Fingerprint Unlocking Unveiled in the New iPhone 5

Apple have continued with their endeavour to rival Android and bring elements from 1970’s science fiction novels into our day to day lives with the announcement that the new iPhone 5 will include an integrated fingerprint scanner, referred to as Touch ID.

Rather than unlocking their mobile with a passcode, pattern or face recognition, the user will be able to gain access as well as make purchases with the press of a digit. We’ve seen the technology used before on laptops, but this functionality integration into the iPhone will be a great feature for those for whom the input of a short sequence of numbers is too cumbersome or time consuming.

The iPhone’s user interface has a capacitive reader embedded into the Home button, which means it cannot be duped with a photocopy of a fingerprint. Apple has also stressed that the user’s fingerprint will never be uploaded into iCloud – it will be securely encrypted and stored on the device itself.

Although we have tested other devices that use the fingerprint system, this will be the first attempt to bring the technology into millions of people’s daily usage. It could very much be seen as a test case for these sort of user interfaces in mainstream life, and is very possibly set to become a major factor in future security functionality.

• Tagged in:
• Apple
• UI (User Interface)
• User behaviour