The next iPhone is due to be released this fall and is likely to be dubbed as iPhone 5S. And among the many new features to be made part of the next iPhone is a fingerprint sensor hidden under the guise of a sapphire crystal capacitive touch button. The touch button in turn will replace the home button that we have come to know of since the first iPhone came on to the scene in 2007.
Also, with the lone Home button having to bear the brunt of the smartphone usage, it also is the most likely to wear out first over time. That will be passé as the home button made of sapphire crystal will be more durable while also adding a touch of style and of course functionality. Being the second hardest material after diamond, Apple could not have got anything better to have a protective layer over the underlying fingerprint sensor.
Rumors of a fingerprint sensor making it into one of Apple devices have been gathering steam ever since the Connecticut based company had purchased the security firm AuthenTec. Apple had also filed for a patent in the past related to a fingerprint sensor hidden under a translucent glass that turned clear to signify certain a definitive state. Analysts have pegged the reason for the delayed coming of the iPhone 5S to certain difficulties that Apple has been facing with the fingerprint sensor.
The above rumors does seem acceptable when tallied with earlier rumors which had claimed the ‘S’ in iPhone 5S stands for ‘security’. And it’s a biometric fingerprint scanner that would be adding to the security aspect. Then security of mobile devices has also been making a lot of noise off late with companies like Apple, Google, Microsoft and such adopting two step security process. A reliable fingerprint scanner in turn can make for a more secured online experience. In any case, a fingerprint scanner on a smartphone is nothing new as companies like Motorola and LG had also tried the concept before in some of their phone models.