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How iPhone X Will Kick Start Facial Recognition Acceptance

This article is more than 6 years old.

Blue Fountain Media

In the months leading up to the announcement of Apple’s latest iPhone, one of the most anticipated features was the facial recognition technology that was rumored to be included. Now that the iPhone X is a reality, the world has been introduced to FaceID. FaceID is Apple’s new facial recognition technology that can be used to unlock the phone, make purchases in the App Store, and is integrated within Apple Pay. The technology has received a lot of coverage and hype in the weeks following the announcement, but are consumers ready to accept facial recognition as part of their daily lives?

In North America, facial recognition has yet to achieve mainstream consumer acceptance. In fact, most people still report unfavorable views of facial recognition technology. Survey data published by eMarketer indicates that 39% of respondents have a somewhat or very unfavorable view of facial recognition technology. In another survey, 69.3% of respondents indicated that in-store facial recognition software which is used to identify loyal customers and alert store associates of their preferences would be “creepy.” Only 15% of respondents thought such technology would be “cool.”

Even though many consumers still express reservations about the use of facial recognition technology, the fact is that it’s already employed in many of the online products we use. Facebook, for example, uses it to make photo tagging suggestions when a user uploads a picture to the platform. Google Photo uses it to automatically identify people in photos, grouping them together so users can browse through a folder of images for a specific friend or family member. As more companies begin to adopt facial recognition as part of their products and services, this technology will become more ubiquitous, and the iPhone X could be the device that will push it into the mainstream.

Enhanced security

Although, the iPhone X isn’t the first phone to incorporate facial recognition technology. The Samsung Galaxy Note 8 also features facial recognition, but it’s less sophisticated and easier to fool. For example, users have shown that the Galaxy Note 8 can be tricked by something as simple as a photograph. The Note 8 also includes other means of identification, such as iris recognition, fingerprint recognition, and the time-tested passcode technique. But, the necessity of these alternatives goes to show that for the Note 8, facial recognition is more of a novelty feature than anything else.

With that being said facial recognition technologies within the iPhone X promises to be much more secure. The iPhone X uses a dot projector and infrared camera to create a depth map of the user’s face, meaning that it can’t be fooled by 2-dimensional images. In order to function properly, the user must also be looking at the phone so FaceID won’t work if the user is, for example, asleep. The advanced security of the facial recognition technology in the iPhone X will help reassure anxious users worried about having their phone hacked by anyone with access to something as simple as their Facebook profile picture.

https://thenextweb.com/apple/2017/09/12/apple-introduces-face-unlock-feature-with-iphone-8-and-iphone-x/

Improved accuracy

The iPhone X also offers improved accuracy in facial recognition technology. The phone uses machine learning to adapt to the changing appearance of the user. So, if the user grows a beard, or puts on glasses or a hat, the phone will still be able to recognize them. Invisible infrared light even enables the phone to identify the user in dark conditions so they won’t have difficulty unlocking it in a dimly lit room or outside at night.

Better accuracy means a better user experience. As consumers begin to use the iPhone X and see that FaceID is accurate, secure, and convenient, acceptance of the technology is certain to grow.

Enter the copycats

As with nearly everything Apple does, the facial recognition technology built into the iPhone X is sure to inspire copycats. Apple products have always been objects of consumer desire, and this new model is no exception. As the iPhone X ships and consumers start to experience FaceID, they’ll no doubt begin to appreciate the novelty, simplicity, and convenience of facial recognition. Soon, the technology will no longer feel novel at all, it will begin to feel necessary, and consumers will be reluctant to return to the old days of fingerprints and passcodes. The iPhone X, in other words, will begin to change consumer expectations and preferences, and competitors will be forced to keep pace which, in turn, will make the technology even more ubiquitous.

TouchID, Apple’s fingerprint scanning technology, was introduced with the launch of the iPhone 5s in 2013. Though consumers certainly weren’t used to the technology at the time and may have even preferred to stick to passcodes, fingerprint scanning became the norm. Now, it’s a standard feature of nearly all smartphones. When the iPhone 7 was launched with a conspicuously absent headphone jack, many were skeptical of the decision. But just over a year later Google has launched the Pixel 2, also with a conspicuously absent headphone jack, indicating that other smartphone manufacturers are following in Apple’s footsteps. Apple has a way of pushing consumer technology forward and dragging its competitors along with it.

https://www.theverge.com/2017/10/5/16428570/google-pixel-2-no-headphone-jack-apple-wireless-future

Facial recognition technology is only at the brink of breaking into the day-to-day lives of consumers, but undoubtedly, acceptance of this technology will increase. In turn, this feature can be integrated into new app developments, for example, secure banking apps can integrate facial recognition to sign-in to your account. FaceID may just be opening the doors for the next wave of technology advancements by pushing facial recognition into mainstream use.

To learn more about app development visit Blue Fountain Media.