In the future, everyone will drive flying cars (that fold up into a briefcase. In the future, computers will prepare our meals instantly. In the future, robots will do all of the household chores. And in the future, there will be no passwords. Instead,will access our data sing biometric security features. No, that does not mean you will have super strength or x-ray vision. (I wish). What we are talking about today is biometric, not bionic. And XID is taking us a huge leap forward in this area with their facial recognition software, Face LogOn XPress. They still can’t promise flying cars, but this a pretty cool look at the future, nonetheless.
Background: OK. So, what are we actually talking about here? Imagine you could log into your computer just by looking at it. Select your username, stare into the lens for a second and you’re in. No passwords to remember. No mistyped string of 15 numbers and letters. Nothing. Plus, no need to worry about losing your password or having it stolen.
Face LogOn Xpress is a simple to use, ‘friendly’ but highly efficient face-based biometric logon solution for consumers and prosumers.
XID’s patented approach to facial recognition using 3D facial synthesis is the only face recognition solution in the world that is able to function in outdoor, uncontrolled, real world environments. The same lighting condition variations that make all but XID outdoor solutions fail occur in mobile/laptop environments. This is what enabled XID to bring a low error rate face logon system to PC’s. XID is focused on enabling mass market consumer application of its secure access solutions.
That is all a fancy way of saying the program will recognize your face in all different conditions. All you need is a computer with a camera attached to it and you are all set. In fact, the sole downside I identified was that it requires you to already have a camera. It would be nice if XID would include Face LogOn Xpress packaged together with some of the more popular web cameras.
Setup and Enroll: The first thing you will need to do is enroll. You can enroll as many different faces or conditions as you want. Just type a username and stare into the camera. One thing I did notice here is that the eyes are very important to the program. If your eyes are covered, even by ordinary glasses, then it will not register your face. So, I had to take off my glasses every time I wanted to log in which was a bit of a hassle. Nonetheless, once I had removed my glasses, enrollment and setup took only a matter of minutes, and I was ready to go. Just stare at the camera, follow the instructions on the screen, and hit capture when you are ready. That’s all there is to it.
Using the Program: Once you have enrolled with the program, and registered your face, you are ready to go. The next time you login, instead of taking you to the normal login screen, your computer will go straight to the Face LogOn Xpress screen. From there, just select which user you are loggin in, stare at the camera, and say cheese.
One concern I had was what would happen when my camera was not connected. I thought I might get stuck on the login screen, unable to take a picture. I need not have worried. If no camera is detected, then Face LogOn Xpress will send you straight to the normal Windows logon screen.
Of course, my main concern was that it would never recognize my face again. I’ve used some facial recognition programs before, and they typically end up being more of a novelty than anything else. I am happy to report, however, that XID really nailed the accuracy, which is the real critical factor in a program like this. I asked XID how they achieved such a high level of accuracy, and they told me:
XID achieves such accuracy by using the same technology that it has pioneered for outdoor access control systems. Outdoor face recognition is difficult since the way a face appears varies greatly due to position and lighting conditions. XID is the only company that has solved this problem. XID pioneered its patented Face Synthesis approach to do this. XID applies the same approach to its Face Logon products. XID is the inventor of the patented Face Synthesis Technology, a 3D Computer Graphics technology that constructs from a single photo of a person, thousands of new images in different poses, lighting conditions, expressions and with different facial accessories (glasses, mustaches, beard…). With this, XID, enables reliable, near zero error rate, face recognition and search in uncontrolled and changing conditions.
Sure, it was not 100% infallible. There were a few times when the camera was at a bad angle or the light was wrong. When this occurred though, it quickly just kicked you back out to a standard Windows login screen where you could enter your password. But this was really not a frequent occurrence.
Conclusion: I was thoroughly impressed by Face LogOn Xpress. When I agreed to review it, I thought it looked cool, but would I ever use it. Of course, whether I used it would be directly linked to the accuracy. Well, XID got it right with this one, as I experience an extremely high rate of accurate readings. It also eased the logging on process by allowing you to just stare at a camera for a few second rather than try to come up with a random 15 string of number and numbers. I loved the ease of use and enhanced security of this program. OK. I’m ready for my flying cars now.
What I Liked:Incredible accuracy. Enhances the security of your system. Very easy to setup and use.
What Needs Improvement: This should really come packaged together with a camera.
Where to Buy: XID Technologies
Price: $19.00
This is pretty cool! Too bad it is Windows only… 🙁
It is really cool. This would be great on something like a UMPC, or a device that you carry around with you all thetime. It is almost impossible to break into. For me, I just don’t have a permanently attached camera. But the accuracy was amazing.
Doug