LINK AKC Review

UPDATED Mar. 2024
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LINK AKC smart collar is a GPS pet tracker designed to help you track your pet’s location and activity levels and monitor your best friend’s current health and wellness. It was developed by LINK AKC, a Connecticut-based company founded in 2015 that specializes in tech products designed to protect pets and strengthen the pet-guardian bond.

LINK AKC smart collar is endorsed by the American Kennel Club and it won the CES Best of Innovation award. In this LINK AKC review, our goal is to discover whether this GPS pet tracker can genuinely help you keep your pet safe and healthy and whether it is the right choice for dogs and cats of all shapes and sizes.

LINK AKC homepage

How LINK AKC Works

LINK AKC is a pet tracking system that employs GPS, WiFi, and Bluetooth technology to keep track of your pet’s location. GPS relies on AT&T cellular network and allows you to locate your dog within AT&T cellular coverage.

The tracking system consists of a tracking unit and a base station. The tracking unit is attached to the collar provided by LINK AKC or any other suitable collar and the base station can be placed anywhere in your home. The base station should be plugged in at all times, as it establishes a safe zone via Bluetooth, determining where your pet can move freely. Another safe zone is established by your phone via Bluetooth. The safe zones are automatically established, but you can customize them if desired.

When your pet roams outside the safe zone and the Bluetooth connection established between the tracking unit and the base station or your phone is broken, you are alerted within approximately 30 seconds, so you can start tracking your pal via GPS.

To track your pet via GPS, you need to access the dedicated LINK AKC smartphone app and go to the Locations screen, thus turning GPS on. The first location appears on the screen within 3 to 5 minutes and it is constantly updated, allowing you to easily follow and locate your pet.

Apart from the essential tracking features, LINK AKC boasts a number of useful activity, health, and wellness monitoring tools, which we will discuss in the following sections of this LINK AKC review.

LINK AKC how work

LINK AKC Design

LINK AKC pet tracking system comes in an elegantly designed cardboard cylinder containing a collar, a tracking unit, a collar carrier, a base station, and a charging cord.

The base station is semi-round and light-gray, designed for the tracking unit to fit into it perfectly while charging. It comes with an extra USB that allows you to charge the tracking unit and your phone simultaneously.

The collar is particularly stylish and comes in two versions, the Classic version made of genuine leather and the Sports version made of reflective nylon. It further comes in 3 sizes: extra-small to small, with neck fit of 8 to 11 inches, medium, with neck fit of 11 to 17 inches, and large to extra-large, with neck fit of 17 to 29 inches.

LINK-AKC Design

The tracking unit comes in several color schemes, including black-light gray, white-light gray, and leather-light gray. It is rounded to comfortably fit your pet’s neck, so it may not be so easy to fit on a harness. The unit measures 1.5 in. in height by 3.9 in. in width by 0.5 in. in depth.

The collar carrier comes in the form of a sleeve and is attached to the collar and designed to carry the tracking unit. The tracking unit clips into the carrier and you can remove the unit by pushing the spring-release button. The carrier and tracking unit together weigh 2.55 ounces.

The manufacturer does not recommend using the smart collar with small pets that weigh less than 10 pounds. It should be noted, however, that LINK AKC may be too large and heavy even for pets that weigh 10+ pounds. Thus, although the manufacturer claims that it is suitable for small dogs and cats, we do not recommend using LINK AKC if your cat or dog is not particularly large.

LINK AKC Technical Specifications

In this section of our LINK AKC review, we will focus on the most important technical aspects of this pet tracking device, including water and impact resistance, battery life, communication range, accuracy, night mode light, and smartphone app compatibility.

Waterproof

The device is resistant to water and rated IP67. That means that it can withstand immersion of up to 3 feet.

Shockproof

LINK AKC smart collar is resistant to impact. It is designed to be durable and withstand regular use during even rougher play.

Rechargeable Battery

LINK AKC comes with a rechargeable battery that can last up to 3 days with normal use. However, battery life significantly decreases with GPS tracking turned on. In such conditions, it may not last more than a few hours. The device comes with an on/off button for battery saving when your dog is within sight.

Communication Range

LINK AKC GPS tracker can work anywhere within AT&T cellular coverage. However, if the place is too crowded or the reception is weak, the range may be significantly decreased and you may experience frequent disconnections. The tracker does not work indoors, so if your pet wanders into a closed space, you can only discover his or her last known location in the outdoors.

GPS Precision

GPS precision highly depends on cellular reception. A clear line of sight to the sky and strong reception are necessary to obtain the highest accuracy. If the reception is weak, the tracker may provide less than accurate information.

LED Light

The device comes equipped with a LED light, allowing you to locate your pet more easily after nightfall. The light is disabled when your dog is at home to conserve battery.

App Compatibility

LINK AKC smartphone app is compatible with Bluetooth-enabled Android and iOS phones. It works on Android 5.0+. and iOS 9.0+.

LINK AKC App

LINK AKC offers a dedicated smartphone app for Android and Apple phones that allows you to access all location and activity tracking information and much more. It lets you activate GPS and monitor your pet’s movement, view your pet’s historical and daily activity records updated hourly, customize the safe zone around your phone, access and modify vet records, create adventures complete with maps and photos of walks and hikes, and even remotely activate the sound feature on the tracker unit.

The app is intuitive and all-encompassing and it can be used to track up to 10 pets. It is interesting to note that in addition to its dedicated app, LINK AKC enables you to access some of its activity features via Amazon Alexa app, allowing you to check your pet’s activity for the current day and the day before and see how much longer until your pet reaches the set activity goals.

LINK AKC Features

Previously in this LINK AKC review, we mentioned that this pet tracker can do much more than just inform you about the location of your pet. Now we will focus on all of its prominent features and discover all the benefits of using LINK AKC smart collar.

LINK AKC Features

Location Tracker

LINK AKC uses Bluetooth to inform you that your pet is near you or near the base station. It provides near-instant notifications when he or she leaves the safe zone and uses GPS to track your pet’s changing location outside the safe zone. It provides a map with paw prints indicating your pet’s most recently known locations. While this cannot be described as real-time tracking, as it takes several minutes to obtain the first location via GPS, the locations are constantly updated, allowing you to know where your pet is headed.

Safe Zones

The tracker does not offer plenty of customization when it comes to fencing, but it does provide 2 automatically set safe zones around your phone and base station. If needed, you can temporarily extend the safe zone around your phone up to a radius of 2,400 meters. This can be useful when you are in the park or somewhere where you can pet can safely move within a larger radius.

AI Activity Tracker

LINK AKC employs 3-axis accelerometer that accurately measures your pet’s activity. Not only that, but it uses a patent-pending algorithm that learns how to discriminate between different levels of activity, such as moderate and intense, letting you to know whether your pet has enjoyed enough activity during the day.

Personalized Activity Recommendations

To help you determine how active your pet should be in order to stay healthy, LINK AKC provides personalized activity recommendations based on your pet’s age, breed or mixed breed, behavior, and size.

Vet Records

Another handy health-related feature is Vet Records. The tracker allows you to easily update, modify, and access vaccination records wherever you are, directly through the LINK AKC app. You can further set reminders, so you never miss an important vet appointment.

Temperature Monitoring

Taking care of your pet’s safety at all times, LINK AKC monitors the ambient temperature and notifies you if your pet is in an environment that may be too hot or too cold and thus endanger your pal’s health.

Sound Training

To help you train your pet more easily, particularly when it comes to remaining within the safe zone, the tracker features a remote turn-on, clicker-like sound that you can activate directly through the LINK AKC app. Many pets can learn the meaning of the sound rather quickly, which can help you prevent your friend from wandering off and easily remind him or her to come back to the safe zone.

Adventures

With LINK AKC, you can remember your past adventures with your pal with the virtual scrapbook available within the LINK AKC app. You can store as many photos as you wish in the digital album, record special hikes and walks, and easily create adventures including a map showing distance, timestamp, and photos you took during the adventure. You can start an adventure with a single touch of the button and the photos you add are editable.

LINK AKC Coverage

One of the downsides of LINK AKC smart collar is that it can only be bought and used in the United States, unlike a number of its competitors that work across the globe. However, the company does plan to expand coverage to include Canada, Europe, and other world countries and we sincerely hope this expansion will take place soon.

It is further important to note that since LINK AKC tracking is enabled via AT&T cellular network, tracking will not be an option if you and your pal find yourself in a location not covered by AT&T 3G.

How Much Does LINK AKC Cost?

Whether you opt for the classic or the sports version of LINK AKC smart collar, the standard price of the device is $129. However, the company often offers discounts, allowing you to get your LINK AKC for just $99. The price of the device is the same no matter which collar size you choose. All orders come with free shipping.

LINK AKC pricing

In addition to the price of the collar, you need to pay for the service plan. You can opt for the monthly, yearly, and 2-year subscriptions. The monthly plan costs $9.95 per month, the yearly plan costs $7.95 per month, charged annually, and the 2-year plan costs $6.95 per month, billed biannually. At the end of the subscription period, your plan is automatically renewed and reset to the monthly subscription, unless you cancel or start a new plan.

By purchasing the service plan, you get access to Pet Poison Helpline, with veterinarian assistance available 24/7. You are further covered by the company’s 3-year limited warranty in case of malfunctions that may arise during normal use, as well as its 1-year Size Guarantee, which allows you to get a collar in a different size in case the one originally purchased does not fit or your pet outgrows it.

All LINK AKC collars bought through the official LINK AKC website come with a 90-day risk-free guarantee, so you can return the collar within 90 days if you are unsatisfied and receive a full product purchase price refund. The service plan time used is not refundable.

LINK AKC Pros & Cons

Knowing the biggest strenghts and weaknesses of LINK AKC can help you decide if it is the right pet tracker for your furry friend. Here is a quick overview of its pros and cons.

Pros
  • GPS location tracking via AT&T cellular network
  • Bluetooth safe zones
  • Intelligent activity tracking
  • Health, wellness, and adventure features
  • Waterproof and shockproof
  • Multiple sizes
  • 1-year Size Guarantee
  • 90-day money-back guarantee
  • 3-year warranty
  • 24/7 access to veterinarians in case of poisoning

Cons

  • Only works in the US, within AT&T coverage
  • Does not fit dogs and cats of all sizes
  • Delayed location and activity information

Bottom Line

LINK AKC is a unique GPS pet tracking solution that boasts a variety of extra features many other pet trackers do not possess, such as AI activity tracking, creating adventures, remotely activating the sound feature, and easily keeping vet records. As far as the key tracking and activity features are concerned, it does rather well, although it has some limitations dictated by the inherent limitations of the AT&T cellular network. It provides highly accurate GPS information with strong reception and a clear line of sight to the sky, but it does not work indoors or in areas with weak to no reception, which may be a problem in some scenarios. It does not offer actual real-time tracking, but it does provide timely notifications and reliable location information that is updated constantly, allowing you to locate your pet rather easily.

To conclude this LINK AKC review, we can say that in spite of certain limitations, LINK AKC is a reliable, feature-rich pet tracker that can help you take good care of your friend and make sure he or she never wanders off too far.


User Reviews (7)

LINK AKC customer rating based on 7 user reviews.

The LINK AKC reviews listed below reflect the opinions and experiences of real users and are in no way influenced by the company reviewed here. Before publishing each review, our team checks whether it was submitted by an actual user in an effort to prevent false or spammy reviews.

  1. Jim M | November 26, 2022

    The Link site does not tell you the collar only works with ATT Service. Very dishonest.

  2. Mark Warner | August 25, 2022

    Very well made and great customeer service. However, the unit seldomly tracks my dog due to poor cellular service. My phone usually has 1 or 2 bars of service where I live and use the collar but the tracking collar can’t get enough of a signal to function properly. On the rare occasion that it does work it often gave false readings and showed my dogs location as being 10 miles away when she was actually out in the yard. Customer service techs provided me with information that shows poor cellular service is the probable cause for the collar not working properly. However, as I stated, my cell phone gets a strong enough signal to function so this indicates to me the receiving capability of the collar is poor.

  3. John Gosson 06/15/2018 | November 30, 2019

    It would be perfect if the battery wouldn’t drain so fast. If I keep it turned on, I have to charge it twice a day, which is quite a hassle. The app is fantastic and GPS is surprisingly accurate, so if they could just handle this battery issue, I would be more than satisfied.

  4. Ashlei Rivers | November 26, 2019

    I’ve decided to go on a healthy regime that includes more exercise and health food and what helped me with my consistency was the fact that could do the same for my pet using LINK AKC that recommended how active my dog should be depending on his race, age, etc. We coordinated our daily walks based on his recommendations and mine and started with a healthier lifestyle I wouldn’t be able to handle on my own. I get motivated my tracking Buck’s and mime progress and knowing that I’m not alone and that my dog can handle the pace.

  5. Zena Maynard | June 20, 2019

    I’ve noticed that once Pan left the safe zone I was immediately notified and was able to see his location by using gps signal. It was really cool because the app showed me the map with little paw prints all over telling me where Pan left and if I wasn’t so worried it would have been much more fun. The only thing is the tracking is not live so it doesn’t provide information right that second, it takes a few minutes to find the original coordinates but after that it is spot on.

  6. Zaharah Teller | February 5, 2019

    I like that its two in one and you can track your pet and use it as a health and activity app as well. I recommend it for all active dog parents since the gps works really well in case your dog gets lost on the unknown terrain and you can also view his activity and set goals, add maps, photos, videos from your walks. You can see everything you did on that day and compare it to other days.

  7. Kelly Smith | December 24, 2018

    I didn’t know that the tracker can only work on AT&T network when I bought ii but so far I didn’t have any problems with the coverage. You get the base station that works together with the tracker so if your dog goes outside the zone that is covered by two devices you get a notification in under a minute. I tested it out and it really works. Gps also works but you need to download the app first so you can track your dogs movement. Between the two you are covered for sure.

  8. Britany Hayes | November 20, 2018

    I really like that I don’t have to use two separate collar attachments to monitor my baby’s health and wellness and still know his location at all times.

  9. Samantha Rhodes | April 5, 2018

    The collar is beautiful, the adventure feature is lovely, and the tracker is fast and precise. We’ve been using it for months and there have been absolutely no issues so far. My warmest recommendation.

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