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Lezyne Matrix Saddle Tagger

5
£18.00

VERDICT:

5
10
Nicely made AirTag mount, but too obviously a tracking device
Easy to use
Protects AirTag from the elements
Outside the bike
Rather easy to find
Weight: 
28g

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The Lezyne Matrix Saddle Tagger is easy to fit and protects an AirTag well, but is under the saddle really the best place for a security tag?

Note: this review focuses solely on the nuts and bolts of the Lezyne Matrix Saddle Tagger. For more on the broader notion of AirTags as security devices, see my review of the Lezyne Matrix Air Cage.

This thing here is a simple mount that holds an Apple AirTag under your seat, so you can use Apple's Find My network to track your bike if it gets stolen.

Getting your AirTag in is simple. You take out the screw, twist the halves one eighth of a turn, pop in the AirTag and reverse the process to close.

2023 Lezyne Matrix Saddle Tagger - open.jpg

The Saddle Tagger then mounts under your seat with a T25 security bolt. The bolt has a tiny protrusion in the middle of so you need a 'security' bit to turn it, and Lezyne includes one. These bits are freely available (it turned out I already had one in my Wera Zyklop set), but they're an extra level of inconvenience for any thief.

2023 Lezyne Matrix Saddle Tagger - security bit.jpg

Fitting can be fiddly. While saddle rail size and spacing is one of the few standards that almost the whole bike industry still honours, the Saddle Tagger doesn't leave much rail space for anything else you might want to hang under your saddle. I managed to fit a large saddle pack, but only because I tend to shove my saddles well back. If you wanted to mount, say, a light bracket or a clip for a bag system, you're going to struggle.

Once it's on, though, the Saddle Tagger just sits there. It's made of grown-up plastic so it doesn't impede the radio signals the AirTag uses, and the O-ring seal keeps out the wet.

2023 Lezyne Matrix Saddle Tagger - parts.jpg

However, it doesn't provide the best concealment. It sticks out of the back of your saddle unless you're able to mount it hard against the seatpost on a saddle that's set well back anyway, and since it doesn't do anything but hold an AirTag it seems likely to attract the attention of any tech-savvy thief.

I'd be much happier with Lezyne's Matrix Air Cage, which camouflages the Airtag and will hopefully slow down a thief long enough for you to recover the bike.

2023 Lezyne Matrix Air Cage - 1.jpg

The Saddle Tagger would be better concealed if it fit under the nose of the saddle, like the Hinloopen Design AirTag mount does. Then again, the only saddle I could find that fitted was an old Brooks B17 with its flat rails.

Rivals

We've not reviewed any other under-saddle AirTag mounts, but you'll find loads of them on Amazon and eBay. Of widgets from bike brands, we like the look of Laut's £14.99 AirTag Saddle Mount, the very similar widget from Ninja Mount for £14.60, and the £29 luxury option from Hinloopen Design which can fit under the nose of your saddle as well as out the back, so it's very well concealed.

It's also worth looking at RaceWare's selection of 3D-printed mounts, which hide an AirTag inside mounts for other devices (such as the Cycliq Fly 6 camera or Garmin Varia) and cost £15 to £35. I'm surprised they don't do one that puts an AirTag inside an out-front Garmin GPS mount.

Conclusions

This holds and protects an AirTag well, but sticking out from under the saddle it's a bit too obviously a tracking device.

Who should buy it?

If your primary aim with an AirTag is to help your loved ones find your body if you fail to come home, then the Lezyne Matrix Saddle Tagger does the job. Given how obvious it is, though, I wouldn't use it as a security device.

Verdict

Nicely made AirTag mount, but too obviously a tracking device

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road.cc test report

Make and model: Lezyne Matrix Saddle Tagger

Size tested: Width: 59.1mm. Length: 58.5mm. Height: 22.6mm.

Tell us what the product is for and who it's aimed at. What do the manufacturers say about it? How does that compare to your own feelings about it?

It holds an Apple AirTag under your saddle. Lezyne says:

"A clean and simple holder for an Apple AirTag*, the Matrix Saddle Tagger is a smart addition to any bicycle. Built from our lightweight, super durable Composite Matrix material, it neatly and discreetly attaches underneath a bike seat by clamping onto its rails. Mounting is simple and secure with an IPX7 waterproof-rated twist-lock design held together with an included TR25 security bolt, which also clamps it to the saddle rails. Once mounted, the hidden tagger can be used with Apple's 'FindMy' network to help locate a lost or stolen bicycle. It is also tested and verified to work with the ultra-wideband signal."

Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?

Includes TR25 security bolts and tool.

Ultra-wideband tested.

Rate the product for quality of construction:
 
8/10

Tidily moulded.

Rate the product for performance:
 
5/10

It works well at holding an AirTag, but it's rather obviously a tracking device; to be useful as a security aid it needs better concealment.

Rate the product for durability:
 
8/10

Experience suggests Lezyne's Matrix plastic is tough as old boots.

Rate the product for weight (if applicable)
 
9/10
Rate the product for value:
 
5/10

Middling; there are cheaper AirTag saddle mounts as well as spendier ones.

Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose

Mostly fine except for its lack of stealth.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the product

Tidy construction and good o-ring sealing to keep out the wet.

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product

It's just not well hidden.

How does the price compare to that of similar products in the market, including ones recently tested on road.cc?

We've not reviewed any other under-saddle AirTag mounts, but you'll find loads on Amazon and eBay. Of widgets from bike brands, we like the look of Laut's £14.99 AirTag Saddle Mount, the very similar 16.80 Euro widget from Ninja Mount, and the £29 luxury option from Hinloopen Design. It's also worth looking at RaceWare's selection of 3D-printed mounts, which hide an AirTag inside mounts for other devices (like the Cycliq Fly 6 camera or Garmin Varia) and cost £15 to £35.

Did you enjoy using the product? It didn't reassure me the way Lezyne's Matrix Air Cage does

Would you consider buying the product? No

Would you recommend the product to a friend? No

Use this box to explain your overall score

The Lezyne Matrix Saddle Tagger fulfils its brief as a widget to hold an AirTag under your seat, but it's not well concealed enough to be a serious addition to your security arsenal.

Overall rating: 5/10

About the tester

Age: 56  Height: 5ft 11in  Weight: 100kg

I usually ride: Scapin Style  My best bike is:

I've been riding for: Over 20 years  I ride: Most days  I would class myself as: Expert

I regularly do the following types of riding: commuting, touring, club rides, general fitness riding, mtb,

John has been writing about bikes and cycling for over 30 years since discovering that people were mug enough to pay him for it rather than expecting him to do an honest day's work.

He was heavily involved in the mountain bike boom of the late 1980s as a racer, team manager and race promoter, and that led to writing for Mountain Biking UK magazine shortly after its inception. He got the gig by phoning up the editor and telling him the magazine was rubbish and he could do better. Rather than telling him to get lost, MBUK editor Tym Manley called John’s bluff and the rest is history.

Since then he has worked on MTB Pro magazine and was editor of Maximum Mountain Bike and Australian Mountain Bike magazines, before switching to the web in 2000 to work for CyclingNews.com. Along with road.cc founder Tony Farrelly, John was on the launch team for BikeRadar.com and subsequently became editor in chief of Future Publishing’s group of cycling magazines and websites, including Cycling Plus, MBUK, What Mountain Bike and Procycling.

John has also written for Cyclist magazine, edited the BikeMagic website and was founding editor of TotalWomensCycling.com before handing over to someone far more representative of the site's main audience.

He joined road.cc in 2013. He lives in Cambridge where the lack of hills is more than made up for by the headwinds.

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