01—TempClock vs fingerprint clocks

TempClock vs fingerprint clocks: no hardware on the wall

Wall-mounted fingerprint terminals are accurate at the point of contact, but they are fixed to one spot and rarely join up to anything. TempClock runs on any tablet and connects the clock-in to rotas, pay and compliance.

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GDPRUK data residencyISO/IEC 30107-3 liveness
02—At a glance

The short version

A fingerprint terminal does one thing well — it confirms a finger at a fixed point. But it ties you to hardware, often meters every check, can struggle with worn or wet fingers, and rarely talks to your rota, payroll or billing. TempClock verifies the face touchlessly on any tablet and carries that proof all the way through.

TempClock Best for proof & margins

Choose TempClock when you want touchless verification with no hardware to buy or maintain, across multiple or changing sites, with rotas, margins and sealed agreements joined to every clock-in.

fingerprint clocks Strong at a fixed point

A fixed fingerprint clock can suit a single permanent site with one entrance, a stable workforce and a simple need to mark in and out — where capital hardware and an on-premise install are acceptable.

03—Feature comparison

TempClock and fingerprint clocks, feature by feature

12 capabilities that matter to multi-site and agency teams. An honest read of where each one lands.

TempClock compared with fingerprint clocks, feature by feature
Feature TempClock One plan, every feature fingerprint clocks Fixed hardware terminal
Verification method FullTouchless face match with a logged confidence score YesFingerprint contact at the terminal
Works in any condition FullNo contact — unaffected by gloves, dust, cuts or wet hands LimitedWorn, wet or dirty fingers can fail to read
Liveness / anti-spoof FullISO/IEC 30107-3 — defeats photo, video and mask spoofs LimitedVaries widely by terminal model
Hardware to buy FullNone — runs in a browser on any tablet, phone or PC NoneA terminal per entrance, plus wiring and mounting
Works across many sites FullStand up a kiosk anywhere the same day LimitedA unit must be installed at each point
Live geofencing FullPer-site radius enforced; distance recorded in metres NoneThe terminal has no location awareness
Rotas & scheduling FullDrag-and-drop rotas with shift templates NoneNot part of a clock terminal
Agency pay & charge margins FullPay and charge resolved; margin totalled live NoneNot available
Audit-sealed e-signing FullSHA-256 seal on every signed agreement NoneNot available
Per-clock fees FullFlat per-site price; recognition runs UK-hosted LimitedSome cloud terminals meter each check
Hygiene FullFully touchless at the kiosk BasicA shared surface every worker touches
Pricing model FullFlat £150 per site / month, every feature included LimitedHardware up front, plus software or per-read fees

Based on each product's public documentation and standard plans at the time of writing. fingerprint clocks may have changed since — if anything here is out of date, tell us and we will correct it.

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04—Coverage

Coverage on the rows above

The share of the 12 features above that each tool covers fully or strongly. Counted from the matrix, not a paid benchmark.

TempClock 0%
Full coverage on every row above — verification plus everything it should connect to.
fingerprint clocks 0%
Capable at the point of contact; almost nothing beyond marking in and out.
05—Why teams switch

Why teams move from fingerprint clocks to TempClock

Most teams move off fingerprint terminals for practical reasons, not just features.

Touchless, and it always reads

Fingerprints fail on worn, wet, dusty or gloved hands — a daily reality on a warehouse or site floor. A face match needs no contact, works first time, and leaves no shared surface to wipe down.

Nothing to buy or mount

No terminal per door, no wiring, no on-site engineer. Open the kiosk on a spare tablet and you are verifying clock-ins the same day — at one site or fifty.

It knows where the clock happened

A wall terminal records a time, not a place. TempClock checks GPS against the site on every clock-in and records the distance in metres — proof the hour was worked where it was meant to be.

The clock-in actually goes somewhere

A terminal exports a CSV at best. TempClock joins each clock-in to a rota, a pay and charge rate, a margin, a client approval and a sealed agreement — one connected record instead of a number to re-key.

06—A fair word

Where fingerprint clocks is a strong choice

A fixed biometric terminal is not the wrong answer everywhere. There are settings where it remains a sensible, robust choice.

  • At a single permanent site with one controlled entrance and a stable workforce, a wall terminal is rugged and familiar.

  • It works without a worker carrying or using a device, which can suit environments where phones and tablets are restricted.

  • Some organisations prefer a one-off capital purchase of hardware over an ongoing subscription, and a standalone terminal fits that preference.

  • Where there is no need to connect attendance to rotas, billing or compliance, the extra capability of a connected system would go unused.

If you operate across more than one site, hire temps, bill clients, or need verified hours joined to pay and compliance, a single fixed terminal quickly becomes the limiting factor — which is the gap TempClock is built to close.

07—More comparisons

Weighing up another tool?

Read the other focused breakdowns, or see the full feature matrix on the comparison page.

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TempClock vs spreadsheets Read the comparison

See them all side by side on the full comparison page.

08—FAQ

Questions teams ask before switching

Is face recognition as accurate as a fingerprint reader?
For attendance, yes — and it is more reliable in practice. TempClock matches the face against the enrolled worker, records a confidence score (typically 94%) and adds liveness detection. Unlike fingerprints, it is unaffected by worn, wet, dusty or gloved hands, which are the usual cause of failed reads on a busy floor.
Do we have to buy and install hardware?
No. That is the main practical difference. A fingerprint clock is a physical unit fixed to a wall, with wiring and mounting at each entrance. TempClock runs in a browser on any tablet, phone or PC, so you can be live the same day and move or add kiosks freely.
Are there per-clock or per-read fees?
Not with TempClock. Recognition runs on UK-hosted infrastructure at a flat £150 per site per month, dropping to £112.50 per site at ten or more sites, with no charge per clock-in. Some cloud-connected terminals meter each read, so heavy use raises the bill.
Is storing biometrics on a terminal a GDPR risk?
Biometric data is special category data under UK GDPR wherever it is held. TempClock stores faces as irreversible vector signatures — never images — on UK infrastructure, and offers a PIN alternative. Fingerprint templates held on or behind a terminal carry the same legal duties, often with less transparency over where they sit.
What about hygiene and shared-surface concerns?
A fingerprint reader is a surface every worker touches in turn. TempClock is fully touchless at the kiosk — the worker simply looks at the camera — which removes the shared-contact point entirely.

More questions? Read the full FAQ or see transparent pricing.

Know who turned up — and pay every hour right.

Face-verified clock-ins, live geofencing and payroll-ready timesheets in one system. Tell us how your shifts run and we will show you how it fits.

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