iPhone X Is it me, or does Face ID suck? [MERGED]

[MrAbramski123]

I am a biker and i have the iphone Xs, it even recognizes my face with my helmet on, its a closed helmet with a plastic vizer, so only my eyes and a part of my nose is visible for the face id sensors and it just unlocks like always! Now its wintertime so i use very thick gloves, and when i was using my old iphone 6 with touch id, i had to take of my gloves to look at my notifications (i have 2 very curious lil sisters so my notifs arent safe), but now i just glance at it with the helmet on and it works. Face id gen 2 is worth it!

 

[sean000]

So you feel it’s easier to hover over or lift up and iPad to make sure it’s in front of your face instead of placing your finger on a button to unlock an iPad?

Actually the optimal distance for FaceID to work (where it's not too close or too far) is where my iPad always is when I'm using it on a table. It's also propped at an angle that will work perfectly for FaceID. I never use my iPad flat on a table. It's much easier to see and use when it's propped at a shallow angle.

 

[yukari]

I don’t know. You literally have to take more steps to unlock your iPhone with Face ID.

With the fingerprint scanner you can unlock the phone before you even look at it.

More steps? I’m not sure what you mean by that. All I do is pick up the phone and swipe up.

I can only assume you mean swiping up is more step then pushing the home button.

 

[eyeseeyou]

More steps? I’m not sure what you mean by that. All I do is pick up the phone and swipe up.

I can only assume you mean swiping up is more step then pushing the home button.

Not exactly. You can swipe up without it being within a certain range and it won’t work. It has to be in front of your face.

 

[AZhappyjack]

So I have to be honest... I finally broke down and got the iPhone X... I'm coming from a 5s... So it was kind of overdue for me to get a new phone... While I think the new iPhone X is cool... I have to admit ID is pretty horrible compared to the touch ID. It's a step backwards. There were so many situations where it was easy to open my phone with Touch ID, where it's hard to open it with Face ID. And there are a too many situations where I just can't open the phone at all (because it doesn't recognize me...) unless I use my password... I'm disappointed... Is apple really getting rid of touch ID forever? Or are they going to introduce it back into the glass of the next iPhone? Also, can this face ID be improved with a software update? Or am I stuck with it like it is?

To answer the question that you pose in your title, it's you. I was quite leery of FaceID... but since getting my Xs Max, it works wonderfully. I don't miss TouchID at all...

 

[sean000]

Not exactly. You can swipe up without it being within a certain range and it won’t work. It has to be in front of your face.

I’ve always found my iPhone to be more useful when it’s in front of my face anyway. Otherwise I’m just fondling a flat rectangle

I get what you’re saying though: FaceID may fail if your iPhone is too close or at too extreme an angle. I wouldn’t say that adds steps to using FaceID anymore than TouchID failing because your thumb is too wet, gloved, or just having a bad thumbprint day (my left thumb has never worked consistently for any of my TouchID devices).

Both types of authentication can fail, but when they both work it’s one step to put your thumb on the home button and one step to swipe up on a FaceID device. When it comes to opening secure apps it is still one step for TouchID but zero steps for FaceID.

 

[mrochester]

So you feel it’s easier to hover over or lift up and iPad to make sure it’s in front of your face instead of placing your finger on a button to unlock an iPad?

I find it’s much easier to have Face ID authenticate me when using the iPad instead of hunting around for Touch ID. I also find Face ID is much more reliable to unlock when I have wet hands just after having a shower or washing the dishes.

 

[ssledoux]

To answer the question that you pose in your title, it's you. I was quite leery of FaceID... but since getting my Xs Max, it works wonderfully. I don't miss TouchID at all...

I have to agree. I balked at getting a phone with Face ID and I can’t imagine going back.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

I’ve still not got any issues using touchID on my 8+. This discussion still feels like arguing over shades of green lol.

 

[Ralfi]

So you feel it’s easier to hover over or lift up and iPad to make sure it’s in front of your face instead of placing your finger on a button to unlock an iPad?

I can’t see a reason to unlock an iPad when you’re not looking at it.

Mine is always on a stand, facing me. Or I’m holding it in my hand, facing me.

Face ID is much better than Touch ID on the iPad, in both usability & success rate.

 

[ssledoux]

I’ve still not got any issues using touchID on my 8+. This discussion still feels like arguing over shades of green lol.

The only time I ever had issues with my 8+ was if my fingers were wet, and I mean like still in the tub wet. I thought Touch ID was fantastic, and I had no desire to give it up.

Since I’ve started using Face ID, I DO appreciate the ease of using it, and it’s been weird still using Touch ID on my iPad. I’ve just gotten my new pro though, so that’s about to change as well.

 

[eyeseeyou]

I can’t see a reason to unlock an iPad when you’re not looking at it.

Mine is always on a stand, facing me. Or I’m holding it in my hand, facing me.

Face ID is much better than Touch ID on the iPad, in both usability & success rate.

So with fingerprint scanning, assuming your hands are dry and not covered in dirt, you grab or just touch your home button and it’s unlocked regardless of the phones/tablets orientation.

With Face ID, after you’ve set it up or placed stands everywhere you use your iPad or have grabbed your phone and have placed it in front of your facce and it’s within the required distance and you’re not wearing anything that will cover your face and it doesn’t require you to enter in your passcode due to unintentionally tapping your screen to wake up too much and it scans your face correctly the first time, it’s easier and better than a fingerprint scanner.
[doublepost=1547918912][/doublepost]If you write down the steps it takes to unlock an iPhone under optimal conditions between face scanning and fingerprint scanning it takes more steps to unlock and or use Apple Pay.

I’ve been using an x for the last year and although it’s not a deal breaker and it has its advantages over a finger scanner I can’t say it’s easier to use in terms of unlocking an iPhone or using Apple Pay.

Authentication within apps is awesome with Face ID.

Oh yeah still hate that notch.

 

[ssledoux]

So with fingerprint scanning, assuming your hands are dry and not covered in dirt, you grab your phone with your finger on the button and it’s unlocked before it’s in front of your face.

With Face ID, after you’ve set it up or placed stands everywhere you use your iPad or have grabbed your phone and have placed it in front of your facce and it’s within the required distance and you’re not wearing anything that will cover your face and it doesn’t require you to enter in your passcode due to unintentionally tapping your screen to wake up too much and it scans your face correctly the first time, it’s easier and better than a fingerprint scanner.
[doublepost=1547918912][/doublepost]If you write down the steps it takes to unlock an iPhone under optimal conditions between face scanning and fingerprint scanning it takes more steps to unlock and or use Apple Pay.

I’ve been using an x for the last year and although it’s not a deal breaker and it has its advantages over a finger scanner I can’t say it’s easier to use in terms of unlocking an iPhone or using Apple Pay.

Authentication within apps is awesome with Face ID.

Oh yeah still hate that notch.

I definitely think there are a couple cons. I did like using the Touch ID and being able to just have the phone opened already by the time it got to me, but I really like Face ID within apps - it’s pretty much like not ever having to unlock it, which is nice.

Haven’t tried Apple Pay yet because I just can’t seem to find enough places that do it, and I often forget about it because of that, although I’d likely just use my watch.

 

[I7guy]

So with fingerprint scanning, assuming your hands are dry and not covered in dirt, you grab your phone with your finger on the button and it’s unlocked before it’s in front of your face.

With Face ID, after you’ve set it up or placed stands everywhere you use your iPad or have grabbed your phone and have placed it in front of your facce and it’s within the required distance and you’re not wearing anything that will cover your face and it doesn’t require you to enter in your passcode due to unintentionally tapping your screen to wake up too much and it scans your face correctly the first time, it’s easier and better than a fingerprint scanner.
[doublepost=1547918912][/doublepost]If you write down the steps it takes to unlock an iPhone under optimal conditions between face scanning and fingerprint scanning it takes more steps to unlock and or use Apple Pay.

I’ve been using an x for the last year and although it’s not a deal breaker and it has its advantages over a finger scanner I can’t say it’s easier to use in terms of unlocking an iPhone or using Apple Pay.

Authentication within apps is awesome with Face ID.

Oh yeah still hate that notch.

I can’t get rid of that double click for Apple Pay. I assume though it’s to be able to select the correct card. Annoying nonetheless.

 

[eyeseeyou]

I can’t get rid of that double click for Apple Pay. I assume though it’s to be able to select the correct card. Annoying nonetheless.

If I remember correctly to use apple pay with a fingerprint scanner you just put your phone up to the terminal with your finger on the scanner and it automatically scans your finger and makes the transaction?

 

[sean000]

So with fingerprint scanning, assuming your hands are dry and not covered in dirt, you grab your phone with your finger on the button and it’s unlocked before it’s in front of your face.

With Face ID, after you’ve set it up or placed stands everywhere you use your iPad or have grabbed your phone and have placed it in front of your facce and it’s within the required distance and you’re not wearing anything that will cover your face and it doesn’t require you to enter in your passcode due to unintentionally tapping your screen to wake up too much and it scans your face correctly the first time, it’s easier and better than a fingerprint scanner.
[doublepost=1547918912][/doublepost]If you write down the steps it takes to unlock an iPhone under optimal conditions between face scanning and fingerprint scanning it takes more steps to unlock and or use Apple Pay.

I’ve been using an x for the last year and although it’s not a deal breaker and it has its advantages over a finger scanner I can’t say it’s easier to use in terms of unlocking an iPhone or using Apple Pay.

Authentication within apps is awesome with Face ID.

Oh yeah still hate that notch.

I agree with you that where FaceID can be more cumbersome when it fails and presents you with the PIN/passcode screen. Fortunately that improved a lot with ios12. If I accidentally tap the screen before it’s in front of my face, FaceID still works and I can still swipe to unlock. In ios11 I think it would force you to enter your PIN or passcode. Now, even when it fails and presents you with manual authentication you can still swipe to unlock... and it will work if the device is in front of your face. So there have been a lot of improvements even for the iPhone X. I have actually been quite amazed at how well FaceID recognizes me even when I thought too much of my face was covered. It works when I’m wearing my bike helmet and sunglasses, or a winter hat and scarf. Of course it has learned over time. The first week I had it the sunglasses would cause a fail, but by week 2 it learned to recognize my sunglasses.

I don’t have any experience using Apple Pay with the iPhone since I started using it in 2015 when I got my first Apple Watch. On the watch it’s just a double press of the home button, and maybe a swipe if you want to use a secondary form of payment.

I’m still a bit confused about your claim that TouchID is fewer steps than FaceID under optimal conditions when it comes to unlocking the device. On my iPad it’s a thumb to the home button and on my iPhone X it’s a swipe up. That’s one step and one step. Are you encountering more steps than that?

 

[I7guy]

If I remember correctly to use apple pay with a fingerprint scanner you just put your phone up to the terminal with your finger on the scanner and it automatically scans your finger and makes the transaction?

Finger print reader...press the fingerprint reader and hold near terminal. Transaction done. Don’t press fingerprint reader and hold near terminal one can select the credit card and when selected authenticate with the fingerprint reader.

Face ID...hold near terminal and authenticate with Face ID. Select credit card and then double press home button to finalize transaction.

 

[eyeseeyou]

Finger print reader...press the fingerprint reader and hold near terminal. Transaction done. Don’t press fingerprint reader and hold near terminal one can select the credit card and when selected authenticate with the fingerprint reader.

Face ID...hold near terminal and authenticate with Face ID. Select credit card and then double press home button to finalize transaction.

One slightly missing step after you hold it up to the terminal is reposition phone to be in front of your face before the scanning process begins right?

 

[I7guy]

One slightly missing step after you hold it up to the terminal is reposition phone to be in front of your face before the scanning process begins right?

Yes. Depending on there the reader is vs your face you may have to reposition phone.

 

[Ralfi]

So with fingerprint scanning, assuming your hands are dry and not covered in dirt, you grab or just touch your home button and it’s unlocked regardless of the phones/tablets orientation.

This is very nit-picky imo. There’s no noticeable extra time for me. It’s very seamless.

I found it annoying that the Home button sometimes wasn’t on the side that I had a free/clean hand causing me to reach across with the opposite hand. With Face ID, that isn’t an issue, whether the iPad’s in Landscape or Portrait - you don’t need to make contact with a specific side of the tablet, only the bottom edge to swipe up, which is left/right hand friendly.
[doublepost=1547957102][/doublepost]

With Face ID, after you’ve set it up or placed stands everywhere you use your iPad or have grabbed your phone and have placed it in front of your facce and it’s within the required distance and you’re not wearing anything that will cover your face and it doesn’t require you to enter in your passcode due to unintentionally tapping your screen to wake up too much and it scans your face correctly the first time, it’s easier and better than a fingerprint scanner.

None of these (pessimistic?) ultra worst-case scenario examples have happened to me.

I only need one stand for the iPad as I have the Folio case which becomes a stand in itself.

You seem really desperate to bash Face ID.
[doublepost=1547957324][/doublepost]

If you write down the steps it takes to unlock an iPhone under optimal conditions between face scanning and fingerprint scanning it takes more steps to unlock and or use Apple Pay.

Again, very not-picky, for the sake of it...the time it took for you to write that whine, you could’ve unlocked via Face ID 20+ times.

I’ve been using an x for the last year and although it’s not a deal breaker and it has its advantages over a finger scanner I can’t say it’s easier to use in terms of unlocking an iPhone or using Apple Pay.

Ok, I can’t speak for Apple Pay as my bank doesn’t support it & I’ve never used it in the past, so I won’t be able to compare it to Touch ID’s implementation.

Authentication within apps is awesome with Face ID.

We were due to agree on something.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

The only time I ever had issues with my 8+ was if my fingers were wet, and I mean like still in the tub wet. I thought Touch ID was fantastic, and I had no desire to give it up.

Since I’ve started using Face ID, I DO appreciate the ease of using it, and it’s been weird still using Touch ID on my iPad. I’ve just gotten my new pro though, so that’s about to change as well.

We all get used to new technology and in two or more years time when I upgrade from my 8+ I’m sure i’ll find it an easy transition too. There’s nothing wrong with touchID though and it’s of no problem for me now or ever. All this bickering over the smallest of semantics is laughable IMO.

 

[eyeseeyou]

This is very nit-picky imo. There’s no noticeable extra time for me. It’s very seamless.

I found it annoying that the Home button sometimes wasn’t on the side that I had a free/clean hand causing me to reach across with the opposite hand. With Face ID, that isn’t an issue, whether the iPad’s in Landscape or Portrait - you don’t need to make contact with a specific side of the tablet, only the bottom edge to swipe up, which is left/right hand friendly.
[doublepost=1547957102][/doublepost]
None of these (pessimistic?) ultra worst-case scenario examples have happened to me.

I only need one stand for the iPad as I have the Folio case which becomes a stand in itself.

You seem really desperate to bash Face ID.
[doublepost=1547957324][/doublepost]

Again, very not-picky, for the sake of it...the time it took for you to write that whine, you could’ve unlocked via Face ID 20+ times.



Ok, I can’t speak for Apple Pay as my bank doesn’t support it & I’ve never used it in the past, so I won’t be able to compare it to Touch ID’s implementation.



We were due to agree on something.

How to unlock a home button equipped Apple device:

Step 1: With a dry, generally clean finger, apply registered fingerprint to home button and press down.

Done. Simple.
[doublepost=1547974223][/doublepost]

I only need one stand for the iPad as I have the Folio case which becomes a stand in itself.

So you're saying you need an attachment to get it to work how you want it to work?
[doublepost=1547974354][/doublepost]

None of these (pessimistic?) ultra worst-case scenario examples have happened to me.

This isn't about YOU it's about the list of requirements that need to be met before anyone can use faceid to unlock a device.

 

[Ralfi]

How to unlock a home button equipped Apple device:

Step 1: With a dry, generally clean finger, apply registered fingerprint to home button and press down.

Done. Simple.
[doublepost=1547974223][/doublepost]
So you're saying you need an attachment to get it to work how you want it to work?

You’ll realise in a few years how fussy you’re being with this, after you’ve fully converted to Face ID v3.0...

Let’s not forget, Touch ID v1 wasn’t great.

Face ID will get quicker.

We’re going round in circles now, so let’s not fill the thread with the same retorts.

So you're saying you need an attachment to get it to work how you want it to work?

Sigh, you keep assuming things.

This isn't about YOU it's about the list of requirements that need to be met before anyone can use faceid to unlock a device.

You’re also stating things from your point of view...& I’ve said enough on the matter...

Because I don't love it as much as you do I'm bashing it?

Wow, you’re an annoyance.

 

[eyeseeyou]

You seem really desperate to bash Face ID.

Because I don't love it as much as you do I'm bashing it?

 

[44267547]

Either way, both forms of biometric security have their advantages/disadvantages. I don’t think touch ID is irrelevant anymore just because it’s no longer used for future products, it’s just Apples choice of moving on to something else they feel is better. Ia Face ID better for everyone else? Likely not, but that’s how tech is, it’s constantly evolving.