Apple integrates Touch ID biometrics with iMac keyboard

Apple’s new and improved iMac model features several innovative upgrades including a biometric Touch ID feature on the ‘Magic Keyboard’.

The Touch ID uses a dedicated security component on the keyboard which communicates directly with Secure Enclave in M1. This creates an end-to-end encrypted channel that protects users’ fingerprint biometric data. Customers can utilize this for payments, unlocking the computer or switching between user accounts.

The updated Magic Keyboard is compatible with all M1 Macs and comes in two versions, extended with a numpad or a compact model without.

“With its striking design in seven stunning colors, its immersive 4.5K Retina display, the best camera, mics, and speakers ever in a Mac, and Touch ID, combined with the amazing performance of M1 and the power of macOS Big Sur, the new iMac takes everything people love about iMac to an entirely new level,” says Greg Joswiak, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing.

In February Apple filed a patent which signaled the company’s emphasis on biometric photodetector technology for under-display Touch ID to be potentially deployed on its devices, which are reportedly coming to Apple devices in 2023.

The new iMac is available to order from Friday, April 30th.

Analyst reasserts 2022 launch for mixed reality headset

Ming-Chi Kuo, a leading analyst of all things Apple, has reiterated a forecast that Apple’s mixed reality headset will make its market debut in 2022, MacRumors reports.

The AR/VR headset is rumored to include sensors for hand and eye-tracking, and possibly iris biometrics for user authentication.

Article Topics

Apple  |  biometrics  |  eye tracking  |  Face ID  |  fingerprint readers  |  iris recognition  |  Touch ID