A pedestrian wearing a protective mask uses his cell phone while passing an Apple iPhone ad on Orchard Road in Singapore.
Wei Leng Tay | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Soon, Apple will allow you to unlock your iPhone, as long as you are using an Apple Watch. This means that it will be much easier to unlock the phone using a mask, which you need to remove at the moment for the face ID to work.
The feature will be released this spring, when Apple releases iOS 14.5 for iPhones and the corresponding Apple Watch update. Requires that you have an Apple Watch on your wrist, unlocked and with your own password.
It Works very well. You may be familiar with the process if you have a Mac and an Apple Watch – you can now unlock a Mac just by getting close to it using your Apple Watch, for example.
The experience is very similar with the iPhone. If you have a mask (or even if you don’t), just swipe from bottom to top on your iPhone screen. Your iPhone will scan part of your face and the Apple Watch will emit a small hum indicating that it was used to unlock the iPhone. It is unlocked in an instant, as is the Face ID when you are not wearing a mask.
I tested it with more than just a mask too. I lifted my shirt covering everything except my forehead and eyes, and it worked. It didn’t work when I blocked my whole face or if I tried to unlock the phone without being in front of it.
See how you can set it up when iOS 14.5 is released.
How to unlock your iPhone with your Apple Watch
Unlocking my iPhone with my Apple Watch using iOS 14.5.
Todd Haselton | CNBC
I tested this using the iOS 14.5 beta. But once the software is released to everyone this spring, you can follow these steps to set it up.
- Open your iPhone’s settings.
- Touch facial ID and password.
- Enter your iPhone password.
- Scroll down to “Unlock with Apple Watch.”
- Toggle the button next to your Apple Watch to activate it.
That’s it. Now, when unlocking the iPhone with a mask, you’ll feel a soft humming noise on your Apple Watch as it unlocks your iPhone.