friends and family to keep track of your pet’s location.
Pet Activity Monitoring
Pawscout does not monitor pet activity.
Training Assistance
Pawscout does not provide training assistance.
Additional Features
Extra features available with Pawscout include:
- Detailed digital pet profile with medical records;
- Coverage map, showing other Pawscout users in your area;
- Pet-related points of interest, with a map showing vets, groomers, shelters, parks, and pet-friendly locations and businesses in your area.
Communication Range
300 feet in all directions (600 feet in radius)
Weight
about the same as a quarter (around 0.2 oz.)
Shockproof
Waterproof
Night Mode
Battery Life
6-12 months (disposable, not rechargeable)
Smartphone App
The Pawscout smartphone app is available free of charge. It is compatible with the latest versions of iOS and Android. It allows you to track your pet’s location with a handy interactive map, set up a Virtual Leash safe zone, track your pet’s daily walks, view a coverage map showing other Pawscout users in your area, and discover nearby pet-friendly locations. It lets you report your pet as lost and report another user’s lost pet as found. You can share your pet's location with an unlimited number of friends and they do not have to possess Pawscout tags in order to use the Pawscout app.
Connectivity
Pawscout exclusively relies on Bluetooth.
Coverage
Pawscout can be bought and used in the US and Canada. It can work anywhere, but since it is a community-powered tracking solution, its usefulness is severely limited in other countries with few/no Pawscout users.
Pricing
Smart tag: $19.95; Custom nameplate: $9.95
Shipping and Delivery
Pawscout can be shipped throughout the US and Canada. Shipping costs amount to $2.95 for US orders and $9.95 for Canada orders. Custom nameplates are shipped free of charge.
Refund Policy
If you are not happy with Pawscout, you can return it within 30 days and receive a replacement or a refund.
Warranty
Pawscout smart pet tag does not come with a warranty.
Highlights
Pod 3 is a Bluetooth and WiFi enabled GPS pet tracker that allows for both indoor and outdoor tracking, works in 175+ world countries, has a virtually unlimited communication range, offers location, activity, and movement monitoring features, and boasts a minimum location update interval of just 10 seconds.
Type
GPS Pet Tracker
Design
The Pod 3 tracking unit is black, cylinder-shaped, and measures just 2’’ in length and 0.9’’ in diameter. It is attached to the pet’s collar using a rubber strap suitable for virtually all collars, as well as larger objects like bicycles or drones.
Available Sizes
Pod 3 does not come in different sizes and it fits most collars.
Suitable For Cats
Durability
Pod 3 can last for at least a couple of years with proper use. It is both shockproof and waterproof and it is not prone to damage.
Key Tracking Features
Pod 3 allows you to track your pet’s location with:
- 3 tracking modes, including Standby for battery saving, Safe Zone with instant notifications when the pet leaves the safe zone, and Adventure, with the most frequently updated location information;
- Near-real-time tracking, with location updated every 10 seconds in live tracking adventure mode;
- Multiple safe zones, which you can customize both in terms of location and size;
- Location history, which allows you to view your pet’s past locations for the period of 24 hours;
- Sharing, which allows multiple users to track the location of the same pet at once.
Pet Activity Monitoring
Pod 3 allows you to track your pet’s activity with:
- Constantly refreshed details on rest, walk, and play activity, with time spent walking and playing expressed in minutes and rest time expressed in hours;
- Daily, weekly, and monthly activity overviews;
- Custom-defined daily activity goals.
Training Assistance
Pod 3 does not provide training assistance.
Additional Features
Extra features available with Pod 3 include:
- Movement tracking, with the device constantly monitoring your pet’s movement and identifying unusual and sudden changes in your pet’s activity and behavior;
- Adventure recording, which allows you to record your pet’s walks and revisit them later, with adventures shown on a map and including information on distance walked, time spent walking, area covered, and your pet’s speed.
Communication Range
Pod 3 works over any distance within cellular and WiFi coverage.
Weight
1.1 oz.
Shockproof
Waterproof
Night Mode
Battery Life
Up to 5 days in standby mode, up to 8 hours in Adventure mode (refresh rate of 10 seconds)
Smartphone App
The Pod 3 smartphone app is compatible with Android 5.0+ and iOS 8+. The app can be used for multiple pets. Login details can be shared with friends and family in order to enable multiple users to simultaneously track the same pet via the Pod 3 app.
The app features 2 main screens, including the Pet screen and the Map screen. The Pet screen allows you to view details of your pets, their last known locations and location times, and their 24-hour location history. It further lets you manage safe zone, refresh rate, activity monitoring, and adventure recording settings. The Map screen allows you to manage your account settings, add new pets, view location information for your pets, refresh their locations manually, and access Pod Help.
Connectivity
Pod 3 uses GPS technology for outdoor tracking. It is WiFi and Bluetooth enabled for tracking indoors. It uses 2G and 3G cellular networks to transfer location information to the pet guardian's smartphone.
Coverage
Pod 3 works in 175+ countries on 6 continents
Pricing
Device: $89 Service Plan: $8.95 per month with the monthly subscription; $4.95 with the yearly subscription.
Shipping and Delivery
Pod 3 comes with free shipping for deliveries to the US, the UK, and Australia. For other countries, there is a shipping fee of up to $15.35.
Refund Policy
Pod 3 comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee. You can return the device within 30 days and get a full refund if it is saleable or faulty. If the device is not in a saleable condition, there is a $25 fee. If the device is broken or lost, you do not get a refund but you do get a 50% discount on a new Pod 3.
Warranty
Pod 3 comes with a 12-month warranty. The warranty covers malfunctions that are not caused by improper use.
Compare Ratings
Compare User Reviews
- Submitted By Walter Price on 11/22/2018You can build an entire community with this little device and have your entire neighborhood keep an eye out every time your pet wanders off. Now it’s just the matter of convincing my neighbors to buy this tracker.
- Submitted By Carolyn Stewart on 09/08/2018My cell phone was not compatible with this tracker.
- Submitted By Eric Lopez on 08/12/2018I like how you can attach it to pretty much any collar so I don’t have to buy any extra equipment. I don’t like that you have to download the tracking app since I’m much more used to the commander device.
- Submitted By Roberta Smith on 05/29/2018The accuracy thing is true, it happened to me a couple of times, I didn't get a notification even though my beagle was way outside the range. But I want to say that this does not happen all the time and I like that anyone can use the app for free, it really helps raise awareness about lost pets and helps owners reconnect with their pooches and kitties. Plus, the tag is really useful when we go for a walk, with the virtual leash, I don't even use the real leash anymore.
- Submitted By Inara Mayers on 12/08/2019I apreciate that don’t have to be a rocket scientist to be able to operate this device. The app is quite self-explanatory. You have a map screen that shows you where your dog has been and the other screen shows his movement history and it also covers your pets safe zone which it shouldn’t enter but if it does you can keep track of where he’s going. You can also watch tutorials that explain how to use the app and what it has to offer. The app allows you to add other pets. I can also sent everything I see to my husband and sister so we can all be in the loop which I know sounds crazy but Stella is our baby and we need to take care of her the best we can.
- Submitted By Stacy Waller on 11/30/2019Jill is the type of dog that is restless and keeps bumping into things. And she likes to play with other dogs that usually turns into a full blown wrestling match so it’s safe to say that she needs high quality equipment if you don’t intend to buy new stuff every few days. This tracker turned out to be completely Jill-proof which means bite proof, rock-proof, water-proof and any other type of proof Jill needs. You would not believe how many leashes and trackers she chewed through or broke or they just fell off at some point so having this tracker as long as we do is nothing short of a miracle.
- Submitted By Vivek Scott on 11/17/2019I feel Burton is covered in every which way possible. The tracker has a bluetooth, wifi and gps and cell connection. I was really happy when I read that. When I’m at home, the tracker is connected to the wifi, outside it has gps or you can connect on bluetooth is he doesn’t go far. Cell connection is not tied to the specific provider which is really a good thing and you can keep track of everything on the app you can download on your phone. I let Burton wander around not worrying for a second that he might get lost somewhere I never been before.
- Submitted By Faye Short on 11/02/2019I opted on this tracker because I can connect through almost everything but I was a bit worried because of the shape it seemed big and I didn’t know if it would make problems since my dogs likes to move around a lot and sleep under the bed and in other not easy to reach areas. It has been two months now and the tracker is still in place. I didn’t notice anything different in Mikes routine. He keeps doing what he does without any problems I think. I managed to strap it firmly and it still holds the same and I think it is due to the fact that it is really light even though it is shaped funny.
Winner
Pod 3 is a GPS tracker for cats and dogs that boasts a vast range of useful location and activity tracking features. It is waterproof, shockproof, and among the lightest pet trackers available. If you are interested in getting a pet tracker that can do more than just provide your pet’s location information, read this honest Pod 3 review.