Coronavirus is changing almost every aspect of our lives, and now it’s the time for Coronavirus smartphone changes which you’ll start seeing on you mobile soon.
The most striking change is for iPhones. Apple have recognised that FaceID doesn’t work very well when you’re wearing a face mask. To combat this, Apple are detecting when you are wearing a face mask and instead of offering FaceID your iPhone will go straight to the passcode screen.
As pointed out by @Sonikku_a2, if you’re wearing a mask, iOS 13.5 goes straight to the passcode screen if you try to unlock with Face ID (keypad not shown because iOS hides it in screen recordings) pic.twitter.com/bQCzu5u20p
— Guilherme Rambo (@_inside) April 29, 2020
The other change which will come to both Android and Apple is how Bluetooth works. Currently an app can only use Bluetooth if it’s active – that means the app is on top using your screen. If the app is sleeping, live but in the background, then it’s blocked from using Bluetooth.
With the UK Government, and other countries around the world, creating tracking apps for track and trace of people who have been close to someone who has tested positive for the coronavirus, bluetooth becomes essential. Of course no one wants to walk around with their smartphone screen on and an app live to it’s not going to work unless bluetooth can run in the background. Bluetooth running in the background would make a Coronavirus smartphone which detect when it’s within a couple of meters of another smartphone running the same app.
The question users will want to know is how much drain such an app and it’s associated bluetooth pinging every minute will cause. The app and bluetooth running in the background would be no use at all if your battery runs out.
Doubtless there will be many more changes to the way we use technology in the future, but Apple FaceID defaulting to passscreen and bluetooth running in the background may be the two Coronavirus smartphone changes that you notice first.
One Response
With the UK Government, and other countries around the world, creating tracking apps for track and trace of people, it may well be time to ditch your smartphone.