Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Unlocking with Face ID not working when phone is semi near your face?

F

FAILGATE

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 25, 2025
26
3
I have the iPhone 17 Pro Max on iOS 26 and when unlocking the phone with Face ID it does not unlock on the first go most the time.

Also when I’m laying in bed it is so hard to unlock the phone with Face ID, I have to extend my arm all the way out for it to work.

Is everyone also experiencing this? Why unlocking the phone with Face ID not working when you have the phone near your face like 15cm away? I hate having to keep extending my arm out all the way to unlock my phone. This is not normal right? Why hasn’t Apple done anything to fix this?
 
Holding your phone 15cm from your face is a tad close! Maybe you need glasses?

Screen distance was released in ios 17, it states that holding your phone or ipad closer than 30cm increases the risk of eye strain and myopia.
 
FAILGATE said:
I have the iPhone 17 Pro Max on iOS 26 and when unlocking the phone with Face ID it does not unlock on the first go most the time.

Also when I’m laying in bed it is so hard to unlock the phone with Face ID, I have to extend my arm all the way out for it to work.

Is everyone also experiencing this? Why unlocking the phone with Face ID not working when you have the phone near your face like 15cm away? I hate having to keep extending my arm out all the way to unlock my phone. This is not normal right? Why hasn’t Apple done anything to fix this?
Click to expand...
15cm or about 6” away from your face is not far enough away to unlock your phone. You don’t have to extend your arm out all the way but at 6” away, I don’t see how your eyes can focus on the screen anyway.

This IS normal and Apple has nothing to fix!
 
  • Like
Reactions: MarkX
Honestly, I think this feature is actually reminding you to use your phone in a healthier way. I mean, 15 cm is way too close. It basically shows that the moment you pull out your phone and look at the screen, you’re holding it ridiculously close.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Jackbequickly and MarkX
This is normal. If you’re too close, Face ID doesn’t work. I noticed that back with my first Face ID iPhone, my Xʀ on iOS 12.
 
Apple_Robert said:
If you haven't been holding the phone at a weird angle and what you described is accurate, you should set up Face ID again. That behavior is not normal.
Click to expand...

Like 15cm is just an estimate. Let’s say if you put a pen from your nose to the phone. That’s the distance. It will never unlock unless I put out my arm.

I have tried multiple times to reconfigure Face ID. But same problem.
 
FeliApple said:
This is normal. If you’re too close, Face ID doesn’t work. I noticed that back with my first Face ID iPhone, my Xʀ on iOS 12.
Click to expand...

So Face ID has trouble focusing just like humans? I remember my young son holding items right up to my eye to give me a better look. 😆
 
You can turn off require attention for Face ID,that definitely helped with my father and my iPhone
 
FAILGATE said:
Like 15cm is just an estimate. Let’s say if you put a pen from your nose to the phone. That’s the distance. It will never unlock unless I put out my arm.

I have tried multiple times to reconfigure Face ID. But same problem.
Click to expand...
I can do that with my 17PM no problem, just tried several times with like 10-15cm distance.

If you have reset faceid already, go to an Apple Store and get help there. There's potentially a HW issue.

on my 13PM faceid started to fail after 2.5 years or so, got it replaced under AC+
 
It was difficult to get an exact measurement, slightly down the nose bridge (where it would be between the eyes) and to the iPhone front. I did tests with the iPhone’s Dynamic Island at eye level and the device parallel to my face, and the iPhone about 10 cm below eye level with a relative, upward-facing angle of probably 30 degrees. Nonetheless, I came up with ~14.75 cm as a bare minimum for the iPhone 15. A reminder, at that distance, the angle is going to be more sensitive. Of course, the sensor needs to see your entire face. You can practice using the front facing camera to train “muscle memory” on what angles are acceptable.

P.S. I have a visual handicap, so I sympathize. You shouldn’t need to hold your arm fully extended, likely not even halfway. Even just getting into the habit of briefly moving the iPhone a few/several centimeters further when Face ID is required should be enough. That’s basically what I do.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back