It would recognize you even if it's resting on a table

Aug 6, 2017 22:00 GMT  ·  By

The latest rumors about Apple's forthcoming iPhone devices continue with anther finding from Apple's HomePod firmware that suggests an always active facial recognition system could be implemented.

Those who managed to dig up Apple's HomePod firmware recently, already found out that the bezel-less design and facial ID system of the so-called iPhone 8 device that the Cupertino company will unveil next month, and now a new report from the iHelp BR site revealed an always active facial recognition system.

Internally dubbed as "Pearl," the facial recognition system that may come with the next iPhone model appears to be running in background all the time, just like Siri, if you enable the "Listen for "Hey Siri"" option on your iPhone 6s or later, so that it can detect your face and open when you're near the device.

iPhone 8 could scan your face even while laying on your desk

So in other words, the new facial recognition of the upcoming iPhone could scan your face even while the device is resting on your desk or wherever you place it, which could be very helpful in certain circumstances, like when you're cooking, or you're doing stuff with your hands and you want to use unlock the phone.

Last month, a rumor suggested that the iPhone 8 may include an advanced facial recognition technology that would be capable of authenticating the owner of the smartphone within a few hundred milliseconds, which could finally put the Home button and Touch ID technology to rest.

As the guys from iHelp BR discovered, it looks like there will be two code strings (see attached screenshot), namely "APPS_USING_PEARL" and "PEARL_AUTOLOCK," which could be used to unlock certain apps using facial recognition instead of Touch ID, as well as to restrict access to the device to unknown persons.

In related news, we've also reported last week that HomePod's firmware hints at iPhone 8 would record 4K video at 60 FPS with both front and rear cameras, and that a new Apple TV model could be coming soon with 4K and HDR support. We can't wait to see what Apple has in store for iPhone fans this fall, so stay tuned!

Always active facial recognition system
Always active facial recognition system

Photo Gallery (2 Images)

iPhone 8 render
Always active facial recognition system
Open gallery