Doubts and Speculation Surround Apple's Onstage Face ID 'Fail' During iPhone X Keynote [Updated]

[iapplelove]

Do you have proof of this claim? I go to bed and don't touch my phone for 6+ hours and Touch ID still works perfectly fine when I get up. The only time I need to enter my passcode is when my phone is restarted or my hands are particularly sweaty / dirty.

This happens to me all the time. My iPhone asked for my passcode when I don't use it for a certain period of time.

TouchID is flawless for me so I never use a passcode until I get a prompt

 

[sunny2k1]

The interesting thing regarding FaceID is for me the authorisation for ApplePay. The banks have to approve this method. If it fails like in the keynote or you are able to unlock your device with a biometric picture (e.g. for passports), the banks will go crazy.

This has to work at least on a level that TouchID is currently working.

 

[Technarchy]

Posted this in another thread.

1. The iPhone X says "Swipe up to unlock" above the gesture bar on the bottom of the screen.
2. Craig tries to unlock the iPhone X with a swipe up gesture and gets a bounce animation which means you can scroll no further in iPhones.
3. Immediately he gets prompted with "Your passcode is required to enable Face ID"

If the biometric failed it would have said "try again" and the lock would have jittered from left to right indicating the biometric unlock was not recognized. The same lock jitter from left to right is present when passcode failure takes place.

The phone just needed Face ID enabled with a passcode. Face ID did not fail.

 

[mcclorryevan]

Do you have proof of this claim? I go to bed and don't touch my phone for 6+ hours and Touch ID still works perfectly fine when I get up. The only time I need to enter my passcode is when my phone is restarted or my hands are particularly sweaty / dirty.

I agree with you on this, but I am 99% sure its 24 hours.. I use my iPhone EVERYDAY, so I never hit that mark, but on my iPad, sometimes I go a day or two without touching it, and the message actually says "after 24 hours of inactivity your passcode is required to unlock the device/Touch ID" kinda thing.

 

[wikiverse]

My money is on whoever staged the devices on the kiosk was inadvertently tripping Face ID when moving the devices around and checking everything. Unbeknownst to him/her, this tripped the lockout after too many failed attempts.

Either that or the device being a pre-prod unit still has some bugs and did a random reboot unknowingly, until Craig picked it up and it wanted the passcode.

The Face ID TECHNOLOGY didn't fail once.

IF that is the case, then Face ID is point. You wont be able to carry your phone on public transport, for example, without it trying to unlock with everyone's faces - only to lock you out and force you back onto a passcode. You may as just use a passcode all the time. Touch ID works.

 

[nviz22]

I don’t like the Face ID swipe up portion.

 

[ozthegweat]

Yes it was not the same message you get on today's iPhones when you restart them, because it wasn't the reason it required a passcode. It required one because you have to enter the passcode from time to time even when not restarting it, just like with every other Touch ID device.

Proof: compare this screenshot of a Touch ID device from this Macrumors article with the screen from yesterday's keynote: exactly the same message (expect for "Touch ID" instead of "Face ID"):

 

[ghostface147]

I still wonder if they will integrate touchID next year if they get the tech down.

 

[Smartass]

That was bad, but the real embarrassment was wasting so much Keynote time on cringeworthy emojis.

I think that impersonation of animal voices was the lowest point for Apple. Like some god damn Disney show and not a presentation for number one product from the world's most valuable company.

 

[votdfak]

Maybe author isn't an iOS user because that message appears if you don't use your iphone for 5 hours — Touch ID (and Face ID) tokens are zeroed after five hours in non-use state and you have to enter passcode to reenable the security feature. I bet that was the case on stage.

Ok, let's quote Apple on this, it's not Face ID, it's Touch ID, but it'll do.

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204587

To start using Touch ID, you must first set up a passcode on your iPhone or iPad (or a password on your Mac). You must enter your passcode or password for additional security validation:

• after you restart your iPhone, iPad, or Mac;
• when more than 48 hours have passed from the last time you unlocked your device;
• to add or delete a fingerprint to use with Touch ID;
• to change the iPhone or iPad passcode or Mac system password, and for other security settings like FileVault on your Mac;
• when there have been more than five unrecognized Touch ID authorization attempts in a row; and
• after you log out of your Mac.

When you restart your iPhone you're greeted with the following message: "Touch ID requires your passcode when iPhone restarts"

When you don't use your iPhone over 48h you get the following message: "Touch ID requires your passcode after 48 hours"

When you fail to authenticate with your Touch ID and in this case with your Face ID multiple times the message is: "Your passcode is required to enable Touch ID" - This one is the winner

 

[358547]

..

 

[arkitect]

Most concerning to me is the way he wiped his cheeks after the Face ID fail, almost as if being a little too 'shiny' could be a problem. I guess we'll all find out in about seven weeks.

Nah, I think that was just a bit of anxiety perspiration.
Personally I'd have been sweating buckets.

 

[Iconoclysm]

Touch id was better and reliable. Hope it makes in next iPhone under the display.

It's ok to feel this way but don't you think it should actually be in the wild and maybe even try it before making that statement?

 

[bsamcash]

All I'll say is I don't think it's any coincidence that they're waiting until after Halloween to release it.

 

[archvile]

My main concern is how slow it looked to be in comparision to TouchID. That being said TouchID is MUCH quicker now then when it first launched and is much more accurate. So I expect FaceID to get better over time.

This is why I'm going to give Face ID a few generations to get better, as you know they are going to tout improvements to it almost year over year as they slowly phase Touch ID devices out.

I bet the iPhone 9 next year is the last "NEW" iPhone with Touch ID, then they will keep the 7, 8, 9 around a few years while slowly killing them off in favor of the new Face ID models. I bet by 2022, 2024 at the latest, all they make is Face ID phones. Which is fine, but the tech has room to grow. So I'll be getting an 8+ next Friday, will be a nice jump from the SE size.

 

[legacyb4]

48 hours, actually.

Do you have proof of this claim? I go to bed and don't touch my phone for 6+ hours and Touch ID still works perfectly fine when I get up. The only time I need to enter my passcode is when my phone is restarted or my hands are particularly sweaty / dirty.

 

[Pbrutto]

Am I delusional? He used it several times after that and it worked perfectly

 

[KeithJenner]

Do you have proof of this claim? I go to bed and don't touch my phone for 6+ hours and Touch ID still works perfectly fine when I get up. The only time I need to enter my passcode is when my phone is restarted or my hands are particularly sweaty / dirty.

I regularly have to type the in the passcode in the morning. Not every day, but fairly regularly.

I couldn't have said exactly what circumstances it happens in, but would believe what is stated a few posts after yours (after a set number of hours if the passcode hasn't been entered for a few days).

That could possibly explain what happened onstage, if the demo phone hadn't been used for a while.

 

[bobob]

One of my many concerns is how directly I need to be looking at it in order for it to unlock. My 6S lays down on the desk most of the working day. If I needed to pick it up or lean across in order to get it to unlock then that would make for an awful user experience for me.

 

[0982786]

Maybe author isn't an iOS user because that message appears if you don't use your iphone for 5 hours — Touch ID (and Face ID) tokens are zeroed after five hours in non-use state and you have to enter passcode to reenable the security feature. I bet that was the case on stage.

"You must enter your passcode or password for additional security validation: ...

• when more than 48 hours have passed from the last time you unlocked your device;"

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204587

48 hours, not 5.

 

[iapplelove]

Worst part of any keynote for me is when they talk about gaming

 

[djcerla]

Do you have proof of this claim? I go to bed and don't touch my phone for 6+ hours and Touch ID still works perfectly fine when I get up. The only time I need to enter my passcode is when my phone is restarted or my hands are particularly sweaty / dirty.

TouchID indeed deactivates when I sleep just a little more than usual, and I have to enter the passcode.

 

[anthonymoody]

Let's PANIC!

I'm still getting the X.

 

[Naaaaak]

I'll give it a pass, as sometimes demos have issues. I think Craig handled it pretty well too, not really missing his step and simply continuing on. Besides, it was reassuring to see that you can still unlock your phone in the event FaceID misreads, something that I'm sure was on the minds of many viewers.

Came here to say this. He handled it pretty well, all things considered.

 

[Cinetagonist]

Ok, let's quote Apple on this, it's not Face ID, it's Touch ID, but it'll do.

https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204587

There was some updates in iOS 10 https://www.apple.com/business/docs/iOS_Security_Guide.pdf
It looks like 8 hours rule was changed but there's some new cases appeared. Maybe in iOS 11 there's even more changes we don't know yet.