Selfie attendance app vs biometric machine vs register
In short: a register is free but easy to fill in for someone else; a biometric machine is hard to fake but ties attendance to one door; a selfie and GPS app works at any number of sites with no hardware, but needs each person to carry a smartphone.
Side by side
| Paper register | Biometric machine | Selfie + GPS app | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hardware | A book and a pen | A machine at every entrance, and someone to look after it | None — staff use their own phones |
| Proxy attendance | Easy: anyone can sign for anyone | Hard: needs the person’s finger or face | Harder: needs the person’s approved phone, a selfie and a location inside the geofence |
| Several branches or sites | A register at each, collected by hand | A machine at each, usually synced separately | One app; each site is a geofence on a map |
| Field and site staff | Not recorded | Not recorded unless they come back to the machine | Punch in from the site, or from anywhere if the geofence is turned off for them |
| Staff without smartphones | Works | Works | Does not work |
| Leave and salary | Worked out by hand | Usually exported to separate payroll software | In Cadence, leave and salary come from the same record |
Choose a register if
- You have a handful of staff at one place
- You trust the record and only need it for reference
Choose a biometric machine if
- Many of your staff do not carry a smartphone
- Everyone enters through one gate
- You already run payroll elsewhere
Choose a selfie + GPS app if
- You have more than one branch, outlet or site
- Some staff start the day away from the office
- You want attendance, leave and salary in one place, with no hardware
Where Cadence fits
Cadence is a selfie and GPS attendance app for Indian businesses. Each punch carries a photo and a location checked against the geofence of the office or site, and is made from a phone the company approved. Cadence does not match faces automatically: the selfie is kept with the punch so an admin can see who punched in. Attendance then feeds leave balances, holidays and the month’s salary in the same system, from ₹999 a month.
Questions
Is selfie attendance better than biometric attendance?
It depends on the business. A biometric machine is hard to fake but only records people at the door it is fixed to. A selfie and GPS app such as Cadence needs no hardware and works at any number of branches or sites, but every employee needs a smartphone.
Can staff mark proxy attendance in a selfie attendance app?
It is much harder than with a register. In Cadence a punch must come from a phone the company approved, include a selfie, and — unless the geofence is turned off for that person — be made inside the office or site geofence. Cadence keeps the selfie with the punch for an admin to see; it does not match faces automatically.
What does a selfie attendance app cost compared with a biometric machine?
A biometric machine is a one-time hardware cost per entrance plus upkeep. An app is a subscription with no hardware: Cadence starts at ₹999 a month for 20 employees, plus GST, with a 14-day free trial.
Does a GPS attendance app track employees all day?
Not Cadence. It records location only at the moment someone punches in or out, not continuously.