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iPhone X Apple iPhone X laser damage with Face ID

J

JokerABC

macrumors member
Original poster
Sep 27, 2012
52
27
There's some medical people in our family and there was quite a discussion at Thanksgiving dinner about the iPhone X facial recognition technology. Face ID uses near-infra red laser dots which is not a great category for eye safety. So is it safe for infra red dots scanning your face all day long? I wasn't sure whether to also post this in the medical forum or someone had thoughts there?

Many infra red lasers.....even though your eye cannot see them... can
- make proteins appear in the vitreous humor
- cause cataract problems
- damage retina sensors
- irritate cornea

You can look up VSCEL laser, which is the type used on the iPhone X (vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser).

But Apple is just following Class 1 laser safety and no study has been made to prove thew new technology's safety over time. Many other company's phones will also eventually have this technology.

One last thing = https://1reddrop.com/2017/09/16/will...damage-retina/
 
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Considering it’s a fraction of a second I don’t see this as a huge deal. They’ve been saying the same thing about tv since the beginning of home television units. Obviously different tech but the point is, there’s always risks. But a fraction of a second, I can’t see that doing massive damage over the life span of a phone. Now if you stick the device right up to your eyes and open your peepers really wide for an hour I can see that doing something.
 
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JokerABC said:
There's some medical people in our family and there was quite a discussion at Thanksgiving dinner about the iPhone X facial recognition technology. Face ID uses near-infra red laser dots which is not a great category for eye safety. So is it safe for infra red dots scanning your face all day long? I wasn't sure whether to also post this in the medical forum or someone had thoughts there?

Many infra red lasers.....even though your eye cannot see them... can
- make proteins appear in the vitreous humor
- cause cataract problems
- damage retina sensors
- irritate cornea

You can look up VSCEL laser, which is the type used on the iPhone X (vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser).

But Apple is just following Class 1 laser safety and no study has been made to prove thew new technology's safety over time. Many other company's phones will also eventually have this technology.

One last thing = https://1reddrop.com/2017/09/16/will...damage-retina/
Click to expand...
https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/iphone-x-laser-and-eye-concerns-merged.2067407/

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/does-attention-awareness-use-the-lasers.2090198/

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/face-id-eyes-retina.2073239/

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/any-concerns-with-dot-projector-flooding-eye.2084786/

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/is-the-constant-ir-light-bad-for-our-eyes.2087134/

https://forums.macrumors.com/thread...s-in-your-face-every-time-you-unlock.2083992/
 
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Day of the Triffids. In three years there will be a pandemic. 66% of the world population will be blind. The 33% left sighted will be the poor and underprivileged and android users which is even worse. Society will fall, while the non iPhone users.. the dregs of society really.. take over the world.
 
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For those of you who have perfectly healthy eyes and don’t care about the minuscule risk, we understand.

Some people with early stage cataracts or other partially compromised eye conditions may actually want to hear some informed answers to the OP’s question.

Thanksmuch.
 
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tangfish said:
For those of you who have perfectly healthy eyes and don’t care about the minuscule risk, we understand.

Some people with early stage cataracts or other partially compromised eye conditions may actually want to hear some informed answers to the OP’s question.

Thanksmuch.
Click to expand...

So how do they treat cataracts? With lasers!! Apple is helping the world yet again.
 
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JokerABC said:
But Apple is just following Class 1 laser safety and no study has been made to prove thew new technology's safety over time. Many other company's phones will also eventually have this technology.
Click to expand...

Anyone can speculate based on what they want over long-term effects, but there is no way of knowing anything based on the usage with Face ID and the VSCEL laser. The probability of having any long term damage from the laser wouldn't be any different from somebody looking up in the sun as well.
 
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Jjayf said:
Day of the Triffids. In three years there will be a pandemic. 66% of the world population will be blind. The 33% left sighted will be the poor and underprivileged and android users which is even worse. Society will fall, while the non iPhone users.. the dregs of society really.. take over the world.
Click to expand...

Lol, kinda like Resident Evil or 28 Days Later
 
JokerABC said:
There's some medical people in our family and there was quite a discussion at Thanksgiving dinner about the iPhone X facial recognition technology. Face ID uses near-infra red laser dots which is not a great category for eye safety. So is it safe for infra red dots scanning your face all day long? I wasn't sure whether to also post this in the medical forum or someone had thoughts there?

Many infra red lasers.....even though your eye cannot see them... can
- make proteins appear in the vitreous humor
- cause cataract problems
- damage retina sensors
- irritate cornea

You can look up VSCEL laser, which is the type used on the iPhone X (vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser).

But Apple is just following Class 1 laser safety and no study has been made to prove thew new technology's safety over time. Many other company's phones will also eventually have this technology.

One last thing = https://1reddrop.com/2017/09/16/will...damage-retina/
Click to expand...
Interesting topic. Thanks for raising your thoughtful question. I have had similar considerations about the FaceID technology as well. I am reminded about the little warning stickers that used to be placed inside CD players that use similar IR lasers.

My preference though would be under screen Touch ID which is a more convenient and consistently a more reliable technology for me.
 
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smacrumon said:
Interesting topic. Thanks for raising your thoughtful question. I have had similar considerations about the FaceID technology as well. I am reminded about the little warning stickers that used to be placed inside CD players that use similar IR lasers.

My preference though would be under screen Touch ID which is a more convenient and consistently a more reliable technology for me.
Click to expand...
It looks like even Samsung is pursuing improved facial recognition for the S9 and Note 9 instead of under screen touch id. It will be interesting to see if the rest of the market trends this direction also. Most thought the Apple was dumb to get rid of the headphone jack and now your seeing other phones, noteably the new pixel phone lose the jack too.
 
Jjayf said:
So how do they treat cataracts? With lasers!! Apple is helping the world yet again.
Click to expand...

Yes, but that doesn’t negate the fact that lasers can cause damage too. (And FYI they can treat cataracts without lasers too, and even when they do use lasers it”s only for part of the procedure and not all of it.)
 
Simple answer: laser means very strong intensity.

It is safe to look at a red LED light many many times a day. But you really do want to look directly into a red laser pointer.
 
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You can choose to ignore and buy the phone or you can just avoid , there’s an option . Apple doesn’t force people to buy , the decision is on you.
Most people are mature enough to decide for themselves to buy or not.
 
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keysofanxiety said:
Yep, I can't believe you have to roll your neck around like some sentient bobble-head every single time you want to use your phone. It's not just a one off you'll likely forget about almost instantly after doing it. Stupid Face ID. Stupid, stupid, stupid.
Click to expand...
I can’t believe you posted about something you clearly have no clue about?

You move your head ariund during Face ID set up so that it gets multiple angles. My phone unlocks if it can see my face from most angles so far.
 
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Be careful when you go out in the summer. The IR and UV light is going to kill your retina. I mean it.
[doublepost=1511668737][/doublepost]And don’t forget about all the cellular signals. The medical people said it’s going to cause brain cancer. Better wear a magneto helmet outside.
[doublepost=1511668782][/doublepost]And... last but not least, the radiation from Fukushima. It has entered the ocean and every fish you eat is going to turn you into Hulk. Be careful.
 
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When camera was first invented, people thought that the camera would absorb people’s souls. Think about how the person is being flashed with a strong light and then their image is imprinted on a paper! How can that be? Some part of the soul must be transferred to the paper.

It’s not a joke. When people think about new technology they always fear.
 
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haruhiko said:
When camera was first invented, people thought that the camera would absorb people’s souls. Think about how the person is being flashed with a strong light and then their image is imprinted on a paper! How can that be? Some part of the soul must be transferred to the paper.

It’s not a joke. When people think about new technology they always fear.
Click to expand...
So that's why we are all soulless drones!

I'm kidding.

No but this is a true statement. Everything new is held with a dose of skepticism and fear.
 
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