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TrueDepth Camera: Face ID coming to more devices next year

The latest report from everyone’s favorite Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo predicts that some of the flagship features of the iPhone X will make their way to a bunch of other devices next year.

More specifically, Kuo says that the TrueDepth camera setup used to facilitate Face ID and other face-tracking functions will make its way to the entire iPhone lineup next year in addition to any new iPad Pro models.

It sounds as though Apple is preparing to bring facial recognition to the masses in a big way. The upcoming iPhone X puts all its eggs in the Face ID basket, ditching Touch ID entirely in favor of advanced face-scanning that uses a combination of facial sensors to authenticate purchases or unlock the device.

Many are skeptical about the tech – not surprising considering other smartphone makers have tried to implement facial recognition with less than impressive results – but until the iPhone X is released in early November we won’t see for certain what kind of response it gets.

Apple usually sticks to its guns with these things, knowing that people will accept change in the long term – so even if the initial reception to Face ID is a bit shaky we’d still expect to see it roll out into the cheaper iPhone models next year. Kuo’s report suggests that a big promotion of Face ID would encourage more developers to play around with the tech and produce apps that take advantage of facial tracking features.

Despite the materials needed to manufacture the TrueDepth camera being in short supply – which may lead to an iPhone X shortage on launch – it has been suggested that it could take Android devices as much as 2.5 years to catch up to Apple’s technology in this field. That’s a big advantage and, in theory, plenty of time to get the masses to adopt Face ID.