Fi Collar Series 3 Dog Product Review 2024: Pros, Cons & Final Verdict

How Does the Fi Collar Work?

Every pet parent has been there. A few seconds ago, your dog was by your side, but you turned your back and suddenly they’re nowhere to be found. While thankfully, many of these situations resolve within seconds, unfortunately, sometimes our pets can become lost for a longer period of time. The Fi Collar Series 3 can literally save the day by tracking your dog and alerting you when they’re out of their house or away from your side by using GPS and LTE technology.

Even if your pet is microchipped, the Fi collar Series 3 is worth the investment as a potentially life-saving safety tool because it helps you recover your pet faster. Since statistics show that you’re more likely to find your dog within the first 48 hours after they become missing, every second counts when they become lost. With the Fi app, you can even add people to your pet’s account, such as sitters, relatives, or friends (or anyone with a smart phone who you trust really), to help watch your dog and keep them safe.

Fi Collar – A Quick Look

Fi Collar Pricing

Fi Collar operates off a subscription service since it uses LTE and GPS technology. It’s like paying a cell phone bill for your pet, but much cheaper. Fi Collar ranges between $3.20/week to $4.40/week depending on billing options. Purchasing a 2-year plan upfront is cheaper, but there are annual, semi-annual, and monthly options that cost less outright. The collar itself is free—including shipping costs. There is a one-time $20 account activation fee on top of the subscription price. When Fi releases new hardware, they ship new collars to their members free of charge. You can sign up for a Fi membership on their website here.

What to Expect from Fi Collar

When signing up for Fi collar, you’ll need the approximate circumference of your dog’s neck to determine the size. You’ll also choose from a variety of fun colors and patterns to suit your pup’s personality. There are four billing options depending on whether you want the monthly, 6-month, 1-year, or 2-year subscription.

The product arrives with the band and hardware separate in the box with instructions on how to put them together. After assembling the collar, you plug in the base and set the collar on it to charge. The collar initially connects to your phone through Bluetooth as you download the Fi app, as per the included instructions. Afterwards, it’s recommended that you connect the base to your home internet for the most accurate results, but you’ll still need to keep Bluetooth enabled on your phone for updates.

Fi Collar Contents

Real-Time Tracking

The Fi collar tracks your pet’s location and activity level. The step counter lets you know the distance they’ve traveled in a day and even ranks them compared to other Fi dogs in their city. The app also tells you how many hours they’ve snoozed in a day in case you’re wondering what they do during all of those hours you’re at work.

Most importantly, the GPS and LTE technology keeps you up to date with where your pet is. You can set your home base in the app, and it will send you notifications and emails when your pet steps out of that radius without an owner.  If your pet is lost, you can set the app to Lost Dog Mode, which provides their location in real time. Through the social media link on the app, you can also send out an alert to your local Fi community that your dog is lost and needs help.

Durability

As technology shifts, Fi ships new generation collars to active members free of charge. Their collars are also protected under a limited 6-month warranty that covers manufacturing defects. While it doesn’t cover normal wear and tear, the Fi collar hardware has a stainless-steel frame that’s waterproof and able to withstand 440 pounds of resistance, which means it shouldn’t wear out any time soon.

Battery Life

When the battery is running low, Fi sends an alert to your email or phone. The Fi base functions as a central hub that can track your dog in their home while you’re away and as a wireless charging station. Once you receive the notification that your dog’s collar is under 20%, simply take the collar off and line up the Fi hardware to the base. The magnet holds the collar in place as it charges, which generally takes about 3 hours to complete.

While the product description boasts a long battery life of up to 3 months, the length of the charge varies depending on usage.

Is Fi Collar a Good Value?

The 2-year subscription gives you the best value for the Fi collar since the overall price is reduced by 25%.

Because of the GPS and LTE configuration, Fi Series 3 collar works much better than similar products that rely on cell service. This is a perk for people who live in remote locations or who like to hike with their dogs in places where they may not receive a signal. Wi-Fi is not a requirement for this product to work. You can keep your pet’s collar connected to the home base through Bluetooth, which is helpful if you don’t have internet or aren’t home much.

Fi technology is quite accurate, and it really could save your pet’s life in a pinch. The collar gives you peace of mind when you’re not home and protects your pet when they’re with a sitter or on vacation. The activity trackers and social media rankings on the app are a fun bonus feature as well.

FAQ

Does the Fi collar come with a warranty?

The Fi collar is supported by a limited 6-month warranty that covers manufacturing defects and software issues. However, the Fi subscription is non-refundable since it’s a prepaid service.

Can you buy a replacement band?

Yes. The Fi collar Series 3 is available in five sizes and a variety of pattern choices. For $29, you can buy a replacement band here as your puppy grows or your tastes change. The replacement band must be a part of the same series to fit.

How accurate is the Fi Collar Series 3?

For everyday tracking, the Fi collar uses LTE connectivity to stay in touch with your pet and Bluetooth to connect to your phone and home base. Lost Pet Mode enables GPS tracking in real-time. The Fi Series 3 collar is precise and reasonable in response time to daily events. Most importantly, it’s able to go live when needed.

Our Experience With Fi Collar Series 3

Tuggles received his Fi Series 3 collar in the mail a few months ago and has been wearing it ever since.

Tuggles is a 17-pound Maltipoo with a very curious nature and a heart for people. He’s easily distracted by treats, toys, small children, and pretty much anything that piques his interest, so he has drifted off before in search of cookouts and fun times. Having the Fi collar reassured me that I would find him soon if he somehow escaped. Plus, we were living in a pretty unsafe area at the time, so I worried about him being stolen.

The collar was easy to assemble and set up. Wifi is not something I currently have access to, so the charging base functioned off of Bluetooth. This method slightly affected response time and required me to charge the battery more often but I was still impressed with the results, which is why I continue to use this product every single day!

My experience with Fi was positive since the product is effective, reliable, and true to the hype. Fi Collar Series 3 is a great product overall, and honestly, probably one of the best on the market.

Conclusion

With GPS, LTE, and Bluetooth, the Fi Series 3 Collar uses a combination of modern technologies to make sure your pup stays safe. The app is easy to use and features activity trackers such as sleep monitors and step counters. Having access to your pup’s location is a fun and cool way to stay connected with them when you’re not home. The locations are accurate and when you activate Lost Dog Mode, the precision of the live tracker will have you reunited with your little wanderer in no time.