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Touch ID inconsistently works on 5s
- Thread starter andrewj
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I re-registered my main thumb and did it in 2 slots because my old print was failing 50% of the time. For the first 24 hours these new prints passed nearly 100% of the time. Now 3 days later, it is working maybe 50% of the time again. This is very frustrating.
Same thing - found SOLUTION
I've been having trouble with inconsistent readings as well. I have re-registered prints about 20 times now (exaggeration, but you understand the frustration). I keep four fingers registered because of how I handle/use my phone. The realization occurred to me that it wasn't the sensor itself or my finger. It is the cleanliness of the home button! If you're having "try again" blues, just give the button a quick wipe with your shirt or pants and viola! It works!
I've been having trouble with inconsistent readings as well. I have re-registered prints about 20 times now (exaggeration, but you understand the frustration). I keep four fingers registered because of how I handle/use my phone. The realization occurred to me that it wasn't the sensor itself or my finger. It is the cleanliness of the home button! If you're having "try again" blues, just give the button a quick wipe with your shirt or pants and viola! It works!
+1 for this issue. Every time I register my fingers, Touch ID works perfectly for a day and then progressively gets worse and worse. After a several days, it barely works at all! I've tried registering my right thumb (what I use 95% of the time) in multiple slots and that hasn't helped at all.
And FWIW my home button isn't dirty, and my hands aren't greasy, dry, calloused, damp, bleeding or bloated from a diet excessively high in salt. Just a normal phone and normal hands.
Annoying but confident that it will be resolved by Apple in an update.
And FWIW my home button isn't dirty, and my hands aren't greasy, dry, calloused, damp, bleeding or bloated from a diet excessively high in salt. Just a normal phone and normal hands.
Annoying but confident that it will be resolved by Apple in an update.
Update: After my horrid Applecare experience, I went to see a Genius. MUCH better experience. I barely had to explain what was going on before they decided to replace the iPhone, saying, "Since these phones are so new, Apple just wants us to send them back for diagnostics." I don't know if that's a general statement or a coded message saying "Apple knows there's a problem" without admitting it has a problem, but at least they are taking things seriously.
So, I ended up with a new phone. Actually, the first one given to me seemed to have a sensor that was DOA -- it wouldn't even vibrate during the scan process, so the Genius quickly got another one. While it seemed to work fairly well at first, unfortunately again after a day it stopped recognizing any of my scanned fingers.
This makes me feel more assured, along with all the other reports here, that this is a systemic problem with the Touch ID, and not just a few units. To add a bit more experimental rigor to this, I might go in and have the Genius scan in their fingerprint, and then come back a few days later and see if it still recognizes their finger. Though I'm already sure this has nothing to do with bad prints (as it works great right after setting up a print), this would provide some additional data that the unit breaks for two different people.
If this is a hardware problem, Apple is going to have a big problem on its hands with recalls or refunds. But I suspect this is a software problem, and my best guess is still that its "learning" code is corrupting the existing prints with junk data.
The bigger question is, why was this not caught during Apple's supposed extensive testing? Or was it, and they decided they needed a buzzworthy feature for the 5s even though it wasn't 100% solid?
So, I ended up with a new phone. Actually, the first one given to me seemed to have a sensor that was DOA -- it wouldn't even vibrate during the scan process, so the Genius quickly got another one. While it seemed to work fairly well at first, unfortunately again after a day it stopped recognizing any of my scanned fingers.
This makes me feel more assured, along with all the other reports here, that this is a systemic problem with the Touch ID, and not just a few units. To add a bit more experimental rigor to this, I might go in and have the Genius scan in their fingerprint, and then come back a few days later and see if it still recognizes their finger. Though I'm already sure this has nothing to do with bad prints (as it works great right after setting up a print), this would provide some additional data that the unit breaks for two different people.
If this is a hardware problem, Apple is going to have a big problem on its hands with recalls or refunds. But I suspect this is a software problem, and my best guess is still that its "learning" code is corrupting the existing prints with junk data.
The bigger question is, why was this not caught during Apple's supposed extensive testing? Or was it, and they decided they needed a buzzworthy feature for the 5s even though it wasn't 100% solid?
Mine rarely works as well with clean fingers and clean home button. It really is a bummer. I'm wondering if I should make a Genius Bar appointment or just see if their next update helps me out at all.
Give it an update or two. It seems a number of us find the need to re-input prints after a while, so it seems like it's software. In my case, it works pretty flawlessly for about 2 weeks, and then suddenly seems to stop recognizing. If I delete the prints and re-scan, it then seems to work again.
Glad to see others with this issue. Mine stops working a day after setting my print. Pretty worthless feature for me at this point. I've reset my prints a dozen times and have been considering a genius appointment but after reading the last few posts doubt it will help.
No.
I've had to enter mine a few times as we'll now. Works flawlessly for the first few days and then gets progressively worse.
According to AuthenTec co founder it's supposed to get better not worse.
Installed 7.0.3. Wiped my existing prints and started over. Noticed during the scanning process that it seemed a bit different, taking longer between each confirmation buzz. Scanning so far has been excellent, probably the best of the dozen+ times I've scanned my prints. Maybe, just maybe they've fixed this. Should know in a day or so... 
Installed 7.0.3. Wiped my existing prints and started over. Noticed during the scanning process that it seemed a bit different, taking longer between each confirmation buzz. Scanning so far has been excellent, probably the best of the dozen+ times I've scanned my prints. Maybe, just maybe they've fixed this. Should know in a day or so...
So I forgot to follow up here, but the saved prints no longer register at all. 7.0.3 didn't fix anything.
My touchID was spotty when I got it, until I finally registered a print "properly" and now it works almost 100% of the time.
Move your finger around a bit when you're doing the first part so you can get the tip and lower (near the underside of the knuckle), and when it goes to the second part to register edges, roll your finger to each side and don't push down super hard so it only captures the edges. I know it seemed obvious, but I finally got mine working great.
Move your finger around a bit when you're doing the first part so you can get the tip and lower (near the underside of the knuckle), and when it goes to the second part to register edges, roll your finger to each side and don't push down super hard so it only captures the edges. I know it seemed obvious, but I finally got mine working great.
S
syd430
Guest
A good tip to improving TouchID is not always deleting then reregistering your fingerprint.
1. Register your fingerprint to the best of your ability.
2. Remain in TouchID settings and see your list of fingerprints.
3. Continue reading the print you just saved with TouchID. Yes, TouchID is active in TouchID settings.
4. Every time your finger is read you'll see one of your saved fingerprints blink for a second indicating the print was read successfully. If not, your finger moved too much or, worst case, you may have given TouchID a bad initial reading.
5. Without having to lock/unlock your iPhone constantly, you can do this over and over again at different angles and you'll gradually notice TouchID picking different angles of the print you saved.
1. Register your fingerprint to the best of your ability.
2. Remain in TouchID settings and see your list of fingerprints.
3. Continue reading the print you just saved with TouchID. Yes, TouchID is active in TouchID settings.
4. Every time your finger is read you'll see one of your saved fingerprints blink for a second indicating the print was read successfully. If not, your finger moved too much or, worst case, you may have given TouchID a bad initial reading.
5. Without having to lock/unlock your iPhone constantly, you can do this over and over again at different angles and you'll gradually notice TouchID picking different angles of the print you saved.
I have had some good success by putting in the same finger print multiple times, accenting different angles with each one. I have 3 versions of my right thumb print in there.
Also the time of day seems to have an impact. I noticed that early in the morning it was not reading as well, maybe due to swelling. So I took a print at that time of the morning and it is one of the three prints in there.
These additional prints seems to have improved consistency.
Also the time of day seems to have an impact. I noticed that early in the morning it was not reading as well, maybe due to swelling. So I took a print at that time of the morning and it is one of the three prints in there.
These additional prints seems to have improved consistency.
Excellent post. Highly suggest others follow this advice and keep scanning edges until it works reliably every time.
I have used biometric fingerprint scanners at my office for 10 years, and with over 100 employees enrolled in my system and 1000s of others enrolled in the other systems in the building, we have had zero failed enrollments. In fact if we couldn't enroll with finger prints, we have no other way to add you to our security system.
There is no such thing as prints that are not compatible with biometrics.
Touch Id works much more reliably than our office system which cost way more. Typical enterprise grade systems will require you to hold your finger in an exact position every time. Even still, it probably fails to read 5% of the time and requires a second scan. If I use touch Id the same way as my office systems, it works 100% of the time, and with more careless partial prints, it's still over 80%.
If you are having a problem, either you are doing something wrong at enrollment, at login scan, or your hardware is broken.
Touch ID works for a dAy and then suddenly none of my fingers work and it's necessary for me to rescAn my fingers till it works Have been working with tech support. However so far no help. They're telling me that it's a new technology and they don't have all the answers yet
Mine kept losing my fingerprint from Day 2. Went the whole tech support Genius Bar route. They replaced the phone once but no better. Everytime I'd call tech support and they had me do all kinds of things. After 2 days it would be gone. Revisited Genius Bar a few times and the guys swore it would work. Right! Apple reauthorized a new phone. Took it to SH store and they wouldn't do it. They retaught their own fingerprint and of course it worked 2 min later! They retaught mine and same result. In 30 min it stopped working. Called Customer Support in exasperation. They say phone needs to be totally wiped clean of all memory and totally reloaded from scratch--not from backup. But when I saw the Apple Insider blog I wondered if I should wait. I've been a faithful Apple Customer and recommended them to others since 1985. Right now I hate the phone and wished I never upgraded to it.
Funny, a while back before I was an apple customer I recommended an iphone to a friend.
Sorry you hate the phone. For whatever reason I have minimal problems with my 5s on almost every front, although I won't say I'm problem free.
With respect to touch id, I couldn't be happier, not that it is perfect. However, even in it's imperfection I can't enter a passcode as fast as I can press the home button. It is truly the best feature of the phone.
I admit when I got this phone I figured I'd never use the finger print id deal. But now I love it. Once I got used to it and properly position my thumb on the sensor it works great. Have gone 20+ unlocks in a row and it doesn't miss.
Now I don't even think about it any more and the phone unlocks on one move.
It's a great feature but it did take a bit of practice..
Now I don't even think about it any more and the phone unlocks on one move.
It's a great feature but it did take a bit of practice..
Good news, last night using Zite I read that Apple will be coming out with a fix soon for the ID touch which should help. The article read that they are working on a fix for the problem. I read several articles that a fix is coming soon or may be incorporated into the next iOS update.