The great iPhone 5 debate rages, what do you think?

iPhone 5 - indisputably a great phone

The iPhone 5 has arrived and kicked off one of the biggest debates yet about Apple's ability to innovate and amaze.

TechRadar had spent the past year bringing you updates on the rumours, and the likelihood of each being realised when Tim Cook and Phil Schiller made it to the stage.

TechRadar's writers have been hard at work bringing you the big debate – with mobile devices editor Gareth Beavis and our regular columnist Gary Marshall taking opposing views.

Marshall v Beavis

Gary Marshall's opinion is that Apple has an impossible task to impress a legion of fans and naysayers, concluding: "The original iPhone transformed the smartphone market, and the new one is the best yet.

"Forget the wish lists and the snark: all that matters is whether the iPhone 5 does what you want it to do on a network you like at a price you're happy to pay. If it does, that's great.

"If it doesn't, that's great too: as the BBC might put it, other smartphones are available."

But Gareth's take is a little different, saying: "We all know Apple can convince the world that the same is good when it needs to, and that slight upgrades are all that's needed.

"But if it doesn't bring out something as impressive as the iPhone 4 soon – which genuinely married up the best technology with superior design – then Apple could start having a problem convincing the world that it knows best when it comes to telling iFans which phone they should be craving."

But what do you think about the great Apple debate? Are they always going to fall short of expectation? And if so, does that mean that we should cut them some slack when each update doesn't blow us away?

Tell us on our Facebook page, tweet @techradar or post your comments below - we'd love to know what you think.

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/the-great-iphone-5-debate-rages-what-do-you-think-1096882

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Google wins face-to-unlock patent

The Samsung Galaxy S3 already has a facial recognition app

Google has been awarded a patent for the ability to unlock your Android device with only your face.

The patent covers logging into a "computing device" using the built-in to detect a user's face. Several methods are described in the patent, including taking a single picture of the user's face, multiple pictures and angles for 3D facial recognition, and 3D facial recognition with the user making a specific facial expression for authentication.

It also covers the device allowing for multiple accounts, each unlocked by a different person's face. Passing your smartphone or tablet to a friend would trigger it to sign into their account, assuming that the friend already had created an account on your device.

Patent protected, but not much has changed

If the feature sounds familiar, that is because it already exists on Android smartphones and was introduced with Ice Cream Sandwich.

The experimental feature is notoriously low on security, in its early version allowing users to log in simply by using a photo.

Earlier this year Google announced that it will beef up the face-to-unlock security with Jelly Bean by implementing blink detection as a 'Liveness Check'.

Just because Google now has a patent on facial recognition logins, it does not necessarily mean the feature will remain an Android-exclusive. In December of last year Apple was awarded its own patent for a similar feature using slightly different methods.

Source : http://www.techradar.com/news/phone-and-communications/mobile-phones/google-wins-face-to-unlock-patent-1094966

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