iPhone users will soon be able to unlock their handset with facial recognition while wearing a face mask, thanks to an upcoming feature in the latest version of iOS. Dubbed Face ID with a Mask, the tech looks for unique features around your eyes to unlock your phones. As such, you'll need to rescan your face when you set it up. If you wear glasses, you'll also want to do a secondary scan for extra accuracy.
Notably, Face ID with a Mask won't work if you're wearing sunglasses. Apple also warns that Face ID is most accurate when not wearing a mask, so it's possible the unlock process may not be quite as seamless as it with an uncovered mug.
There's one other big potential catch for Face ID with a Mask: it seems like it will only work with iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 devices. That means anyone with an iPhone X, iPhone XR, iPhone XS, or iPhone 11 could miss out on the functionality, despite also relying on facial recognition to unlock their device. It's always possible Apple could expand the feature to other devices in the future, however.
At present, the only way to unlock a Face ID iPhone while wearing a mask is by also owning an Apple Watch. While that's convenient if you already have an Apple Watch, spending a minimum of $299 just to make unlocking your iPhone a bit easier when wearing a face mask isn't a prudent financial decision for most.
Face ID with a Mask is part of the iOS 15.4 beta, which was made available to developers. There's no fixed time frame for how long Apple tests operating system updates, but for example, there was a little over a month between the first iOS 15.3 beta and its release.
Alex Choros
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