Iphone X FaceID Tips

jordanlah

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Iphone X/Xs FaceID Tips

(Edit: Bumped this thread in case some are new to FaceID and will find the tips helpful)

Since this is a relatively new technology, thought I'll start a thread for iPhone X/Xs owners to share your FaceID tips. :)

Three common situations which I encountered in the first few days of my usage with FaceID on the iPhone X:

1. Unusual Facial Expressions
There was one day I playfully held an air bubble in my cheek, and was puzzled why my iphone refused to unlock. Another time I was biting my tongue. And another time I held my hand up to my chin and covered my mouth. Some of these times we are oblivious that we are altering how our face would look to the phone.
So my advice is once you enroll your face in setup, do a few lock and unlock sessions with these different expressions. You might be prompted with a password entry - just enter the password while holding on to your expression. After that you will find FaceID works pretty much seamlessly. (See bottom for Reference)

2. Face too close to phone
For those of us who wear specs, especially when we get up first thing in the morning without our specs - we have a tendency to hold the phone closer than usual. I was wondering why it didn't work at that distance until I turned on the selfie camera. I realize only half my face was visible to the camera. I believe it would be the same with the IR cam.
No quick fix for this one - it would have to be muscle memory. In the same way we have to learn where to put our finger in the right place for the fingerprint scanner, we have to learn the minimal distance for FaceID to work

3. Eyes not looking at the phone
The first time I was driving with the iPhone X in the car holder, there were a few times the phone didn't unlock. Then I realize while driving, my eyes were on the road when I tap the screen. I guess this is a good thing - our eyes SHOULD be on the road. When the car came to a stop at junction, there was no problem unlocking the iphone X when I gave it my full attention. :s13:
If this is bothering you - you can always turn OFF "Require Attention for Face ID" in Settings for FaceID. This will also help if you have sunshades that don't work with FaceID. But with this setting off, it would mean someone can just put the phone in front of your face when you sleep and unlock the phone.

Hope these personal experiences helped. Do share what other tips you may have found pertaining to FACE ID. :)


REFERENCES:

https://www.theverge.com/2017/9/27/16373710/face-id-iphone-x-apple-facial-recognition-impostor

https://images.apple.com/business/docs/FaceID_Security_Guide.pdf

"Conversely, if Face ID fails to recognize you, but the match quality is higher than a certain threshold and you immediately follow the failure by entering your passcode, Face ID takes another capture and augments its enrolled Face ID data with the newly calculated mathematical representation. "

******************


One of the best tips I've read and tried. I set up Face ID again with the phone held nearer my waist level - and it read all my different facial expressions off the bat.

"When you first set up Face ID on your iPhone X, you probably held the phone up at eye level, which is how we’ve seen it done in Apple’s demos. Instead, you should set it up with your iPhone held well below eye level, closer to where it’ll be when you unlock it. That’s right, it’s time to forget everything you know about taking a good selfie and wear that double chin like a badge of honor."

http://bgr.com/2017/11/06/iphone-x-features-how-to-make-face-id-faster/

:)
 
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Knightoftheblackrose

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My FaceID works perfectly.

I just tried it in a pitch black cinema environment ( Justice league is out ... YAY!!!)

It can unlock in the dark. .... I am impressed
 

oric1

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How to Get Face ID to Unlock Your iPhone X While it’s Sitting Flat on a Desk

Want to make Face ID on your iPhone X work while your phone is sitting face-up on a table or desk? Funny enough, the same secret that makes Face ID faster in general also makes it work much better at angles.

In a nutshell, you need to set up Face ID again on your iPhone X, but this time do it with your iPhone X pointed up at your face from waist or stomach level. This is where you would naturally hold your phone when unlocking it, not at eye-level which is where most people hold the phone when setting up Face ID. This way, the TrueDepth camera captures more of the bottom of your face and neck, which is what it sees when you unlock the phone most of the time.

So first, follow these steps:
  • Open the Settings app
  • Tap Face ID & Passcode
  • Enter your PIN or passcode
  • Tap “Reset Face ID”

Now, set up Face ID again just like you did when you first got your iPhone X, but hold it at waist or stomach level instead of eye level as you rotate your head. That’s it. Not only will Face ID be faster for you now, it’ll also work much more reliably while your phone is sitting face-up on a table.

This isn’t a magic trick and your iPhone X won’t unlock from the other side of the table. But I have my iPhone X sitting next to my laptop with the bottom of the phone lined up with the bottom of my computer, and Face ID works every time. When my screen lights up with a notification, turning my head naturally to glance at the screen is enough to unlock the phone with Face ID. Thanks to tap-to-wake, you can also tap your screen anywhere on the iPhone X and it will wake up and unlock.

http://bgr.com/2017/11/07/iphone-x-review-face-id-works-on-table-desk-how-to/
 

Red Nails

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Heads up,

For those wearing glasses, pls set up FaceID without them. I was unable to unlock my phone without glasses when I setup FaceID with glasses on.

Reset FaceID this time without glasses and it unlocks with and without glasses. Not sure if this issue has been mentioned in another thread but yeah :)
 

derrickgoh

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My FaceID works perfectly.

I just tried it in a pitch black cinema environment ( Justice league is out ... YAY!!!)

It can unlock in the dark. .... I am impressed
Cinema screen so bright where got total darkness? I tried so many time at night with lights off & curtains drawn. No go. Suspect is cos my screen brightness too low. Anyway no big issue for me.

Heads up,

For those wearing glasses, pls set up FaceID without them. I was unable to unlock my phone without glasses when I setup FaceID with glasses on.

Reset FaceID this time without glasses and it unlocks with and without glasses. Not sure if this issue has been mentioned in another thread but yeah :)
I set up with specs & have managed to unlock many times with or without specs.
 
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Red Nails

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Cinema screen so bright where got total darkness? I tried so many time at night with lights off & curtains drawn. No go. Suspect is cos my screen brightness too low. Anyway no big issue for me.


I set up with specs & have managed to unlock many times with or without specs.

is my phone defective then..:eek:
 

chris888222

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Face ID has worked great for me even in the dark. In fact, some reviews stated that Face ID works better in the dark as the dot projector and IR acts as a flashlight that you can’t see. In the day, there might be added interference (which is also why Apple stated that “if you’re outside in bright sunlight, try repositioning your iPhone X so the sun isn’t directly behind you.”
 

EthanB

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It is ridiculous that nowadays we even need "tips" just to unlock our phone properly. I don't understand why Face ID is still praised by a lot of people (maybe it is why Android users call Apple fans as "Apple sheep"). After more than 2 weeks using Face ID, I feel it is apparently inferior comparing to Touch ID. If Apple failed to integrate the Touch ID under the screen, they should learn from Samsung to put it at the back of the phone instead. A quick comparison made by myself:

faceid.png
 

chris888222

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It is ridiculous that nowadays we even need "tips" just to unlock our phone properly. I don't understand why Face ID is still praised by a lot of people (maybe it is why Android users call Apple fans as "Apple sheep"). After more than 2 weeks using Face ID, I feel it is apparently inferior comparing to Touch ID. If Apple failed to integrate the Touch ID under the screen, they should learn from Samsung to put it at the back of the phone instead. A quick comparison made by myself:

faceid.png
To each his own I guess. I like Face ID more. For some reason Touch ID gives me more failures than expected, and usually I’ll reenrol the finger to see if that fixes it.

I’ll admit I enjoy the better flexibility of Touch ID. If one finger doesn’t work, I can use another that I’ve enrolled. However I enjoy the attention features of the X more - lowered volume when you’re looking at the screen for example, and possibly more in future iOS versions.
 

Knightoftheblackrose

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I went into the cinema hall before they started
showing any advertisements.

Only got music playing .

I consider it to be dark enough .

I can also unlock my phone in my bedroom at night without any lights turned on.

Cinema screen so bright where got total darkness? I tried so many time at night with lights off & curtains drawn. No go. Suspect is cos my screen brightness too low. Anyway no big issue for me.


I set up with specs & have managed to unlock many times with or without specs.
 
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szeli

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has worked well for me in pitch dark or outside. my screen brightness is always low. I even have reduce white point on. loving e attention aware features too.
 

jordanlah

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I just came back from a holiday in Gold Coast - discovered another surprise use of FaceID. I put my IPhoneX in a waterproof bag and took many beautiful slowmo videos of waves shots... then when messages came- I could unlock, read and reply!
Many of my friends with touchID phones in the waterproof bag couldn’t do anything.
Loving FaceID more and more!
 

manofsorrows

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How to reply with the phone in the bag ?

I just came back from a holiday in Gold Coast - discovered another surprise use of FaceID. I put my IPhoneX in a waterproof bag and took many beautiful slowmo videos of waves shots... then when messages came- I could unlock, read and reply!
Many of my friends with touchID phones in the waterproof bag couldn’t do anything.
Loving FaceID more and more!
 

jordanlah

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It is ridiculous that nowadays we even need "tips" just to unlock our phone properly. I don't understand why Face ID is still praised by a lot of people (maybe it is why Android users call Apple fans as "Apple sheep"). After more than 2 weeks using Face ID, I feel it is apparently inferior comparing to Touch ID. If Apple failed to integrate the Touch ID under the screen, they should learn from Samsung to put it at the back of the phone instead. A quick comparison made by myself:

faceid.png

Hi EthanB,

I do not think it is ridiculous as FaceID is a relatively new technology. When TouchID 1st generation just came out - people have their fair share of frustrations. I'm sure in coming iterations - FaceID will get faster and better and more accurate. I suppose that's why Apple launched iphone 8 at the same time too - for people who still prefer TouchID and are not willing to trade that off for a full screen on the device without home button.

Some thoughts about the comparison you made:

Action to unlock:
I think FaceID is so integrated that sometimes you don't notice it working. I really like the smart preview when I'm just simply looking at the phone, and swipe that particular notification to go straight to the app. For TouchID - we gave up on swiping that notification simply because you need to further lift the finger back to the fingerprint scanner before the app can launch from that notification.

Reliability:
I know of a few friends that simply can't use TouchID because their fingerprints are too shallow, or they are old folks with wrinkly fingerprints. FaceID works perfect for them.

Conditions to Use:
I go jogging with my phone all the time, and now I can unlock my phone easily with FaceID when I have sweaty palms. Check notifications easily when I'm cooking with my fingers soiled. Unlock phone without lifting a hand off the steering wheel to preview notifications. I think each technology will have limitations - when we are used to TouchID, if the read fail we instinctively wipe our fingers for another try. The tips provided here hopefully help to do the same for FaceID.

Flexibility:
Agree with you on this one - hopefully when the bio-metric chips become more powerful in next iterations - we can store more than 1 face.

:)
 

derrickgoh

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Tips are circulating as Face ID is new technology. When finger print scanning was first launched I'm sure tips circulated as well. When I was using Note 7 and had tons of problem with retina scanner, I recalled seeing tips circulating online too. What's there to be surprised about?

With regards to 1 touch and 1 swipe, what I always do is touch at the bottom of the screen & immediately swipe up. Barely any delay. I guess if one was to be anal like the reviewer from Toms Hardware Guide, one could be like him and whine that TouchID takes 0.9 sec to unlock where else Face ID takes 1.3 sec. But I doubt most ppl give a rat's arse about that 0.4 sec delay. I mean seriously, it takes longer than 0.4 sec for me to dig my nostrils so I think I can survive with a 0.4 sec delay. :s8:

As far as reliability is concerned, so far I've had no issues. When I first got it register my face I was wearing specs. Sometimes when I log in its with specs sometimes without specs. No issues. Don't know why some ppl say when they registered their face wearing specs, they are unable to login without specs.

Only time it can't work is when I'm in total darkness. But I attribute that to my screen brightness being set very low. I guess if my screen brightness was cranked to the max, it would be bright enough to work.

Wet finger is not an issue cos no sane person would use his phone with wet hands even if its supposedly water resistant. Its more for ppl with sweaty palms. Its a known issues that sweaty palm folks have issues with Touch ID. Some elderly too. My father is a good e.g. Scan left thumb ok but scan right thumb forever cannot recognise.

With regards to condition to use, I have used my phone out in the open when the sun is shining brightly and so far no issues unlocking with Face ID. Face cannot be too close simply cos if your face is too close the camera cannot sense your entire face. Remember, Face ID is supposed to scan your WHOLE face, not just your eyes, so if your phone is up against your nose, the most the scanner can scan is your eyes and part of your nose. Its an incomplete scan so naturally it doesn't work.

I don't see it as a flaw but rather proof that it works. On the contrary I would be very worried if I can unlock my phone when its up against my nose cos that means an incomplete face scan is able to be recognised which should NOT be the case.

On a separate note, which normal person would hold the phone so close to his face? I mean, its almost as if people are finding fault for the sake of finding fault. Just hold the phone like how you normally hold the phone. And at that distance it WILL work.

With regards to cannot scan when too far, I have managed to login holding my phone at arm's length. I don't have a selfie stick so I can't test beyond the length of my arms, but in the first place, why would I want to scan my face with the phone so far away from my face? Again as stated in the previous para, why find fault for the sake of finding fault? And which normal person will use the phone beyond arm's length? Don't most normal ppl hold their phones within arm's length?

And besides, if your phone is beyond arm's length touch ID will not work either simply cos your finger can't reach it. Unless you are telling me your finger is longer than your arm, or you can somehow disconnect your finger, fly it like a drone to the phone located 2m away, then ok fine, you win. :s13:

Phone needs to be at right angle. Again, to me, this is proof that it works. Face ID is supposed to scan your face. If you are going to be leaning back on the chair while your phone is on the table, as far as the scanner is concerned, that ugly face staring at it is different from the face in its record so no go.

Lastly, sharing fingers with family. Sure you can register multiple people's fingers on your phone is you so desire but that's not how it was meant to work. Touch ID is meant to be for you only. Just like how your passcode is meant for you only but of course, feel free to share it with everyone on HWZ if you like.

The reason for allowing scanning of multiple finger with Touch ID is so there is a backup. In case you can't use that finger for whatever reason. Oily from eating KFC. That hand is holding a heavy shopping bag. That thumb is in a bandage. Your finger got sliced off in an accident.

While you have 10 digits (thumbs are technically not fingers BTW), you only have one Face. Hence Face ID only allows you to scan one face. And it doesn't make sense for Apple to have both Face ID and Touch ID on one phone, so in the case of Face ID, if it doesn't work for whatever reason, the passcode is your backup.

Unless of course you have two faces (and I do not mean backstabbers who cannot be trusted), if not there really is no need for Face ID to be able to store two faces in its record. Like I said, Touch ID/Face ID/passcodes were never meant to be shared in the first place.

Just like your ATM pin number, Singpass password, even email password. These are all not meant to be shared in the first place. Although of course you are more than welcome too, however I will not use that as a point to say that Face ID is lousy or not as good as Touch ID.
 

derrickgoh

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I just came back from a holiday in Gold Coast - discovered another surprise use of FaceID. I put my IPhoneX in a waterproof bag and took many beautiful slowmo videos of waves shots... then when messages came- I could unlock, read and reply!
Many of my friends with touchID phones in the waterproof bag couldn’t do anything.
Loving FaceID more and more!
A point which many Face ID bashers conveniently forget to mention. :s13:
 

chris888222

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A little fun thing i noticed: in a near-complete dark setting, you can sorta see the IR sensor turning red. It’s very subtle but after the phone unlocks, it goes back to normal.
 
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