After Google ditched the fingerprint sensor in favour of the Face Unlock feature in the Pixel 4 series of smartphones, the tech was criticised for unlocking the phone even when users’ eyes were closed. Google promised that it would fix the problem via a software update. The April update for the Pixel 4 devices eliminates this issue, as well as it strengthens the security of the smartphones.
The latest security patch brings the ‘Require eyes to be open’ setting in the Face unlock menu and joins ‘Always require confirmation’ under the ‘Requirements for face unlock’. In simple words, unlike before, the Pixel 4 smartphone users are now required to keep their eyes open to unlock their smartphones.
Initially, Google’s Face Unlock feature attracted a lot of criticism because of safety concerns and accidental activations. People argued that since Pixel 4 allowed them to unlock smartphones even when they have their eyes shut, their phones could be unlocked by anyone while they were asleep by just holding it up against their face.
Google’s Face Unlock is different from what you get in the iPhones. The Pixel 4 has Motion Sense and a Soli radar chip that assist the IR camera system, which makes unlocking the phone quite speedy. Google’s Face Unlock mechanism activates as soon as it senses a user nearby and unlocks the phone when the user shows its face.
Additionally, the update also brings a security patch that addresses a memory leak, which prevented additional Bluetooth Low Energy connections, and brings a fix for dropped Bluetooth audio input during a call.
