If you remember the rumours that made rounds before Galaxy S8 was launched, then you must know that Galaxy S8 series was supposed to get a screen mounted fingerprint scanner. But it ultimately didn’t come with one and neither will the upcoming Galaxy Note 8. And if this new report is to be believed, the Galaxy S9 won’t even come with an ultrasonic fingerprint scanner and the first Samsung device to sport one will be the Galaxy Note 9.
It might get a bit confusing for a few people since the Galaxy S8 is just a few months old and we are a few weeks away from the Galaxy Note 8 official launch. And we are here talking about the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy Note 9 that might see the light of day over the next year. The whole point is about the fingerprint sensor technology which is due to receive a major upgrade with the ultrasonic fingerprint scanners.
Ming-Chi Kuo from KGI Securities has predicted that Samsung will be unable to place an under-display fingerprint scanner due to some technical issues. And the phone’s biggest competitor, iPhone 8, will reportedly come without TouchID, so it isn’t worth spending time and money on bringing the ultrasonic scanner to Galaxy S9 in a hurry. Samsung can wait for a few more months, make sure the tech is working perfectly fine, polish it further and bring it to the Galaxy Note 9 that will be due for release in the second half of 2018.
During the recent MWC Shanghai, Qualcomm had showcased its proprietary tech for ultrasonic fingerprint sensors. The company earlier said that it would be made available for commercial use by the end of this year. Vivo Xplay 7 had leaked earlier this week which will most probably be the first smartphone to sport the Qualcomm tech. Samsung, on the other hand, depends on a bunch of other companies, including Synaptics, for its fingerprint scanners.
The report by Kuo adds that Samsung will be streamlining its suppliers in the coming months to be able to implement the latest tech on their smartphones at the earliest. For now, we’re expecting the Galaxy Note 8 to launch in the coming weeks and will have to wait a few more months to figure out how the next Samsung flagship would finally be.
