Face ID

When Apple introduced iOS 14.5 in April, it introduced the ability to unlock your iPhone with Face ID while wearing a mask, so long as you are wearing an Apple Watch. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. In the current health climate, many people are wearing masks that cover their faces when going outside, visiting stores, and other tasks, which is why Apple added the...

In the current health climate, many people are wearing masks that cover their faces when going outside, visiting stores, and other tasks, and Apple's iPhones that use Face ID do not unlock when the user's face is obscured by a mask. With this in mind, in iOS 13.5, Apple has streamlined the speed with which the passcode pops up when a mask on the face is detected, making it easier to get into ...

There's an Emergency SOS feature built into iOS 11 that has hidden functionality -- it automatically disables Touch ID and makes it so your passcode has to be entered to unlock your iPhone. Because it essentially shuts down the biometrics on your device, you can't be compelled by a police officer or malicious person to unlock your iPhone with a fingerprint, nor can your fingerprint be used to...

For many people, Face ID has been frustrating to use for the past two years because it doesn't work with a face mask, but that's changing in iOS 15.4, an update that's currently available to developers and public beta testers. iOS 15.4 adds Face ID with a Mask, letting you unlock your iPhone with Face ID even when your face is covered, so Face ID is as convenient with a mask as it is without ...

Apple's second-generation iPhone Duo could gain Face ID, with prototypes already incorporating the technology beneath the outer display, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In the latest episode of his "Power On" podcast, Gurman described Apple's work on adding facial authentication technology to its foldable iPhone. The company is said to be testing the hardware for a successor expected...

Touch ID on the iPhone Duo might end up being frustrating for some users, based on media reviews that came out today. Multiple reviewers found ‌Touch ID‌ to be slow to unlock, which can be jarring coming from Face ID. According to Marques Brownlee, Apple added an intentional delay to "every single" ‌Touch ID‌ unlock. After you touch a finger to the side button to unlock, it pauses on the...

Apple's latest iPhone 18 Pro models came out mid-September to much fanfare, but not all users have had a seamless onboarding experience, with some owners of the new models reporting that Face ID authentication isn't always working as it should. Posts on social media indicate that certain authentication scenarios like using Face ID to unlock a locked app doesn't always work on the devices....

Apple today released iOS 27.0.1, the first update for the iOS 27 update that came out two weeks ago. iOS 27.0.1 can be downloaded over the air by going to Settings > General > Software Update. Apple has also released iPadOS 27.0.1 and visionOS 27.0.1 updates, as well as iOS and iPadOS 26.7.1 updates for devices not updated to iOS and iPadOS 27. According to Apple's release notes, iOS...

Some iPhone 18 Pro owners report that Face ID isn't consistently recognizing them, but Apple has a fix on the way. MacRumors logs show Apple is already testing iOS 27.0.1, its first follow-up update since iOS 27 launched. The update will focus on bug patches, and Apple has said a Face ID fix is included. There's no release date yet, but expect it to arrive sooner rather than later. Apple has...

Apple's new iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max began arriving to customers on Friday, and unfortunately some early adopters are experiencing Face ID issues. According to a Reddit post spotted by 9to5Mac, Face ID authentication for specific actions such as unlocking a locked app sometimes fails to work on the iPhone 18 Pro models, and the device then freezes and eventually reboots to the...

Apple will prioritize adding Face ID and a telephoto lens to future iPhone Duo models, argues Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. The device debuted with Touch ID and dual rear cameras, likely owing to physical constraints. In his latest Power On newsletter, Gurman says his guess is that Apple will use a combination of component miniaturization and advances in AI to eventually fit them into the iPhone...

TrinamiX, a subsidiary of the German chemical giant BASF, is suing Apple in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, accusing the company of infringing seven patents related to face authentication technology used in Face ID. In its complaint, first reported by Reuters, trinamiX said it spent years developing technology to stop people from fooling face unlock systems with a...

Apple's first foldable iPhone, dubbed the "iPhone Ultra," could be missing at least five key features present on the iPhone 18 Pro models despite its $2,000 price point. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Recent images of dummy models shared by Sonny Dickson and Vadim Yuryev seem to reveal two previously undiscussed missing features of the ‌iPhone Ultra‌: MagSafe and...

Apple's progress toward under-display Face ID and a fully uninterrupted iPhone display is encountering ongoing challenges, with a new report indicating that the company is likely to focus on incremental reductions to the Dynamic Island rather than major front-facing design changes in the near term. A new post from Weibo user "Fixed Focus Digital" suggests that Apple's development of...

Apple is developing a much thinner Face ID hardware module in an effort to reduce the space its facial authentication system takes up in the iPhone Air, a known leaker on China's Weibo social media platform today suggested. According to Instant Digital, Apple has requested an "ultra-thin" Face ID component from suppliers that will allow the device to accommodate an ultra wide-angle lens in...

While most sources in the Apple rumor scene agree that the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max will feature under-screen Face ID, there continues to be conflicting rumors about how that change might impact the Dynamic Island. In a post on social media platform X today, the account "ShrimpApplePro" claimed that the Dynamic Island will be "shorter" on the iPhone 18 Pro models, as a result of...

While the iPhone 18 Pro models are still around eight months away, a leaker has shared some alleged details about the devices. In a post on Chinese social media platform Weibo this week, the account Digital Chat Station said the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max will have the same 6.3-inch and 6.9-inch display sizes as the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max. Consistent with previous...

Next year's iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max will be equipped with under-screen Face ID, and the front camera will be moved to the top-left corner of the screen, according to a new report from The Information's Wayne Ma and Qianer Liu. As a result of these changes, the report said the iPhone 18 Pro models will not have a pill-shaped Dynamic Island cutout at the top of the screen....

Apple is actively testing under-screen Face ID for next year's iPhone 18 Pro models using a special "spliced micro-transparent glass" window built into the display, claims a Chinese leaker. According to "Smart Pikachu," a Weibo account that has previously shared accurate supply-chain details on Chinese Android hardware, Apple is testing the special glass as a way to let the TrueDepth...

Despite years of rumors suggesting Apple is working on Macs with Face ID instead of Touch ID, the technology isn't coming any time soon, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Gurman claims that Apple is aiming to shift from ‌Touch ID‌ to ‌Face ID‌ in the Mac line, but the change "remains years away." Gurman and others have incorrectly predicted ‌Face ID‌ for Macs several times over the...

Apple's next-generation iPhone 18, iPhone 18 Pro, and iPhone 18 Pro Max models will be equipped with a slightly smaller Dynamic Island, but the devices will not feature under-screen Face ID, according to the Weibo account Instant Digital. There were conflicting rumors about whether the iPhone 17 Pro models would have a smaller Dynamic Island, but its size did not change. Now, the rumor is...

Counterpoint Research VP Ross Young today cast doubt on the 20th-anniversary iPhone featuring a truly all-screen design, but he still expects Apple to make some progress towards that ambitious goal over the next few iPhone generations. In a post on X today, Young reiterated that at least some new iPhones launching in 2026 will be equipped with under-screen Face ID. While he did not mention...

All four iPhone 17 models will adopt metalens technology for Face ID, according to Jeff Pu, an Apple analyst at equity research firm GF Securities. He revealed this information in an investor research note earlier this month. Earlier this year, a leaker known as Digital Chat Station also claimed that the iPhone 17 Pro Max would adopt a metalens for Face ID that integrates the transmitter and ...

While the iPhone 17 Pro models are still around four months away, there are already rumors about next year's iPhone 18 Pro models. The latest word comes from Counterpoint Research vice president Ross Young, who has a good track record with display-related information for future Apple products. In a social media post today, he relayed more information that suggests the iPhone 18 Pro models...