Forget side-mounted fingerprint readers, rear sensors are still a favorite

• We asked our readers what method they prefer to unlock their phones with.
• Of the votes, 42% say they prefer rear fingerprint sensors.
• In-display fingerprint sensors came in second with 27% of votes, followed by face unlock.

There are a number of ways to get unlocked. In our recent poll, we asked our readers what they preferred to do to unlocked their phones. 42% of the votes we received indicated that they preferred the rear-fingerprint sensor. The face unlock method received the most votes with 16%.

While rear fingerprint sensors are the most popular option, not everyone is a fan of their placement, and these days they tend to only be available on the best budget phones like the Pixel 5a. Pete Ramsey says on Facebook that they prefer front readers.

I don't like rear fingerprint readers, I never use a side reader, front readers are the best I have used, and face unlock is far better.

Readers were pretty much in agreement that they were not fans of the in-display sensors on the Pixel 6 series, which have often been marred for being slow and inconsistent. Those of you that are not fans of in-display methods may be happy to know that the side-mounted sensor will be used for the next foldable phones.

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Even though face unlock is not as secure as methods on other phones, some users prefer it and would consider changing to the iPhone.

I prefer my face unlock on my pixel 4xl so much so, that my next phone will have it or I'll switch back to an iPhone if I have too. It's one of my favorite things about this phone.April 7, 2022

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mask mandates are letting up in many places, making face unlock more of a viable method for those that prefer it. On the other hand, many of the devices on the market offer more than one way to unlocks your device, so you can choose between the face unlock, fingerprints, or PINs and patterns.