Many of you may remember that last year Apple had purchased, Polar Rose, a company specializing in face detection software. There was alot of speculation back then as to the implications of this. Now it seems Apple is putting Polar Rose to good use with face detection for iOS5! Instead of introducing the future in an app or two, the API will be available to developers to work wonders with. This should definitely be one of the biggest highlights of iOS5, developers are sure to cash in on this new technology to make some really innovative (and useful) applications for the app store.

The technology brings the ability to process real time images and use them in various ways limited only by the creativity of developers themselves. The technology could be used for endless purposes such as for locking your Apple device or using the technology in games similar to Microsoft's Kinect. Maybe it could even sense moods or facial expressions to interact with people through social networking applications.

In my opinion, apart from integrating the technology into iOS, Apple is likely to release some exclusive Appls apps aswell to showcase what facial recognition can do. That coupled with third party apps that use the technology should definitely make iOS5 a whole new experience. To get a taste of whats coming up, check out RecognizeME in the video below: