My tether tag set up on my iPhone. Adrian Kingsley-Hughes/ZDNET
You might have heard of tether tags. These little tags offer a way to prevent phone snatching theft, a crime that's on the increase. The idea is you fit the little T-shaped plastic or fabric tag between the smartphone and the case it's in, clip a wrist lanyard to it, and bingo, no more theft.
I first saw these on social media -- I remember there being quite a bit of hype about them -- and then I later bought one from a UK company specializing in gear for first responders, police, and the military. I wanted one less for the theft prevention and more to stop me from dropping or losing my phone when hiking.
Also: Why I recommend this power bank to most iPhone users - especially if you travel often
The one I bought was expensive and only available in the UK. After people started asking me about them after my post about travel security gadgets, I decided to see how good tether tags from Amazon and eBay actually are.
I bought a bunch of tether tags. Adrian Kingsley-Hughes/ZDNET
So, I bought a bunch. In fact, I went a bit overboard and in all bought a few dozen. I bought polymer tags, fabric tags, and even metal tags. Some were a couple of bucks for a dozen, some were a few bucks for a handful, and there was one that was $16 for a tag and a wrist strap (spoiler: this was a good one).
Also: This stuff has replaced super glue for my electronic repairs - and it's cheaper
I then did a little research. I used some luggage scales to measure the sort of force I could achieve trying to snatch a phone from someone. I found the limiting factor to be grip strength, but I could get a good 50 pounds of pull force.
I had a look around and found a 56-pound weight to use as the test weight.
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