Unlocking Phones with Biometrics.
I read a review of the OnePlus 6T and it's in screen finger print scanner and I felt instantly transported back to the first reviews I read about Face Id from Apple.
People are jumping on a fad and willing to overlook ANYTHING in the name of hyping up the next new thing. To be sure, we are all different and we all use our phones differently. As a result, every distinct biometric unlock solution will likely appeal to someone. But, I don't think in screen finger print readers really target the things which matter on a daily basis.
FaceID is slower than Touch ID AND slower than competing fingerprint scanners. It is less accurate. Easier to abuse and less convenient.
Put simply, the place where my phone spends most of my time when it isn't in front of my face is in my pocket. And, from what I've seen this is a pretty damn consistent trend for human beings. With Face Id, there is NO chance to unlock the phone until it is both out of my pocket and pointed at my face. That means that any solution which can be unlocked IN my pocket or on my way to my face will beat the real world performance 100% of the time. Which, incidentally means, from a performance perspective, it has to effectively be instant to stand any chance against the incumbents. And it isn't.
Then, (and I can't remember the exact number), but it is 1-2 orders of magnitude more likely that another person can unlock your phone with a false positive than is possible with a fingerprint.
The system is easier to dupe in general. And it is easier to force a phone to be unlocked against an owners will.
What I don't get about the supporters of this tech is that you don't even need to rally against Apple. Apparently Touch ID is the gold standard for fingerprint readers. You could simply throw your weight behind the existing tech rather blindly following where Apple tells you the future is. It is a company of humans. They make mistakes, or in this case, compromises.
What is most vexing is of course that this is actually a well known compromise. Apple actually wanted in screen fingerprint sensors so they could have a true edge to edge screen. But, the tech wasn't ready.
But, that isn't what this article is about. This article is about the fact that some Android users/reviewers are making the same sorts of errors with the OnePlus 6T and it's in screen finger print sensor. Firstly, I've been able to find NOTHING on it's relative accuracy. Initially or over time (as it gets better apparently with subsequent unlocks). In the absence of such information, the best assumption is to assume it is worse than the norm.
And this is similar to the FaceID in many ways. There is no physical indicator that your finger is on the sensor. Which means, you can't really, reliably unlock it from, say, your pocket. Nor can you necessarily intentionally avoid unlocking it while fishing in your pockets. It is faster in EXACTLY one situation, which the review I read seemed to imply is the primary use of phones... if your phone is facing up on a table, and you have no intention to pick it up, you need to pick it up to press a back mounted finger print sensor. Whereas the 6T allows you to just press right there.
I don't know about the rest of the population, but, the INSANE majority of the time, my phone is either in my hand (with my fingers "conveniently" already on the back), coming out of my pockets (again, fingers generally on the back already) or propped up on a surface which makes the back a little more accessible while making the screen visible as well.
The reviewer also notes that the sensor uses the backlight to illuminate the screen making it harsh on the eyes to unlock in a dark room. I don't personally think this is a huge deal. If I'm in a dark room unlocking my phone it is probably about to get an awful lot brighter anyway. But, it is, once again, a problem that doesn't afflict traditional finger print sensors.
I think my favorite part of the review was that it recommends to set your house as a trusted location so you don't need to unlock it and deal with the backlight at night. In other words, this feature being gushed about... he is recommending bypassing it. Effectively disabling it!!!!!!!!!! This feature is so great... you should just turn it off! Yeah baby!
Here is a CRAZY tip... I don't suspect most people just leave their phones lying FLAT ON A FREAKING TABLE out in random public places when they are using it. If back mounted finger print sensors are such a pain in those situations... why not just... make the places where you do this strange thing trusted places as well?
In short, the biggest gripe can be solved by the same idiotic suggestion recommended to solve the "biggest gripe" about the feature they are raving as being so much better.
The point of this argument should be easy enough to grasp. Finger print sensors in recesses are easy to find blindly. The technology is fast. They CAN be moved to the front of the devices... the only real thing stopping it is the obsession with "edge to edge" screens. But, even with that, rear finger print sensors will generally end up being faster in the real world.
Facial recognition requires getting the phone out and in front of your face. An act which takes orders of magnitude more time than touching a finger print sensor in almost all scenarios. Similarly. front facing finger print sensors actually require two hands (unless the device is flat on a table). The way most people hold phones is with the hand supporting it from behind. Which means that unless you're Shaq, you're not getting that finger around the front to unlock with the same hand. So, you pick up the phone with one hand, and unlock with a finger from the other. Which, incidentally means... it is probably EVEN SLOWER than Face ID in the long run.
Honestly, at this point I'm holding off until probably the Pixel 4, or whatever the equivalent is. But if that device launches with an in screen sensor... I'll probably buy the Pixel 3 instead. I like locking my devices, PINs are great as fall backs. Finger print sensors have provided a quick and reliable way of unlocking phones. But, mostly, because with the back recess I can unlock it before it ever gets to my face. It is always ready by the time I need it. Helping fund idiotic technology by throwing my money at products which ruin a perfectly good thing is not my idea of a good time.
People are jumping on a fad and willing to overlook ANYTHING in the name of hyping up the next new thing. To be sure, we are all different and we all use our phones differently. As a result, every distinct biometric unlock solution will likely appeal to someone. But, I don't think in screen finger print readers really target the things which matter on a daily basis.
FaceID is slower than Touch ID AND slower than competing fingerprint scanners. It is less accurate. Easier to abuse and less convenient.
Put simply, the place where my phone spends most of my time when it isn't in front of my face is in my pocket. And, from what I've seen this is a pretty damn consistent trend for human beings. With Face Id, there is NO chance to unlock the phone until it is both out of my pocket and pointed at my face. That means that any solution which can be unlocked IN my pocket or on my way to my face will beat the real world performance 100% of the time. Which, incidentally means, from a performance perspective, it has to effectively be instant to stand any chance against the incumbents. And it isn't.
Then, (and I can't remember the exact number), but it is 1-2 orders of magnitude more likely that another person can unlock your phone with a false positive than is possible with a fingerprint.
The system is easier to dupe in general. And it is easier to force a phone to be unlocked against an owners will.
What I don't get about the supporters of this tech is that you don't even need to rally against Apple. Apparently Touch ID is the gold standard for fingerprint readers. You could simply throw your weight behind the existing tech rather blindly following where Apple tells you the future is. It is a company of humans. They make mistakes, or in this case, compromises.
What is most vexing is of course that this is actually a well known compromise. Apple actually wanted in screen fingerprint sensors so they could have a true edge to edge screen. But, the tech wasn't ready.
But, that isn't what this article is about. This article is about the fact that some Android users/reviewers are making the same sorts of errors with the OnePlus 6T and it's in screen finger print sensor. Firstly, I've been able to find NOTHING on it's relative accuracy. Initially or over time (as it gets better apparently with subsequent unlocks). In the absence of such information, the best assumption is to assume it is worse than the norm.
And this is similar to the FaceID in many ways. There is no physical indicator that your finger is on the sensor. Which means, you can't really, reliably unlock it from, say, your pocket. Nor can you necessarily intentionally avoid unlocking it while fishing in your pockets. It is faster in EXACTLY one situation, which the review I read seemed to imply is the primary use of phones... if your phone is facing up on a table, and you have no intention to pick it up, you need to pick it up to press a back mounted finger print sensor. Whereas the 6T allows you to just press right there.
I don't know about the rest of the population, but, the INSANE majority of the time, my phone is either in my hand (with my fingers "conveniently" already on the back), coming out of my pockets (again, fingers generally on the back already) or propped up on a surface which makes the back a little more accessible while making the screen visible as well.
The reviewer also notes that the sensor uses the backlight to illuminate the screen making it harsh on the eyes to unlock in a dark room. I don't personally think this is a huge deal. If I'm in a dark room unlocking my phone it is probably about to get an awful lot brighter anyway. But, it is, once again, a problem that doesn't afflict traditional finger print sensors.
I think my favorite part of the review was that it recommends to set your house as a trusted location so you don't need to unlock it and deal with the backlight at night. In other words, this feature being gushed about... he is recommending bypassing it. Effectively disabling it!!!!!!!!!! This feature is so great... you should just turn it off! Yeah baby!
Here is a CRAZY tip... I don't suspect most people just leave their phones lying FLAT ON A FREAKING TABLE out in random public places when they are using it. If back mounted finger print sensors are such a pain in those situations... why not just... make the places where you do this strange thing trusted places as well?
In short, the biggest gripe can be solved by the same idiotic suggestion recommended to solve the "biggest gripe" about the feature they are raving as being so much better.
The point of this argument should be easy enough to grasp. Finger print sensors in recesses are easy to find blindly. The technology is fast. They CAN be moved to the front of the devices... the only real thing stopping it is the obsession with "edge to edge" screens. But, even with that, rear finger print sensors will generally end up being faster in the real world.
Facial recognition requires getting the phone out and in front of your face. An act which takes orders of magnitude more time than touching a finger print sensor in almost all scenarios. Similarly. front facing finger print sensors actually require two hands (unless the device is flat on a table). The way most people hold phones is with the hand supporting it from behind. Which means that unless you're Shaq, you're not getting that finger around the front to unlock with the same hand. So, you pick up the phone with one hand, and unlock with a finger from the other. Which, incidentally means... it is probably EVEN SLOWER than Face ID in the long run.
Honestly, at this point I'm holding off until probably the Pixel 4, or whatever the equivalent is. But if that device launches with an in screen sensor... I'll probably buy the Pixel 3 instead. I like locking my devices, PINs are great as fall backs. Finger print sensors have provided a quick and reliable way of unlocking phones. But, mostly, because with the back recess I can unlock it before it ever gets to my face. It is always ready by the time I need it. Helping fund idiotic technology by throwing my money at products which ruin a perfectly good thing is not my idea of a good time.
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