A few months ago, Google said it engineers Face Unlock differently from the Face ID iPhone fans have been seeing since the iPhone X in 2017. It said the new technology will be able to determine if the person in front of the phone is the actual owner and not someone else, and will unlock the device even when the phone isn’t held properly.
Google explained that the new Face Unlock feature works differently from Face ID in the sense that users won’t have to get their phones, lift it up, pose a certain way in front of the camera, wait for it to unlock then swipe to get to the home screen.
Face Unlock doesn’t require that much movement. This is made possible by the tech giant’s new Project Soli chip that allows the upcoming smartphones to detect if their user is nearby and is reaching out to get their devices. That’s when the magic begins:
“As you reach for Pixel 4, Soli proactively turns on the face unlock sensors, recognizing that you may want to unlock your phone,” Google said. “If the face unlock sensors and algorithms recognize you, the phone will open as you pick it up, all in one motion.”
But wait --there’s more. Google says its new Face Unlock feature does more than detect users before they lift the phone: “Better yet, face unlock works in almost any orientation—even if you're holding it upside down—and you can use it for secure payments and app authentication too,” Google added.
