Microsoft wants to patent photos without unlocking phone

Microsoft has applied for a patent for taking photos with a smartphone without having to unlock it. Microsoft first released this feature for Windows Phone, but Apple copied the idea in iOS 5.

The patent application describes a technique whereby a user does not have to unlock a smartphone or tablet that is secured with a code, in order to take a photo. This allows the user to take a photo faster to ‘capture the moment’, as Microsoft describes.

Microsoft has been using that feature in Windows Phone since late 2010. Windows Phone devices have an option that allows you to long-press the camera button at any time, after which the camera software starts and a photo can be taken. The device does not need to be unlocked. The screen doesn’t even have to be on. To make that possible, a camera button is mandatory on every Windows Phone device.

The idea is that anyone can take pictures without having access to personal data on the device. If the device is not unlocked, only the captured photos can be viewed and not the other photos on the device. Also, the photos can only be viewed and not deleted or sent.

Apple has adopted the idea in iOS 5. With a double click of the Home button, an icon of the camera is displayed next to the Slide to Unlock image. Clicking on this also leads the user to the camera software. The only difference is that photos taken in iOS can be deleted.

Microsoft probably wants to use the patent to force Apple to pay licensing fees for the idea. It is unclear whether this will work; the US Patent Office has not yet decided on the patent application published Thursday.