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Face ID and Desk/Nightstand issue

J

jsnuff1

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Oct 4, 2003
730
340
NY
Ok so far the iPhone X has been awesome, but one thing thats started to bother me since I've been using it for past few hours (and am sitting at work at my desk), is the issue of unlock it while the phone is sitting on my desk.

Obviously with Touch ID if a notification came in or I needed to see something on my phone it was just a one tap affair to get to something, not with iPhone X I'm doing this awkward multistep/lean-in/failed Face ID because I'm at an angle dance.

Since its flat on my desk and I'm not picking it up, I first have to press the side button to activate Face ID, then have to lean into my desk awkwardly to get a good angle, and sometimes that works or doesn't which then Im just stuck back to entering my passcode.

Obviously every other type of scenario Face ID is definitely better, but during work desk/night stand/phone on the dinner table situations its looking to be more of a hinderance.
 
uecker87 said:
I thought you could just tap the screen to wake it and then FaceID would attempt to work?..
Click to expand...


ahh cool I didn't know you could tap the screen...that removes one step from the equation...still does not solve the whole issue without actually picking up the phone from he desk and facing it towards you....which I don't want to do when at a desk.
 
jsnuff1 said:
ahh cool I didn't know you could tap the screen...that removes one step from the equation...still does not solve the whole issue without actually picking up the phone from he desk and facing it towards you....which I don't want to do when at a desk.
Click to expand...

Oh I agree with you. Annoying for sure. I don't even have a X or plan on getting one as I switched to a Pixel 2 from my old iPhone. I have the same issue with it being on a desk though. After all of these years I got so used to being able to unlock quickly to check notifications. Now I have to either pick up my phone and use the rear fingerprint scanner or just type in my PIN real quick.
 
Hold on...

Are you saying that if you're at your desk and tap the screen the notification isn't visible unless the phone scans your face first?
 
jsnuff1 said:
ahh cool I didn't know you could tap the screen...that removes one step from the equation...still does not solve the whole issue without actually picking up the phone from he desk and facing it towards you....which I don't want to do when at a desk.
Click to expand...

Same boat as you...trying to figure out the further i can be from the phone for the face id to register.
 
Just get a wireless charge cradle so it faces you while sitting on your desk
 
Tapping the screen works to wake it and you can turn off the option that hides the notifications until it sees your face if you want... that would make it work just like the old phones. So if all you want to do is check notifications it would just be a screen tap, then there they are.
 
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cannono said:
Just get a wireless charge cradle so it faces you while sitting on your desk
Click to expand...
This was going to be my suggestion. There are a few relatively inexpensive Qi chargers that prop the phone up like the Apple docks do. This will most likely be my solution.
 
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i'm sure we'll get used to this as touch id had its issues as well. Sometime if hands were wet such as when cooking etc it wouldn't register.
 
I figured this may be the case so I got the spigen qi charging cradle that props it up. Maybe that'll work. Either way, I can also just pick up the phone.
 
Can someone let me know to what extent one must "lean" forward over the display to get FID to recognize and unlock when the phone is lying flat on the table?

I'm in business meetings most of the day and it's considered rude to pick up the phone to check email or a sports score whereas when it's lying flat on the table it's considered okay. I know, I know....but it's the culture of my office, can't explain it other than that.

Do you look like a fool leaning over the iPhone X when it's flat on a table or does it have a decent angle of attack so it isn't as noticeable?
 
boltjames said:
Can someone let me know to what extent one must "lean" forward over the display to get FID to recognize and unlock when the phone is lying flat on the table?

I'm in business meetings most of the day and it's considered rude to pick up the phone to check email or a sports score whereas when it's lying flat on the table it's considered okay. I know, I know....but it's the culture of my office, can't explain it other than that.

Do you look like a fool leaning over the iPhone X when it's flat on a table or does it have a decent angle of attack so it isn't as noticeable?
Click to expand...

if its beneath your face of at a slight angle it will be fine
 
boltjames said:
Can someone let me know to what extent one must "lean" forward over the display to get FID to recognize and unlock when the phone is lying flat on the table?

I'm in business meetings most of the day and it's considered rude to pick up the phone to check email or a sports score whereas when it's lying flat on the table it's considered okay. I know, I know....but it's the culture of my office, can't explain it other than that.

Do you look like a fool leaning over the iPhone X when it's flat on a table or does it have a decent angle of attack so it isn't as noticeable?
Click to expand...

If you bring it closer, shouldn't be a problem. Still on the table adhering to your meeting etiquette.
 
boltjames said:
Do you look like a fool leaning over the iPhone X when it's flat on a table or does it have a decent angle of attack so it isn't as noticeable?
Click to expand...

Currently I’m looking like a fool until I figure out a better way to do this lol. Doesn’t help that my desk is rather high so I have a bad angle to begin with.
 
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Picapau21 said:
if its beneath your face of at a slight angle it will be fine
Click to expand...

DNichter said:
If you bring it closer, shouldn't be a problem. Still on the table adhering to your meeting etiquette.
Click to expand...

So let's say that this is a typical scenario: You are in a meeting at a conference table. Your arms are resting naturally and the phone is 12" to the east of your chin (away from you towards the person sitting on your right) and 12" north of your chin (distance towards the center of the table) and your chin is 12" off the table (seems to be a reasonable height). So your chin is elevated a foot atop the screen and the screen is a foot away from your chin both to the right and center.

In that typical resting scenario, will the iPhone X see my face and unlock or is it too far away and needs to be pulled closer?
 
BrettDS said:
Tapping the screen works to wake it and you can turn off the option that hides the notifications until it sees your face if you want... that would make it work just like the old phones. So if all you want to do is check notifications it would just be a screen tap, then there they are.
Click to expand...

This is what I did. When I was sitting at my desk and the phone was in the charging cradle I could hear an email arrive (with an audible ding) but I didn't see the notification like I used to. Changed it in settings to always display notifications even when locked. Now I see them come in and I can just tap on the glass to see them all without having to unlock.
 
boltjames said:
So let's say that this is a typical scenario: You are in a meeting at a conference table. Your arms are resting naturally and the phone is 12" to the east of your chin (away from you towards the person sitting on your right) and 12" north of your chin (distance towards the center of the table) and your chin is 12" off the table (seems to be a reasonable height). So your chin is elevated a foot atop the screen and the screen is a foot away from your chin both to the right and center.

In that typical resting scenario, will the iPhone X see my face and unlock or is it too far away and needs to be pulled closer?
Click to expand...

So I just played around with this a bit and it seems like it needs to be closer and you need to be looking down at the phone more. I tried to get it into the position where it was the farthest from me and it would still unlock and then I went into the camera app and looked through the front facing camera. It seemed that as long as my forehead and eyes were in the frame it would unlock. When less of my face was visible it would not unlock.
 
BrettDS said:
So I just played around with this a bit and it seems like it needs to be closer and you need to be looking down at the phone more. I tried to get it into the position where it was the farthest from me and it would still unlock and then I went into the camera app and looked through the front facing camera. It seemed that as long as my forehead and eyes were in the frame it would unlock. When less of my face was visible it would not unlock.
Click to expand...

I was afraid of that. So in a meeting it would look conspicuous?
 
boltjames said:
Can someone let me know to what extent one must "lean" forward over the display to get FID to recognize and unlock when the phone is lying flat on the table?
Click to expand...

I was frequently having problems trying to get consistent FID results while the phone is on my desk. From what I can tell so far, I was just instinctively getting too close. Now that I backed off a bit (more than 10 inches from the sensor) it works flawlessly, even on an angle.
 
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tecnho said:
I was frequently having problems trying to get consistent FID results while the phone is on my desk. From what I can tell so far, I was just instinctively getting too close. Now that I backed off a bit (more than 10 inches from the sensor) it works flawlessly, even on an angle.
Click to expand...

That’s great news. The farther away the better.
 
So I tried this a few times, I'll try to describe the positioning: my desk is ~29" high, I'm sitting in a chair so that it's about to middle of my torso (I'm about 6-1"), if I put the iPX so that the bottom is to the edge of the desk, I scoot up so that a vertical line drawn from my chin directly down (perpendicular to the floor) would hit the bottom of the phone, I can tap and unlock with FID. I'm not sure how far off angle I am, 90º would be down at phone level, 0º would be directly in front of the sensors, maybe 35 to 40-ish or so degrees[?] You do have to tip your head down a touch, but if the idea is slightly inconspicuous unlocking, it might do :)
 
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