Users of the HomeView will see a lot of personalized content on the display if it recognizes them. However, the device relies on their other Apple devices to make that happen, rather than checking biometrics on the device itself.
HomeView is billed as the center of a smart home, but it will also aim to be at the heart of its users' lives. Alongside FaceTime calls and music playback, it will provide access to personal content for each user. The device can recognize up to six people, Apple claims, with each getting their own personalized Home Screen. Personal content stays private, while shared items like photo albums and music can be used by anyone in the household and their guests.
The list of personalized content includes Messages, FaceTime, Calendar, Reminders and Find My. This is all served by Siri AI, which can also use a user's personal context. That requires pairing with a device that supports Apple Intelligence, such as an iPhone or iPad.
To make sure only the right user sees their information, HomeView can perform facial recognition. However, it is not Face ID, since it uses the Center Stage camera without depth sensing. According to Apple representatives speaking to John Gruber of Daring Fireball, the camera is only part of the recognition system. The system also relies on other factors. Apple presumes a home is a reasonably safe space to begin with, which is why it felt it could authenticate users without on-device biometrics. Users must have a registered personal device nearby that supports Apple Intelligence and Siri AI, connected to the same Wi-Fi network and recently unlocked. That rules out the Apple Watch for recognition purposes, since it can be authenticated similarly through an iPhone. In effect, HomeView relies on users having authenticated properly on their personal devices.
Source: AppleInsider · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing