iPod Apple announces a new iPod Touch

[OtinG]

Concerning the support, or lack thereof, for the 4" screen by developers, I'm appalled that I still have newer (recently developed) apps that are constantly updated for iPhones (in general) but have never been written to support the iPad screens. That is because the developers are just lazy IMO. At least a few of these apps would be better suited for the larger iPad screens, yet even though they run on iPads they are merely a cropped view of what you would see on an iPhone screen. To be clear, I'm talking about Home control apps, weather apps, and others which really have too much information for iPhone screens but would be ideal for iPad screens, and yet they are not written to take advantage of that extra real estate (so to speak). That is not Apple's fault, that is the developer's fault.

[lumpynose]

Originally Posted by OtinG

Concerning the support, or lack thereof, for the 4" screen by developers, ...

Just out of idle curiosity (i.e., not to start any platform wars) I wonder if it's a lot of work to rework an app for a tablet that was originally written for the phone or vice versa. I briefly looked at writing an app for android but was disappointed with its API (it used subclassing when it should have used interfaces) and android has all sorts of stuff up front for different screen sizes. And their documentation makes it very clear that it's something you need to handle.

[pwalker8]

Originally Posted by lumpynose

Just out of idle curiosity (i.e., not to start any platform wars) I wonder if it's a lot of work to rework an app for a tablet that was originally written for the phone or vice versa. I briefly looked at writing an app for android but was disappointed with its API (it used subclassing when it should have used interfaces) and android has all sorts of stuff up front for different screen sizes. And their documentation makes it very clear that it's something you need to handle.

Apple takes a lot of the work out of supporting multiple platforms, but you do have to do a certain amount of work to support multiple screen sizes. Some developers will cut corners and hard code offsets and the like.

[Tarana]

Originally Posted by HarryT

What nightmares are you referring to, Tarana? I still use a 5-year-old iPhone 6 and Touch ID works beautifully on it.

That's because it works for you. Biometrics is a great idea when it works, not so great (and expensive) when it doesn't. My cousin had TouchID fail on her twice while on vacations. Our roofer last year had his fail him as well and it caused some costly problems due to time sensitive deliveries. I just don't think it's a rare event. I personally don't have the experience with it, but I have trouble solving technical problems (short term memory issues) and since it is a mere convenience, it's not something I want to add to my load of stuff. When I eventually do get an iPhone (being that smartphones are pretty much supplanting flip phones), it's on my list of things to learn more about. I do know you have the option to turn it off on the iPhone.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by Tarana

That's because it works for you. Biometrics is a great idea when it works, not so great (and expensive) when it doesn't. My cousin had TouchID fail on her twice while on vacations.

I'm struggling to understand how Touch ID not working could actually cause anyone a problem. If it doesn't work (eg because your hands are wet), you just get asked to enter a PIN instead. It works absolutely fine 99% of the time, though, and is hugely convenient. Eg, when I go to my mobile banking app, I just touch my finger to the sensor for authentication. Far more convenient than using passwords.

[Dylrob]

Originally Posted by HarryT

I'm struggling to understand how Touch ID not working could actually cause anyone a problem. If it doesn't work (eg because your hands are wet), you just get asked to enter a PIN instead. It works absolutely fine 99% of the time, though, and is hugely convenient. Eg, when I go to my mobile banking app, I just touch my finger to the sensor for authentication. Far more convenient than using passwords.

Yeah, I’ve never had a problem with touchID either. On the other hand, the fake pressure sensitive button that’s on the iPhone 7 and 8 series does give me headaches at times (eg often doesn’t recognize a wet finger as a valid touch, doesn’t work at all in a lot of waterproof cases).

[pwalker8]

Originally Posted by HarryT

I'm struggling to understand how Touch ID not working could actually cause anyone a problem. If it doesn't work (eg because your hands are wet), you just get asked to enter a PIN instead. It works absolutely fine 99% of the time, though, and is hugely convenient. Eg, when I go to my mobile banking app, I just touch my finger to the sensor for authentication. Far more convenient than using passwords.

Yes, the key is that even if the touch id doesn't work, you just put in your passcode. There are certain situations where I've had trouble with touch id (wet finger or when my iPad is in landscape mode) but I can still put in the passcode with no problem. Note that every so often, you are required to put in the passcode to reactivate the touch id. No idea what the rational for that is.

[Dylrob]

Originally Posted by pwalker8

Yes, the key is that even if the touch id doesn't work, you just put in your passcode. There are certain situations where I've had trouble with touch id (wet finger or when my iPad is in landscape mode) but I can still put in the passcode with no problem. Note that every so often, you are required to put in the passcode to reactivate the touch id. No idea what the rational for that is.

There are legal ramifications of fingerprint vs passcode that I probably shouldn't get into here.

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by pwalker8

Note that every so often, you are required to put in the passcode to reactivate the touch id. No idea what the rational for that is.

It asks for PIN whenever the device is restarted or after 48 hours of standby. Biometrics is there for convenience. Password/PIN for security.

[Deskisamess]

I always think of what Data said in A Matter of Time...

"I assume your hand print will open this door, whether you are conscious or not."

[Dylrob]

Originally Posted by Deskisamess

I always think of what Data said in A Matter of Time...

"I assume your hand print will open this door, whether you are conscious or not."

HP for some reason decided to advertise this as a feature for their fingerprint sensor equipped laptop....

[OtinG]

Originally Posted by pwalker8

Yes, the key is that even if the touch id doesn't work, you just put in your passcode. There are certain situations where I've had trouble with touch id (wet finger or when my iPad is in landscape mode) but I can still put in the passcode with no problem. Note that every so often, you are required to put in the passcode to reactivate the touch id. No idea what the rational for that is.

iOS updates also require typing in the passcode, for some reason. I assume Apple does that for security reasons. Say someone stole your iPhone and managed to get your fingerprint or face recorded in some way in which they could trick the system into letting them in. Eventually a passcode requirement would lock down the iPhone, unless they knew that too. Seems rather unlikely that would occur, so it is probably just Apple being way to cautious. And BTW, it seems like whenever I'm in the biggest hurry to get into the iPhone is when the passcode requirement pops up!

As far as being put off by new technology, it happens. I have some non-tech friends who still shy away from computers because of that reason. They get nervous and frustrated trying to use them. I also remember a lot of people who had been using text entry commands in DOS were put off by the addition of a mouse. If someone is not comfortable with the new tech, or has a physical issue with it, they will try to avoid it. That is their prerogative of course. With my arthritis I have issues with using multi-finger gestures some times. With Apple though, there are usually some work-arounds are alternatives, especially in the Accessibility section.

[OtinG]

Originally Posted by Deskisamess

I always think of what Data said in A Matter of Time...

"I assume your hand print will open this door, whether you are conscious or not."

Same for Face ID. I read a few weeks ago about police officers being able to use the fingerprints of a deceased suspect to get into his smartphone. They pressed the corpse's finger against the sensor. Personally I think that access to a persons smartphone, tablet, computers, etc. should require a legal search warrant, but that isn't the case in many jurisdictions. I jokingly tell my friends, "In case I'm found dead, delete my browser history and text messages!"

With Apple's Face ID they supposedly designed it to only work when the eyes are open. I've not tested that, but if true I think that requirement could easily be remedied with a corpse too.

[Victoria]

I wish Touch ID would work reliably for me - it is so convenient. I tried all my fingers, both hand, with no success. According to an Apple tech assistant, the prints of some older people can become “less well defined” over time (he avoided saying “dry and wrinkled”

Older people can run into issues at work too. My sister, who worked as a nurse until she was close to 70, often had problems opening hospital medication cabinets which relied on touch id. It was an annoyance for the tech staff, as apparently a number of older people had problems with the cabinets. I’m hoping facial recognition will resolve the problem.

[OtinG]

Originally Posted by Victoria

I wish Touch ID would work reliably for me - it is so convenient. I tried all my fingers, both hand, with no success. According to an Apple tech assistant, the prints of some older people can become “less well defined” over time (he avoided saying “dry and wrinkled”

Older people can run into issues at work too. My sister, who worked as a nurse until she was close to 70, often had problems opening hospital medication cabinets which relied on touch id. It was an annoyance for the tech staff, as apparently a number of older people had problems with the cabinets. I’m hoping facial recognition will resolve the problem.

I haven’t had issues with Touch ID yet, but I do find that Face ID is quicker and easier assuming you remember to point the camera toward your face. It is quicker because Face ID immediately starts trying to confirm your face whereas with Touch ID it has to wait for you to respond to the prompt to position your thumb or finger over the Home button. If you don’t have the camera pointing at your face though, you will get the prompt to input your 6 digit passcode (or password for logging into an app).