iPhone 8’s new facial recognition functionality will be just as versatile as Touch ID, giving users the ability to authorize Apple Pay transactions, unlock third-party apps, and more.
Apple’s code suggests “Face ID” will even support multiple faces for different users.
If you thought the iPhone 8 secrets buried in Apple’s HomePod firmware had all been revealed, think again. Developers are still uncovering new snippets of information ahead of an official unveiling this fall that reveal what we can expect from the much-anticipated upgrade.
Guilherme Rambo, an app maker for Peixe Urbano, has discovered that Face ID — the name that appears to have been given to the iPhone 8’s facial recognition feature — will “definitely” support mobile payments.
That means you’ll be able to use it to authorize Apple Pay transactions in much the same way as you use Touch ID today. When buying goods online, or at the checkout in a retail store, you’ll simply look at your iPhone’s facial recognition sensors to approve the transaction.
Face ID, codenamed Pearl inside Apple, will also support third-party apps, so you’ll be able to login to your bank, PayPal, and apps like 1Password. What’s more, Rambo has found code that suggests we’ll be able to register multiple faces, so other people can access your device.
About Pearl ID:
1 – The software definitely supports it for payments
2 – 3rd party apps can use it
3 – You can add multiple faces pic.twitter.com/aUotHwD64f— Guilherme Rambo (@_inside) August 9, 2017
It’s not exactly surprising that Face ID will do all this. After all, if it really is going to replace Touch ID on the iPhone 8, as some reports have suggested, it has to do everything Touch ID can. It will also need to be as fast, as reliable, and as secure — if not more so.
