Soon you might be able to unlock your iPhone with your face (AAPL)

pulse

July 3, 2017 9:23 PM

This facial-scanning feature is intended to be a replacement for the fingerprint sensor

A demo from Faceshift, a facial recognition company that Apple bought.

Apple is working on a feature that would allow iPhones users to unlock their phones by just looking at them, Bloomberg reported on Monday.

This facial recognition feature may be included in the redesigned iPhone expected to launch this fall. It would take advantage of the 3D sensor the device is expected to have on its front. The feature may also incorporate eye-scanning technology.

It doesn't look like the redesigned iPhone scheduled to launch this fall will have Apple's Touch ID fingerprint sensor, an analyst at KGI Securities said in a report Monday.

The facial-scanning feature would replace the fingerprint sensor used on current iPhones, according to Bloomberg. It would be able to open secure apps and authenticate payments like Apple Pay, which are currently locked through the Touch ID fingerprint sensor.

However, the feature may not be ready in time for this year's models, according to the report.

The facial scanning feature would have to be better than those designed by Apple's rivals. Samsung's facial recognition feature, for example, can be fooled by a piece of paper. Apple's technology is advanced enough that it is fast and can work if the phone is lying flat on a table, according to the Bloomberg report.

Apple is expected to launch an iPhone this fall with a complete redesign, including wireless charging, and a screen that takes up more of the front of the phone. Future iPhones may also have what Apple calls a ProMotion screen, which has a higher refresh rate, Bloomberg reported. They may also have a special chip for handling machine learning applications.

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