iOS 14.5 Tries To Solve Face ID's Mask Problem With Your Apple Watch (theverge.com) 39
Apple's latest iPhones stuck with Face ID as the singular method of biometric authentication in an era when people are wearing face masks everywhere they go. This inevitably means having to enter your passcode constantly throughout the day. But Apple has come up with a stopgap solution that should make it easier to get into your phone during mask life -- as long as you've got an Apple Watch. From a report: As first reported by Pocket-lint, the new iOS 14.5 update, which went into beta today, uses the Apple Watch on your wrist to quickly authenticate and unlock your iPhone. Apple already offers this convenient trick on the Mac, but now it's coming to the iPhone as well. It works similarly here. You lift your iPhone to turn on the screen, and you'll feel a little nudge of haptic feedback on your Apple Watch to indicate that your iPhone has been unlocked. The devices must be in close proximity for this to work in the first place, which is a measure to keep your data secure. (If the Apple Watch is locked, this won't work either.) And this Apple Watch shortcut is only good for unlocking your iPhone; App Store and iTunes purchases will still require other authentication if your face is covered. And as a final security check, you'll still be asked to put in your passcode every few hours even when unlock with Apple Watch is enabled.
Yes! (Score:2)
I've been waiting for this. Moved to a FaceID phone from a TouchID phone, and the mask thing is a real drag.
Re: (Score:2)
I've been waiting for this. Moved to a FaceID phone from a TouchID phone, and the mask thing is a real drag.
So did they remove the touch id and not give you a choice? I would hate face id and much prefer touch id.
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I've been waiting for this. Moved to a FaceID phone from a TouchID phone, and the mask thing is a real drag.
So did they remove the touch id and not give you a choice? I would hate face id and much prefer touch id.
Yes, I don't think any units have both yet. Although they did put the Touch ID on one of the side buttons on their last iPad Air, so if they could have both on the next iPhones if they weren't too far into the design process by the time this became a problem and everyone started wearing masks.
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So did they remove the touch id and not give you a choice? I would hate face id and much prefer touch id.
The choices in the iOS ecosystem are either to use an iPhone SE2, or use one of the discontinued pre-iPhone-X models. IMHO, Apple's "my way or the highway" approach is one of the more obnoxious things about their product lines, because sometimes it truly feels as if they're testing your fucking loyalty to their brand rather than actually making their products better.
"..so we thought, why not put a big friggen notch right in the top of the screen, and use that gesture for throwing a Pokeball to return to th
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So did they remove the touch id and not give you a choice? I would hate face id and much prefer touch id.
Well, the "choice" you have (assuming you want to stay in Apple's ecosystem) is between using one of their expensive pretty phones or the much less expensive SE.
I chose the latter - in part because I prefer Touch ID, but mostly because I'm not spending $900+ on a freaking cell phone ever again.
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I don't want to risk authorities at any point (or any nefarious entities either) to be able to hold a phone up to my face to unlock it, or put my finger to it.
I just use a decently long passcode.
I'm used to doing this for my phones all these past years....it isn't that much of a burden to do it now.
I get the biometric is convenient, but I guess if you care about who can easily compel you to open your phone, don't use them.
Easy Solution (Score:1)
I don't want to risk authorities at any point (or any nefarious entities either) to be able to hold a phone up to my face to unlock it, or put my finger to it
For face biometrics at least, just train your device on a really goofy face, they won't know to tell you to make a super quizzical expression and rase your eyebrows as far as possible.. then you can just claim it's not working.
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That's funny....
I"d heard tales of people going to get their drivers license pictures taken while they were hammered...so
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You aren't that important, seriously.
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I watched more people enter their mobile phones passwords than I have 3D models of other peoples faces.
For most people the realistic adversarial scenario is some thieves watching them enter their passcode. For the other people the scenario is a rubber hose.
Also looking forward to this (Score:4, Insightful)
The Apple Watch unlock works so well on my laptop and desktop I hardly notice it happening, will be fantastic for repeated iPhone unlocking in a place like a grocery store where you want to check a list several times.
They should just leave that feature on even when we don't all have to wear masks as much, for times like winter when people might have faces covered, or for some sunglasses that do not work well with FaceID.
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will be fantastic for repeated iPhone unlocking in a place like a grocery store where you want to check a list several times.
Or you could use a piece of paper with the list on it and not have to repeatedly unlock anything because the list is always visible.
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Or you could use a piece of paper with the list on it
I'm curious to hear how my wife can add items to that paper list while I am en-route or inside the store?
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Is "paper" a new tablet brand with always on screen?
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I'm just amazed that they waited until 2021 to do this. Android has had it for a long, long time... At least 5 years, probably more.
You can select any Bluetooth device in close proximity to bypass the lock screen. There are other options too like on-body detection which only locks when you put the device down or in your pocket for more than a few seconds.
Or they could have the courage to bring the fingerprint sensor back, like Google did for the Pixel 5. Oh, but then there would be one less reason to buy an
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I'm just amazed that they waited until 2021 to do this.
That's because Apple actually cares about user security.
You can select any Bluetooth device in close proximity to bypass the lock screen.
That is, to pardon my French, a fucking stupid idea. Then anyone can easily unlock it. The whole point of the Apple Watch is that once it's on your wrist and unlocked, from that point forward it's a trusted device, not some easily cloned bluetooth key anyone could use.
I mean it's great that it technically works and a
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So I can feel cool again with my old iPhone7 with fingerprint rec.
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what does that have to do with iphones?
Or they could license existing tech? (Score:2)
"Japanese semiconductor maker THine Electronics has developed a facial recognition system that can record body temperatures from less than a foot away and identify individuals even while wearing face masks."
https://asia.nikkei.com/Spotli... [nikkei.com]
Less than (Score:2)
> that can record body temperatures from less than a foot away
Pretty sure Galileo made an instrument that can take the temperature from less than a foot away. A glass tube with a bulb at one end, partially filled with liquid - pretty much the same as the mercury and alcohol thermometers we grew up with.
Galileo's can even take the temperature from negative distance away.
Apparently thermometers were popular for a while before somebody had the idea of marking them with degrees. Until then, you could only sa
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I unlock my android phone by using the fingerprint sensor on the back. It also turns on the screen. I can do it without the screen facing me. My screen is on and unlocked before I am even looking at the phone.
Is this a totally solved problem for people who use rear fingerprint sensors? Or am I just missing out on how awesome face unlock was before COVID?
It is awesome - more so than fingerprint IDs - when you're not wearing a mask. FaceID works better than TouchID when you've been working a bit outside, just cleaned your hands or the house, worked out and have sweaty hands etc. After masks got popular I wish the device supported both, though.
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They took off the fingerprint sensors when they added face unlock.
Its annoying AF, they should have had both.
Improved security (Score:2, Funny)
That's not how it works (Score:5, Informative)
Next thief: "Give us your phone AND your watch!"
That wouldn't help, as after you take an Apple Watch off and put it back on is that you have to unlock the Apple Watch before it unlocks anything - which either requires you to enter a pin on the watch, or unlock the phone which in turn unlocks the Apple Watch you are wearing automatically. Since they don't know your pin for phone or Apple Watch it's not helpful to take the watch also for purposes of unlocking the phone...
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Fancy security schemes are no match for physical brutality. I guess it's time for the obligatory reminder from xkcd. [xkcd.com]
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Youing your you! (Score:1)
If *I* don't have an iPhone or an apple watch, how can I *not* read this article without seeing every line as a lie?
I expect the heavy dose of "you" in an apple ad that's trying to sell me an apple device by trying to have me imagine owning all of these apple things ("your phone" "your watch" etc). Why the fuck should this ad copy be copied into "reporting" by "journalists" exactly?
Here's a simple solution (Score:2)
iOS 14.5 should remind you every day to go get vaccinated and when you upload your vaccination record card to your wallet, it stops reminding you and tells you that you can now stop wearing a mask.
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iOS 14.5 should remind you every day to go get vaccinated and when you upload your vaccination record card to your wallet, it stops reminding you and tells you that you can now stop wearing a mask.
Except getting vaccinated just helps your body avoid getting sick if you get infected, not from getting infected at all. Vaccinated people can still be carriers and infect other people, especially if they haven't had their second dose yet, or waited for the second dose to become fully activated (which could take a number of weeks).
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Yea, but not wearing a mask will get you a hairy eyeball by folks and possible confrontations. Even when I get a vaccine, I’ll continue to wear a mask. Just to avoid the, “I got vaccinated so I don’t need to wear a mask” conversations.
[John]
Unsupported (Score:2)
I bought an Apple Watch 3 years back and about a year ago, it stopped being able to get updated due to lack of space on the watch. After being bugged about updating the watch over and over again, I finally left it on my dresser. It also kept changing the clock face every few weeks which was irritating to no end.
[John]