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HTC M8 case suggests fingerprint sensor for flagship successor

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htc-m8 The HTC M8 leaks have been silent for a few weeks, but this new leak points to a reoccurring feature from the HTC One Max, the fingerprint sensor, coming to the successor to the HTC One.

A new plastic mould shows the HTC M8 design and on the back of the smartphone, consisting of a rear camera, mic and fingerprint sensor. This means HTC will not change the design of the fingerprint sensor, despite reviews of the HTC One Max saying it was not a useful feature because of the placement.

Fingerprint sensors are the new thing to have on a smartphone, ever since Apple announced TouchID, other Android partners have been clamouring to make their own sensor, with Samsung trying out Iris eye scanning technology and ZTE adding fingerprint sensors.

HTC M8 looks to run the same sort of feature, we cannot see this being a big improvement on the HTC One Max fingerprint sensor. We hope HTC looks to make the fingerprint sensor a bit more useful, possibly adding new software and services to use the fingerprint sensor.

Nothing has been talked about on the launch, we should see the HTC M8 come around Q1/Q2 in 2014, possibly at Mobile World Congress. Last year, HTC surprised us all with the new design and Sense UI that did not change a lot of the stock Android features.

This year, we hope HTC has the same sort of flair and makes a smartphone engaging on the design front and on the functionality. The only thing we really want to see is a better camera, since the 4 Ultrapixel shooter was only good for low-light images.

LG G3 rumored to come with fingerprint sensor

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Rumors have started to kick off surrounding the LG G3, the next in line for the flagship throne. The rumors coincide with what seems to be the leak spurge before CES in January, where a lot of new features for upcoming devices will be shown off and then released at MWC 2014 in February.

One of these new features on the LG G3 will be the fingerprint sensor, the new security layer almost every company wants to get in on. Right now only a handful of devices support a fingerprint sensor, including the HTC One Max and the iPhone 5S with TouchID.

It may be conceived that Apple has started this trend off and no doubt the fanbois will tell of how Apple should have made Android suffer and not allow them to have this new extra layer of security on their smartphones – simply because they didn’t think of it first.

Nothing more has been said about the fingerprint sensor, other than it will be coming to the LG G3. The placement is the big issue, while the iPhone 5S worked with the home-button and became relevant, the HTC One Max was placed on the back and is in an awkward spot, making it more troublesome.

LG may slap their fingerprint sensor on the back of the smartphone as well, it would make sense considering their move to push all buttons onto the back of devices. On the LG G2 the volume rocker and on/off button are located on the back of the smartphone and this trend is continued on the LG G Flex.

Fingerprint sensors do seem like the future of smartphones, even though they had limited success on PC. Since Apple has raised the bar so high with TouchID, early Android concepts aren’t cutting it, but when the big OEM partners start playing around we may see a better design.

Samsung preparing to release smartphone with fingerprint sensor next year

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Apple may not be ahead of every spec in the mobile world, but when they reveal something new, you can be damn sure almost all the Android manufacturers are going to try it out as soon as it becomes popular.

Not only is Samsung prepared to launch their first 64bit processor next year, a new report says they will launch a smartphone with a fingerprint sensor, possibly the Galaxy S5 or another flagship like the Galaxy Note 3.

The fingerprint sensor on the iPhone 5S, named TouchID, has attracted a lot of attention on both the user and manufacturer side. Users seem to either love or loath the new security function and manufacturers like HTC are already implementing their fingerprint sensors into smartphones.

Where TouchID seems to work pretty flawlessly with only a few slip-ups, the HTC One Max fingerprint sensor has been less than ideal. Reports and reviews say the sensor is awkwardly placed and sometimes does not recognise fingerprint touches and it can take a while to get used to your finger.

Samsung may not be the most innovative company but we believe the South Korean electronics giant has a good idea on how to build a great fingerprint sensor, considering they have probably already dabbled in this technology in their other markets.

The question is can Samsung’s idea of a fingerprint scanner match Apple’s TouchID and can they figure out a way to match hardware with software and services. Samsung does run almost all their smartphones on Android, but they may be able to work on Tizen to add service APIs for Facebook and other applications to use.

This is what we are waiting for Apple to do, once Facebook, Twitter and other services can integrate with the user it means every password is now only a finger press away.

Apple patents TouchID for iPads and Macs

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iphone-touchidApple’s TouchID may be one of the first consumer fingerprint sensors that actually work without a whole lot of faults and Cupertino is looking to extend TouchID to feature on iPads and Macs in the future.

A new filing on the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office points to Apple moving TouchID further than the iPhone 5S, the only device it currently works on. Before TouchID was revealed some believed it would come on every iPhone as a software update, but it is actually embedded into the home button.

We are quite positive Apple will bring TouchID to the new iPad 5 and the A7 processing chip will also be added. The second generation iPad Mini will not come with TouchID, instead Apple will add the iPhone 5 specs to the smaller tablet.

Apple may also add TouchID to new MacBooks, including the MacBook Pro coming to Apple’s event on October 22. We are not sure how Apple will incorporate this into the MacBook, perhaps on the power button or a designated key on the board.

The iMacs are another possible destination for TouchID, the all in one setup allows Apple to just place the fingerprint sensor anywhere on the back or front of the screen, possibly on the side for easy access without looking ugly.

Apple’s new design of the Mac Pro is promising, it means the user could touch a button on the illuminated back and the whole system would open up to that user. With all the additional security Mac Pro users have on their system, it could be an efficient way to access data.

TouchID is an impressive feature and while it may seem a little underdeveloped with no third party support, Apple could add this to their whole line and then start working with official third parties to open applications, like Facebook and Amazon purchases.

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HTC One Max fingerprint sensor leaked once again

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htc-one-maxThe HTC One Max has been getting leaked since the summer but we still have no official word on when the smartphone will be released, with leaks almost everyday showing some new part or an anonymous HTC executive giving a possible release date.

A new leak has shown the HTC One Max with the fingerprint sensor again, amongst other features on the huge phablet. The leaker has snapped about two dozen clean shots of the new smartphone, with a good look at the external.

It looks like HTC will add a removable back to the HTC One Max but we doubt there will be a removable battery, instead it is an easier way to save money on the production cost and will move the SIM to the back; this may be a Chinese only feature (dual-SIM).

The HTC One Max has the same design aesthetic as the HTC One, apart from the removable back and plastic side. According to reports the phone will have a 5.9-inch 1080p display, one of the largest on the market.

The AnTuTu benchmark for the HTC One Max is 26417 points, a little lower than most running the Snapdragon 800 processor. It is safe to assume the HTC One Max will be fitted with either the Snapdragon S4 Pro or the Snapdragon 600 chip.

It is a bit odd the HTC One Max will come with a fingerprint sensor, when the original and Mini did not have it installed. Pantech released a smartphone in South Korea a month ago with a fingerprint sensor and the iPhone 5S comes with Touch ID, this may have pushed HTC to make one.

Reports say the HTC One Max will be released sometime in October, after a long wait for the phablet. It should cost around the same as the Galaxy Note 3 and we expect to see it in the US and Europe before the end of the year.

HTC One Max to be announced on October 15 with high-end price tag

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HTC has still not revealed the long awaited HTC One Max, set to be the first major tablet from the struggling Taiwanese company. The rumors started a few months back, when the phone name was leaked as the HTC T6.

Since then we have found out the retail name for the smartphone and the updated specs and now we have news on the release date and price range, with the latter quite obvious considering the specs and size of the device.

HTC is set to announce the device at an event sometime in mid-October, although the company has yet to send invites out. There is still two/three weeks until the apparent event and we may see them release news on the first week of October.

This date and event has been backed up by multiple sources and HTC is preparing to have the HTC One Max on the shelves by the end of November, in time for the Christmas shopping season.

As for the price, the HTC One Max will stack up on the high-end of the list, coming at the same price as the Galaxy Note 3 in Taiwan. Individual regions may vary, but the general idea is the HTC One Max will be the high-end phablet we have expected.

The HTC One Max does have a lot going for it, with the same hard-case aluminium design as the HTC One and 1080p display. The phone does have some quirks however, including the reported Snapdragon S4 Pro processor, a little undercooked for a high-end device.

We may see the HTC One Max come with a fingerprint sensor on the back of the smartphone, similar to the iPhone 5S. This could work out, but previous attempts at a fingerprint sensor have failed massively. Apple seems to have clocked a perfect design, but with HTC getting parts and software from all different suppliers, it may end up being a rough deal.