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DroidID lets you unlock your computer with your phone's fingerprint sensor (Updated)

Tired of manually entering in your computer's password? Now you can unlock your computer using your Android phone's fingerprint sensor!
By
March 23, 2016
DroidID AA
Update: It looks like the developer already pushed out a new update. You can now dismiss the persistent notification, and there are a few other fixes. Check out the changelog below for the details:

  • Support for Samsung devices running Lollipop
  • Option to disable persistent notification in Settings
  • Launching the app will now invoke the unlock UI (hitting the back button will you to the main UI)
  • Unlock UI (ScanActivity) is now exposed to other apps so you can invoke it from a custom launcher action or Tasker
  • UI updates

Original post: If you happen to own an iPhone and a Mac, there’s a handy application called MacID that lets you unlock your computer with your iPhone’s TouchID fingerprint sensor. Not everyone wants to manually type in their computer’s password all the time, so this is a pretty convenient workaround. Thankfully, a developer by the name of Suyash Srijan has just launched an Android alternative called DroidID.

Once you install the DroidID app from the Play Store and get the Mac app up and running, just run through the simple setup process, and you’re ready to go. Every time your Mac asks you for your password, you can tap on the DroidID notification on your phone, scan your fingerprint, and that’s it. I’ve been using DroidID on my Nexus 6P all morning and it’s been working just fine.

There are a few requirements you’ll need to check out before using the app, though. DroidID is compatible with any Android device running Marshmallow or above that also has a fingerprint reader. You’ll also need a Mac running El Capitan or above. The app currently doesn’t work with Windows, but the developer says support is coming shortly.

The only thing I’m not crazy about is the Android app’s persistent notification. You can’t dismiss it, and for me, it’d be much easier to simply navigate to the app and input my fingerprint from there. The developer says a fix for this is also on its way sometime soon.

DroidID is completely free and doesn’t have any advertisements. It’s simple, easy to use and does what it’s supposed to. Who can argue with that? If you’re interested, follow the links below to download the Android and Mac apps.