Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
TouchId not well implemented?
- Thread starter MBX
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
There’s no reason. The Touch Bar just isn’t well implemented yet. How much did Apple talk about the Touch Bar during this years WWDC? Basically not at all. I hope Apple puts the Touch Bar in more computers soon, that should make them spend more energy on it.
Apple has only implemented TouchID on devices with secure enclave chips. I'm not aware of any way to add this level of security to a peripheral device, so TouchID is likely to remain on devices with integrated keyboards only.
That said, the iMac has plenty of space on the chin below the screen. We could add a TouchID sensor there and have you reach up to poke your computer instead of typing in your password!
That said, the iMac has plenty of space on the chin below the screen. We could add a TouchID sensor there and have you reach up to poke your computer instead of typing in your password!
The secure enclave could still be part of the computer and the machine could interact with the sensor in the external device using excepted connections. Would there be any reason why this won't work?
It could work, but it would require a secure connection between an Apple-certified peripheral and the secure enclave chip. So this would most likely mean buying an Apple TouchID dongle and plugging it into a proprietary port. I'm sure plenty of people would buy into this sort of accessory, but I'm not sure enough would to justify the engineering costs associated with it.
And you think that a conventional cable or wireless (e.g. bluetooth) channel + encryption would not be secure enough? The only vulnerability that comes to my mind here is man in the middle, but if the peripherals are certified, faking secure connection without a proper certificate should not possible, no?
I'm far from an expert in this field - I'm basing my comments on what I believe Apple would do. I don't believe that the current secure-enclave chips can communicate with USB controllers and the like. If a USB keyboard can interface with the chip, any other USB device could as well. That's why I imagine needing a special interface to isolate communication between the TouchID sensor and the chip.
This is all speculation on my end, though.
This is all speculation on my end, though.
Apple has always had inconsistencies. One that strikes me is the lightning connector still being around now that USB-C is computers and other devices from Apple and other major companies.
No reason lightning should exists unless you buy the licensing royalties theory. But if that where they case why not put a lightning ports on Macs, Apple external keyboards, etc. forcing more cables to be bought.
All I can say is switching to Samsung phones has shown me that Apple really does some strange things and their reasoning is BS often. I think it is just big company siloing.
I suppose they want people to buy the watch and use that for unlocking without password, either using their native solution or the rather good - Unlox App -https://unlox.it/?ref=appstore, which also works with iPhone and iPad.
Before I had my Apple Watch, I used TouchID a lot for signing in on my MBP, and I must agree that it is under used by applications and websites, and I would love to see more use out of it.
But since I have received my Apple Watch, I never use TouchID, not even to sign in (thanks to the Mac unlock feature of the Apple Watch), and since I make most of my online purchases through apps on my phone, TouchID is basically useless on my MBP.
If app designers add more TouchID support as more iOS-like apps are added to the MacOS environment in coming years, I might use it more, but for now it is seriously limited in functionality.
[doublepost=1533922814][/doublepost]
In order to incorporate the FaceID camera hardware, it would require a thicker and greatly revamped monitor, and I am sure Apple is trying to find work-arounds on this without making the monitor thicker (you know how Apple obsesses on super thin hardware).
But since I have received my Apple Watch, I never use TouchID, not even to sign in (thanks to the Mac unlock feature of the Apple Watch), and since I make most of my online purchases through apps on my phone, TouchID is basically useless on my MBP.
If app designers add more TouchID support as more iOS-like apps are added to the MacOS environment in coming years, I might use it more, but for now it is seriously limited in functionality.
[doublepost=1533922814][/doublepost]
It does not exist yet because Apple is not going to release it until a full redesign of the MacBook Pro lineup.
In order to incorporate the FaceID camera hardware, it would require a thicker and greatly revamped monitor, and I am sure Apple is trying to find work-arounds on this without making the monitor thicker (you know how Apple obsesses on super thin hardware).
If that is the case, I have no doubt if Apple wanted to put the effort into it they could work with their suppliers to reduce the thickness of the camera. It is a matter of making it an engineering priority. And it may become more important, because they want to make skinnier phones which are a much more important to Apple than MacBooks.
True, but that is part of my point, Apple probably already is working on making hardware thin enough that could fit in their desired thickness of a monitor, but we won't see it until the next major redesign. There is no incentive from a engineering and business to spend extra payroll redesigning the screen on a MBP lineup that is going to change in two years anyways to incorporate a major "feature" such FaceID. It is easier to add it into a completely new design and will give a bigger "wow" factor on release of the new design to the public.
I guess. But in the meantime Apple looks kind of weak in this area since even a $399 Surface Go supports facial unlock, not to mention the dozens of other windows laptops that support Windows Hello for both facial and/or fingerprint recognition.
Yeah I can see that point, but at least when Apple does it, I know that my data is secure and the application of the FaceID/TouchID is done flawlessly. Other computers and phones have the feature, but they are easier to fool, and the actual ID itself is more vulnerable to being hacked.
There are some specific technical reasons that keep Lightning preferred by Apple:
- Thinner to implement than USB-C
- Standard fully controlled by Apple and thus reliable and safer from tampering. USB-C is a bit of a free-for-all.
One should note that there are some illegal Chinese knock offs.
- Since Apple controls both ends of the serial comms, they can quickly evolve the standard
They will likely drop a plug altogether before switching. I would expect a plug-free iPhone within 3 years. There might be some hidden service connectors similar to what is on the Apple Watch that might allow recovery without opening the case.