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Face ID works with face masks now

S

SW3029

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Sep 22, 2019
525
2,684
Anyone else notice that Face ID works with face masks for unlocking the main iPhone screen in iOS 14?

I have no idea why Apple didn’t announce this feature. But I’ve tried it 20 different times now with my iPhone running iOS 14 and me wearing a face mask and it unlocks every time.
 
My 11 running iOS 14 has never unlocked my phone while wearing a mask.
 
FaceID has always worked the majority of the time for me even when wearing a mask (or, during ski season, when wearing goggles, etc). Perhaps they tweaked the algorithm a bit and it now works for you. I suspect it depends on the individual and how confidently it can identify the parts of the face that are still visible.
 
Doesn’t work for me but that gave me an idea to set up a second Face ID with me wearing a mask. Sadly, the system is clever enough to disallow that!
 
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SW3029 said:
Anyone else notice that Face ID works with face masks for unlocking the main iPhone screen in iOS 14?

I have no idea why Apple didn’t announce this feature. But I’ve tried it 20 different times now with my iPhone running iOS 14 and me wearing a face mask and it unlocks every time.
Click to expand...
There really isn't something new as much as there are some mixed experiences with that even with iOS 13: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/face-id-working-with-mask-on.2252292/
 
Last edited:
It started to work for me a few weeks ago. It doesn’t even matter which mask. Oddly it only seems to work with unlocking the phone. I have faceid activated for WhatsApp and it asks me for my passcode. Same when I try to access my passwords. A bit strange
 
itsmilo said:
It started to work for me a few weeks ago. It doesn’t even matter which mask. Oddly it only seems to work with unlocking the phone. I have faceid activated for WhatsApp and it asks me for my passcode. Same when I try to access my passwords. A bit strange
Click to expand...

That's funny. My iPhone will only unlock the lock screen when I have a face mask on, too. If I use Face ID in an app on my iPhone with my mask on it won't unlock the app.
 
FaceID improves over time, and this isn't new to iOS 14. To the extent it doesn't unlock because of a face covering and you need to enteryour passcode, it actually learns to adapt to "who you are" (it's still scanning/observing your face).
 
I think after 6 months of mask use apple hasn't enabled FaceID with mask. Actually having to type all the time on the screen is not the best way to keep you cel virus free
 
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Nothing has changed for me on this. Still entering my passcode every time I'm wearing a mask out.

OTOH, I now use my Apple Watch to pay for everything as its less cumbersome to do that than try to pull up Apple Pay on my iPhone while wearing a mask.
 
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SW3029 said:
Anyone else notice that Face ID works with face masks for unlocking the main iPhone screen in iOS 14?

I have no idea why Apple didn’t announce this feature. But I’ve tried it 20 different times now with my iPhone running iOS 14 and me wearing a face mask and it unlocks every time.
Click to expand...
It works about 60% of the time and it depends on the mask I’m using. Not bad I don’t use my phone too much with covid when out in the general public like before. But I can see why this would be in convenient if they work with a mask all day.
 
Well, couple of days ago Faceid started unlocking my iPhone 12 pro max (which I have since November) while I’m wearing mask on, and I don’t have Apple Watch, finally! Why did it take so long?
 
iPhone 12 mini: Doesn't work for me. It sometimes can't even recognise me when I'm without a mask.
 
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