[kwickone]

All rumors point to the 950XL (and the 950) having only an iris scanner for biometrics (login, etc). I will wait to hold judgement until it is released, but sure seems like fingerprint would have been a better choice...or should be a second option.

The reason I say this is how I imagine the login working. Can you imagine having to hold up your phone to your eye to login? Every time? Talk about a non-speedy, and really awkward looking process to just log into the device.

I have seen the fingerprint login on an iPhone, and I must say it is a thing of speed and ease.

But again, I will wait until there are some videos of how it actually works. If it works as I detailed above, and the only other option is a corporate mandated long password, I will be very disappointed.

My 2 cents.

[Zulfigar]

You're constantly holding your phone to your front facing camera... How is finger print faster?

The biggest question I have is distance, if it'll work on the distance you normally hold your phone, then Iris Scanner will be instant because that means you don't have to move your phone or any fingers for it to see you. If you have to move your phone closer, then how much closer.

[kwickone]

Agree with your premise. Those are the types of questions I need answers to. I recall seeing a promo video of a smartphone with an iris scanner on a smartphone...can't recall where. In the video, the person holds up the phone to within 3 inches of his/her eye. That would be really strange looking in daily life :-)

[Rose640]

Why would they put an iris scanner instead of a fingerprint one if the iris wasn't better. It is a bit crazy to think that we would have to hold our phones all the way to our eyes. I strongly believe that it'll work from at least 2m distance.

[Xavier2508]

Theoretically, with the right camera you can do an iris scan from several meters away, so the 5mp ffc is probably good enough for the 20-100cm distance you'll normally encounter.

[kwickone]

I hope you guys are correct! Would be a kick **** feature and discriminator then!

[Rose640]

Theoretically, with the right camera you can do an iris scan from several meters away, so the 5mp ffc is probably good enough for the 20-100cm distance you'll normally encounter.

I also don't think it's gonna be a regular ffc, just guessing this one.

[Skippy07]

As I was using my phone just today, I thought about the scenario of how I had just logged into my phone and whether or not it would work with the iris scanner.

As I'm using my laptop, I have my phone sitting off to the left on the desk next to the laptop. I tap the windows button, slide the screen up, and enter my pin to unlock and start using the phone. All this is done while it's still sitting in the same position, flat on the desk and off to the left. The camera is facing the ceiling and I highly doubt it would be able to see my iris.

It seems, in this scenario, I would either have to pick the phone up, or slide it over closer to me so that I'd be looking into the camera. If it utilized a finger print scanner, then I would be able to use it just like I do now.

-Skppy

[Black3ternity]

You should probably stop thinking that Windows Hello will be your only measure of logging in for a lifetime.
I haven't had the opportunity to play around with one of the Developer cameras from Creative, but I think that it should be exactly the same as with my PIN login at the desktop PC right now.
Just a tap of a button and I can switch login methods.
What of your phone falls flat down and a crack appears right through the camera? What if your IR blaster takes a hit and won't flood you with IR light anymore like the 3DS does right now ... Yeah then you're screwed? No way - there will always be the regular "PIN" method that you can just swipe or tap in and you're done. The iPhone does the same. You have smudgy fingers and it can't read yours? Then type in the PIN please.
Easy as that.
Stop ovethinking and enjoy the technology when we have it :-)

By the way:
Regardless of Iris-scanning capability:
The 3DS does eye / face tracking and it works flawlessly. I never thought it would be that good and I hold it the same distance as my phone. So an IR LED with the proper camera attached can do wonders.
Tinkered around with that on my PC for head tracking, too.
So an infrared photo of your eye should be no big deal with a good camera and lens.
I can't wait for the phones and for godness sakes, I can't wait until Win 10 is finished on mobile and they release the software for the iris scanners.
I'm really looking forward to it because I HATE PIN logins on phones and they are just a stupid hassle. I never use it because I won't lose my phone and thus, I have no need for it. With the iris scanner and Windows Hello, I'm gonna use it because it won't disrupt me, won't hassle me and bog me down. *yay*

Regards,

[Krystianpants]

It's actually super fast. There are even videos on youtube. And you don't really need to be exactly straight and make sure it's perfect. But what will happen in the winter when you are wearing gloves? You just unlock with iris scanner. And you can use gloves with high sensitivity screen to still use it. And it's much safer too as any data that is retrieved from the tpm chip will not be able to be used to rebuild the iris. You can't fake it as easily either. I was actually looking at a site where a guy unlocked an iphone using a bit of skill. He simply got a fingerprint using a piece of glass someone touched and then created a fake one to use on an iphone.

[Zachary Boddy]

I would've liked to have the fingerprint scanner as an option but the iris scanner looks like it's going to be good. There's a good chance Microsoft has been working on it for years, and possibly even worked with Intel.

[donkiluminate]

I'd rather have my finger cut off then my eyeball ripped out so...I'd rather have a fingerprint scanner.

[Aquila]

This article indicates that 20 cm was more than reliable on a demo unit that they played with: Scan your iris to unlock your phone in Fujitsu's eye-opening concept (hands on) - CNET

My question would be regarding issues it could have with a) low light situations (if it is IR, this isn't an issue) and b) eyeglasses, sunglasses, etc.

[Omar9399]

I'd rather have my finger cut off then my eyeball ripped out so...I'd rather have a fingerprint scanner.

Seriously dude?

[Krystianpants]

This article indicates that 20 cm was more than reliable on a demo unit that they played with: Scan your iris to unlock your phone in Fujitsu's eye-opening concept (hands on) - CNET

My question would be regarding issues it could have with a) low light situations (if it is IR, this isn't an issue) and b) eyeglasses, sunglasses, etc.

That same article has a video or at least another one that's on YouTube and the guy does it with glasses on. Not sure about Sun glasses.

[Joe Acerbic]

Not sure about Sun glasses.

Somebody somewhere claimed that the scanner in these phones will work even then if the glasses are not super dark or mirrored.

[TechFreak1]

I'd rather have my finger cut off then my eyeball ripped out so...I'd rather have a fingerprint scanner.

Yes, as then you have much bigger problems to worry about

[houkoholic]

Face recognition and iris recognitions currently makes much more sense than fingerprint reader on a smartphone. Apple gets away with a fingerprint reader because their design language has to accommodate the legacy large circular home button which just happens to be a perfect place as a fingerprint reader, but Windows Phone have no such thing. Look at how Android OEM had struggle with positioning a full finger fingerprint scanner while keeping a small bezel - they simply couldn't do it. The way the some OEMs and the new Nexus puts it on the back is a complete joke in terms of ergonomics and usage. And swipe type finger print reader isn't even worth mentioning. As shown by the Fujitsu smartphone iris recognition tech is currently more than good enough for general usage, mark my words fingerprint is going away on phones and will be limited to much larger devices such as laptops whereas face and iris will dominate in smartphones where space is a premium for a full size fingerprint reader yet every phone has a front facing camera that's not only good for selfie but also to do face or iris recognition.

[manus31]

Fingerprints have already been done.Anyway the iris is a much better biometric.More difficult to forge

[Joe Acerbic]

I'd rather have my finger cut off then my eyeball ripped out so...I'd rather have a fingerprint scanner.

Most of us don't need to fret about out phone as an access point to a cryoprison or the Swiss bank accounts of an international crime syndicate or some such.

[donkiluminate]

Most of us don't need to fret about out phone as an access point to a cryoprison or the Swiss bank accounts of an international crime syndicate or some such.

No, but some of us might be international spies. I could tell you more but then I'd have to kill you.

[Musicman247]

Based solely on the Marvel cinematic universe, retinal scanners are harder to crack than fingerprint scanners. Fingerprint scanners can be bypassed with some super glue and masking tape. Retinal scanners require an Asgardian deity with a super advanced holographic scanner and projector to defeat.

[Joe Acerbic]

Anyway, the whole premise is again the "wall mounted retina scanner". When it's a phone instead, a smart and lazy supervillain would simply put the phone to the victim's finger or eye, all the same, without bothering with the messy ripping out of anything.

[Rose640]

Anyway, the whole premise is again the "wall mounted retina scanner". When it's a phone instead, a smart and lazy supervillain would simply put the phone to the victim's finger or eye, all the same, without bothering with the messy ripping out of anything.

You know, Arnold cut out an eye of his enemy and put it in front of the irris scanner, you know, in one of his movies.

[MoeJ]

I cannot use a fingerprint scanner. Having psoriasis (non-contagious inherited skin disease), my fingerprints are continually changing slightly. Continuous peeling, cracking, flaking off skin and occasional bleeding. The fingerprint scanner on my wife's iPhone cannot read my fingerprints. I'd have setup the scanner every week or so.

Iris scanner would be a great thing for me.