A week of experimenting with the Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker has led me to write this review about it.
Pet Trackers Market has got very saturated in recent years and now we have tons of trackers which we can get for our pets. Some trackers only focus on the activity while some of them focus on location.
However, only a few trackers offer both features and Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker is one of them.
Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker has been around for a long time and I have heard some great things about it, so I decided to give it a shot. In this comprehensive guide, I will share everything you need to know about the Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker. Let’s get started.
Table of Contents
Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker Review – 2024
Pricing & Packages
When it comes to activity-only trackers, you only need to pay a one-time cost. However, the location trackers require the data connection which costs monthly or yearly subscription.
Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker is also a location & activity tracker and it is no exception. It also requires a subscription and Tractive offers the two types of packages.
Basic Package
Basic Package offers the GPS Tracking with the 2 to 60 minutes interval and unlimited live tracking with 2-3 seconds interval and that’s it. The basic package doesn’t come with any fancy features and it is as basic as it gets.
If you get the basic package for one month then it will cost you $8.99 per month. However, if you decide to get in on a yearly basis then you can get some reasonable rate. The yearly subscription will cost you $77.90 per year ($6.49 per month) and 2 Years subscription will cost you $129.39 per year ($5.39) per month.
Premium Package
The Premium Package unlocks all features and you get access to premium features. If you want great control and features then you would want to get the Premium package. It comes with the following features.
- GPS Tracking with 2 to 60-minute interval
- Unlimited Live Tracking with 2-3 second intervals
- Public & Family Sharing
- Worldwide Coverage for up to 80 countries
- Unlimited Location History
- GPS Data Export in GPX & KML file format
- Premium customer support.
The pricing for the premium package starts at $83.90 per year ($6.99 per month). If you get the premium package for 2 years then it will cost you $139 per 2 years (5.79 per month). If you get it for 5 years then it will only cost you $4.99 per month and the total cost will be $299 for 5 years.
In the US, Tractive has partnered with AT&T and T-Mobile and they will offer the GPS based positioning. The company also offers the 14 days refund of tracker if you have poor service of AT&T and T-Mobile in your area.
Unboxing
The Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker comes with the following items.
- Device Manual
- Two Plastic clips to attach Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker to the collar
- A clamp-on USB charging cable
- A multi-country charger block
Design & Build Quality
The first thing which came to my mind, when I saw the Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker, was its durability. In pictures, it was not feeling very durable and I had my reservations.
When I got the Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker, the first thing I checked was the durability. The Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker is made up of shiny plastic which may feel very strong but in reality, it is good enough.
Unless someone really wants to break it, I think it will hold well for a long time. The Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker comes with the plastic clips which are not very sturdy and I feel that they will not last for a long time.
Instead of using the plastic clips, the company should have used the metal clips to make them more durable.
The design of the Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker is not very attractive. You can say that design was not the main concern of the company, after all, it is only a tracker. The dimensions of the tracker are 1.61×2.01×0.59 inches and weight around 1.23 ounces. It is not very large and obstructive on the collar.
On the back of the tracker, you get the QR code which you can scan to activate the tracker. The Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker is also waterproof and it comes with the IPX7 water rating which is a major plus.
It can stay up to 1 meter of water for 30 minutes which is great. Overall, I’m satisfied with the design of Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker and it is also built well.
Web Portal & Apps Performance
Tractive allows you to track your pet using the Web portal or the app. The company offers the Tractive GPS App for both Android & IOS. You can also track your pet using the web portal.
Let’s start with the web portal. To start using the web portal, you will need to create your account and enter all the information of your pet such as breed and other general information. Once you setup the profile, you can start tracking your pet.
On the web portal, you get the fence option, history, and live option. The fence option allows you to know your pet position and your safe area. Once your pet leaves the safe area, you can start the live tracking of your pet. In the history section, you will find the location History of your Pet. Overall, the Web portal is easy to use.
When it comes to the app, you can set up the account very easily. The app asks you various questions about your breed and the information gets stored in the app. The app also comes with the AR Tracking feature which you will only find on the Mobile app and it is not available on the Web Portal.
Performance of Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker
In this section, I will share my thoughts on Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker and discuss the different features I tested during my time with it.
Let’s start with the Safe zone feature. The best thing about Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker is that it comes with circles and rectangles safe zones which you can pick according to your choice.
It is a great feature especially when many Pet trackers only offer circular safe zones. However, there are pet trackers available out there that offer more customized geo-fences but still, something is better than nothing.
I set the rectangle sage zone for my pet and one thing I noticed that it doesn’t offer full control over the size of the safe zone. The minimum radius is 164-foot which can be huge especially if you have a small yard or live in a congested area.
The app provides the alerts when your pet leaves the safe zone but there is no text notification available. Once my pet left the area the app sent a push notification after 2 minutes which is a huge difference.
I tried it again and the second time I got the almost same duration. However, the delay wasn’t consistent and the best turnaround time was 11 seconds.
After receiving the notification about the perimeter breach, I was able to track my pet with the live tracking feature that gets updated every second. However, the biggest problem with the live tracking is that it eats a lot of battery and the feature automatically turns off after 15 minutes to save the battery.
According to the company, Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker offers a battery life of 8 hours if you enable the live tracking feature all the time. In normal use, it lasts for around 5 days which is not bad.
When it comes to the accuracy of GPS technology, it is debatable. GPS signals can get affected by the weather, magnetic fields from electrical transformers, walls or by trees. That’s why make sure to consider then the area where you are living when buying the Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker.
If you pick the premium package then you get the location history option which you can use to know the exact location of your pet during the day.
Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker also comes with a pretty accurate activity tracking system. The tracker keeps all records of the activity of your pet and shows that information in the app. The app categorizes the activity level into three main sections: Calm, Active and Playful. It also provides the activity summary and also daily activity in the form of a graph.
The tracker also keeps track of the sleep of your pet and provide the complete sleep analysis. It also shows the sleeping behavior where you can learn about valuable metrics such as deep sleep, light sleep, etc. which will help you know if your pet is getting quality sleep or not.
You can also set the activity goals in the app and compare it with the activity of your friend’s pets. Overall, I’m satisfied with the accuracy of activity tracking and it provides very useful information.
You can download the Pet’s activity reports from the portal and you can export it in GPX or KML file formats. Both formats are the XML formats and you can use them in Google Earth and other programs.
Overall, my experience with the Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker was okay. The thing which I liked the most was that it was pretty easy to use. It comes with good battery life and tracking is also decent.
However, it can be compromised by factors such as bad weather and other variable factors but I also acknowledged that it is the problem with the GPS technology itself.
The thing which I didn’t like about the Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker is that it doesn’t come with Bluetooth and WiFi location services. I also experienced the lag in the notification turnaround which can be a deal-breaker for some people. Also, the plastic clips for collars are not very sturdy.
Bottom Line
Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker is surely a great tracker but just like other trackers, it also has its limitations. My experience with the Tractive GPS 3G Pet Tracker was okay and you can also use it if it fits your needs.
If you have any questions, please let me know in the comment section below. Also, visit the website for more useful guides.
As a professional trainer and a gadget lover, I’ve spent a lot of money and time buying wearable activity trackers, smartwatches, and gadgets, and checking them out. My site is focused on helping you with your activity tracking and smart technology journey. I try to provide the most helpful updated content on this subject. Hopefully, you will love my blogs and be a regular around here.
