LG G8 ThinQ Wows With First Ever ToF Face Recognition and Relighting

LG’s new handset just presented at MWC 2019, the G8 ThinQ, may have drawn our attention with AirMotion (gesture-based control) but it retained it with the very first commercially-available 3D face recognition that uses a time-of-flight sensor and a never-before-seen Android 3D relighting mode, both from FotoNation, Xperi.

If that doesn’t ring a bell, think of Spotlight and Face Unlock, LG’s features presented at the Premiere conference. They’re the same things. FotoNation’s FaceSafe solution takes advantage of the ToF sensor integrated in the device to take biometric security to the next level.

We’re talking about 3D face recognition, enrollment and authentication that can’t be spoofed by print, video or 3D mask attacks (we all know hackers managed to fool even the best of smartphones with that!)

FotoNation’s FaceSafe has a low False Acceptance Rate (FAR) and a low single-digit False Recognition Rate (FRR), while also performing its task in a flash – less than 200 milliseconds, to be exact.

“We are pleased to showcase the G8^ThinQ at MWC 2019 with its various and unique features,” said David Yoon, vice president of Mobile Product Planning Division, LG Electronics. “We are especially excited to partner with Xperi to implement FotoNation’s 3D face recognition and imaging technologies into the G8^ThinQ.”

Besides this low-power consumption, extremely secure authentication method, FotoNation has provided LG G8 ThinQ with 3D relighting. In layman’s terms, this means the phone is using the 3D depth information of the face – acquired via the ToF sensor – to help you adjust the light in a portrait as you see fitting.

No more envying studio lights or struggling to find the right angle – in live preview mode, you can adjust the position of the source of light so it flatters your features. Again, this is the first-of-its-kind portrait enhancement tech for an Android phone, making the LG G8 ThinQ particularly attractive to beauty influencers and celebrities.

“These solutions deliver superior security, protection and customization that address critical needs in mobile market.”, said Geir Skaaden, executive vice president, chief products and services officer at Xperi Corporation.

So far, LG G8 ThinQ is shaping up to be the most secure Android phone this year, boasting three biometric solutions, with the advanced face recognition and vein recognition taking the cake, and a smartphone that you enables you to go from awkward selfies to professional portraits.