Recognix FaceCode review

The current limitations are a shame, because the underlying technology shows promise. Like any biometric system, FaceCode works by a process of pattern recognition. It starts off with raw images of the subject's face, then reduces these to templates with the required size, colour and density. The BioCode image-processing system then breaks these down into a range of frequencies according to their Fourier spectrum amplitude. The FaceCode system works on the theory that the human brain performs similar frequency analysis during pattern recognition, although neuroscience isn't advanced enough to confirm or deny this.

Nonetheless, FaceCode certainly recognised faces quickly and rejected any that didn't match. Logging in was much quicker and easier than the iris recognition used by Panasonic's Authenticam, for example, and appeared to be much less sensitive to lighting or head position. We also tried enrolling photos of people and found the pattern recognition worked with these as well. But photos of already-enrolled real faces weren't recognised, so this can't be used to circumvent security. Recognix also claims that recognition is possible even if you change your hairstyle or grow a beard, so long as 60 per cent or more of your face remains the same.

FaceCode is certainly interesting technology, but the annoying lack of network support leaves this initial version limited in usage. The Pro version's greater range of features will make it a much more appealing proposition, for businesses as well as home users. We'll bring you a review of the only slightly more expensive Pro version as soon as it's available, but otherwise this initial version of FaceCode offers a cheap entry point to biometrics.

Author: James Morris