FiSeries 3 Smart Dog Collar - GPS Dog Tracker and Activity & Health Monitor, Waterproof, LED Light, Escape Alerts, Nationwide Coverage [Free 1 Year Membership] (Blue, Small)

My husband and I rescued our dog Charlie 4 months ago. He’d been badly treated as a puppy and so sadly was still very anxious and skittish. We have been training him and he’s got better but at the start any sudden sounds or noises would trigger him, and he would immediately try to bolt.We live in the suburbs, but have a good sized property. Our yard is fenced all the way round, and all the dogs we’ve ever had have always loved it as they can roam off leash. That is except for Charlie…..who just tries to escape.A couple of close calls later, we realized that no doors could be left open, and someone would always need to keep an eye on him when he’s outside. I was still so worried that I looked into what we could use to track him so that I could have more peace of mind.We wanted to make sure that we got this decision right. So, we tested 3 of the best ones against each other: Tractive, Whistle, and Fi. I don’t typically leave reviews, but my husband said we should as it may help save another dog one day!We tested them over the course of 2 weeks, and focused on the following areas:1. Location Tracking Accuracy2. Escape Alerts (when your dog gets out)3. Devices (size, weight, and comfort)4. App (ease of use and other features)1. Location Tracking AccuracyWe really wanted a tracker that we could trust, so this was very important to us. We had to make sure that if Charlie was to get out unexpectedly, we would know exactly where he was to go get him. To test this, we did several walks with each of them where me or my husband would take Charlie on a walk away from the property and I would watch it on my phone to see where they were going. Some of these walks were around our neighborhood, and some were on hiking trails that were a bit more rural.Overall, there was some variation in the tracking, with the biggest difference being that the Fi and the Tractive are the only two that offer live location tracking, Whistle does not. Another thing we did learn about all of them though is that they will only be able to work in real time with cell service. We talked to support about this and it turns out that’s how they send the GPS location back to your phone.We thought this was important, and so focused on testing hikes that had spotty coverage to see which tracker would respond best. Fi was the only one that would give updates throughout the walk, even if they were intermittent. It seems that it repeatedly tries to ping the location back to your phone, whereas the others were only able to send some reports later on once we were fully in a cell service area.2. Escape AlertsThis was a quick one. I had my husband leave with Charlie and without his phone and I timed how long before I got a notification that he had left. We were trying to recreate a potential ‘escape situation’. This was the order we got our notifications:1. Fi - 1 minute 29 seconds2. Tractive - 3 minutes 47 seconds3. Whistle - 4 minutes 13 seconds3. DevicesThis is getting very long as I type it so I’m attaching some pictures of them alongside each other instead!The Tractive is the only one that attaches to your own collar and you don’t need to swap your collar out for, but the Fi is by far the smallest and lightest of the group. Whistle’s surprised us as we didn’t expect it to go so far back into the dog’s neck.4. AppWe actually hadn’t thought about including this section when we first started testing, but after using them all for a few weeks we wanted to include it as they each have some cool features.All these companies did a good job with set up. They all took under 10 minutes to get up and running and were straightforward processes. Running through each of them in more detail below:Fi - tracks their location, activity, health and sleep. This is the only one to track sleep which was really cool to see. It’s also the only one with a built in LED light which was a great add for our nightime walks. It also had the longest battery life of all of them and was the only one that we didn’t need to charge over the 2 week period.Tractive - tracks their location and activity. Mainly focused on location but has a couple of neat activity features. Battery didn’t last very long.Whistle - tracks their location, activity and health. Definitely the most focused on health, and tracks things like scratching and licking. Didn’t find these that accurate though.Hope this helps some other dog moms. After the testing we decided to keep our Fi and return the others and are still very happy with our decision.

We had three series 2 fi collars for a few years. Generally had been quite happy with them and the features/price until two of the collars started to come undone while walking the our dogs. One deteriorated to the point it came loose 4 times on one walk at which point I removed the collars and.sropped using them completely. The problem is that the fi receiver fits in line with the collar so if the attachment comes.loose the collar is no.longer connected, and the dog is now without a leash and without a gps tracker.I found companies that created a pouch or other holder for the gps , that would fit around a normal collar. This meant the gps receive is no.longer a critical link. With that in mind I decided to try upgrading to a fi3 series collar.Initially I was going to upgrade my subscription with a credit , but it actually turned out cheaper and quicker to.get the collar from Amazon.The new collar arrived today , nicely packed and ready to go.Setup of the base and collar weren't too difficult. I did find it went better if you didn't put the collar on the base during setup until prompted later. Also, it took a while to connect to my wifi properly. Be patient and it eventually sorts itself out.Have yet to try the tracking outside my safe zone but two things I like already.The attachments to the gps receiver are metal not plastic, and there is a magnetic door that holds things shut. Feels must more robust , and harder to come apart accidentally. Instead of popping out vertically it has to slide out horizontally before it comes loose. I am a little more.comfortable with this design and may skip using the pouches that I planned to.Secondly the led is a little more active and makes itself a little easier to spot due to the motion, not just the pulsing led.Hoping the gps tracking works well when I go on a walk tomorrow. Seems to find the house ok.Curiously it did record 430 steps just setting up and holding the collar. I'm claiming those steps and eating a donut to compensate. :)One thing that surprised me. The blue collar has a pattern on one side and is plain on the other. For some reason the pattern is on the inside when worn and there appears to be no way to flip it over. Indeed the photos on first website show the same, so it appears deliberate. I would jave thought the pattern would look decent showing outwards but maybe that's just me.

Love that it tracks steps. Battery life is great. Puts walks on a map for easy viewing. Lost dog mode is great. We tested it and it even displayed when we crossed the road. Great product. Only complaint is that due to how often it updates the walks are not accurately tracked. Overall highly recommended.

I loved this product. I bought two for both of my runaway pups, and I haven’t lost them since I bought them. I have a French bulldog (Size M) and a Shih Tzu (Size S) The app was very simple and fun to set up for both of my dogs. They have their profiles on what they look like, weight, age, etc. The app also monitors their steps throughout the day as well as their sleep/naps. What I was very impressed by was the collar also tracks their walks/drives on where they went and either by foot or car. The collar monitors their strain level (exhaustion) which is very helpful because my Frenchie can run and play all day even if he is exhausted. The durability is very nice, they both went swimming and the collars worked just as great!The battery lasts a long time, at first, we charged it every night but realized that wasn’t necessary, we currently haven’t charged the collars in a week, and you must keep the charger plugged in at all times to keep track of the dogs as a “home base” this is so as soon as the dogs leave our home it immediately alerts our phones to let us know where their current location is until found.The only downside about this collar is getting used to having your Bluetooth on 24/7 and sometimes the charger loses connection.Please get this over an AirTag it is worth the money, and it is safer for you and your pet!