iPhone X can only register one face, but there's a good reason
The universe blessed us with 10 fingers and an iPhone that can register up to five of them. It's an embarrassment of biometric riches, which is why I'm a little bummed out that Apple's new iPhone X can only register one face at a time.
The iPhone X is Apple's first device with Face ID, meaning it can scan your face. You can use it to unlock your phone, verify Apple Pay transactions, and basically works anywhere the thumbprint sensor, Touch ID, worked before.
Using the TrueDepth camera system at the top of the screen (otherwise known as "the notch"), the iPhone X uses 3D-imaging and infrared technology to create a depth map of your face. It's stored and encrypted locally.
It takes just a few moments to initially register your face, but I discovered there is no option for registering another person. Your only choice is to delete your face and register someone else's. Though there is no good reason to do that.
Apple's reasoning here is sound.
Since you're just as likely to hold your iPhone in one hand as the other, having the ability to unlock with either thumb, index finger, or middle finger makes sense. On the other hand, you have just one face and either hand can hold the iPhone X up to it to use Face ID.
But did Apple leave one usage scenario out of the Face ID equation?
In my household, the ability to register multiple fingers provided an easy way for my wife and I to share access to our phones. With five registration slots, it's no big deal to reserve a fingerprint slot for a partner.
However Apple told me that, based on their data, the number of people who let other people train their phone's Touch ID is minuscule. Ultimately, the iPhone is a personal device, and I am an outlier.
Even without the ability to spread the biometric love, my wife and I can share passcodes. And that's Apple's recommendation, too. In the rare instances when your spouse or partner needs to access your iPhone X, just make sure they have access to, and can remember, your passcode as well as their own.
Lance Ulanoff was Chief Correspondent and Editor-at-Large of Mashable. Lance acted as a senior member of the editing team, with a focus on defining internal and curated opinion content. He also helped develop staff-wide alternative story-telling skills and implementation of social media tools during live events. Prior to joining Mashable in September 2011 Lance Ulanoff served as Editor in Chief of PCMag.com and Senior Vice President of Content for the Ziff Davis, Inc. While there, he guided the brand to a 100% digital existence and oversaw content strategy for all of Ziff Davis’ Web sites. His long-running column on PCMag.com earned him a Bronze award from the ASBPE. Winmag.com, HomePC.com and PCMag.com were all been honored under Lance’s guidance.He makes frequent appearances on national, international, and local news programs including Fox News, the Today Show, Good Morning America, Kelly and Michael, CNBC, CNN and the BBC.He has also offered commentary on National Public Radio and been interviewed by newspapers and radio stations around the country. Lance has been an invited guest speaker at numerous technology conferences including SXSW, Think Mobile, CEA Line Shows, Digital Life, RoboBusiness, RoboNexus, Business Foresight and Digital Media Wire’s Games and Mobile Forum.
