Galaxy S5 fingerprint reader could encompass the entire screen

Shawn Knight

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Staff member

Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy S5 was long expected to feature an eye scanner for improved security. That feature, however, appears to have been shelved in exchange for a fingerprint scanner – one that could encompass the entire screen according to at least one Samsung insider as reported by iTechAddict.

Apple’s Touch ID on the iPhone 5s set the standard for smartphone fingerprint security but that implementation requires a user to place their digit on the Home button for scanning. Samsung’s idea, however, would allow users to unlock the phone and possibly authorize purchases by touching anywhere on the screen.

You might not have heard of iTechAddict but they seem to have a pretty solid track record as they correctly pegged the rollout date for Android 4.4 Kit Kat. Furthermore, we’ve also heard rumblings of a fingerprint reader from the ever-reliable @evleaks and KGI analyst Ming-Chi Kuo so that adds a bit of validity as well.

Galaxy S5 rumors in general have been heating up in recent weeks as we approach the reveal later this month. One of the biggest changes for the S5 could be the shift to a metal chassis, a move that we’ve been hearing about since at least last summer.

The handset is also expected to carry an ultra-high resolution AMOLED display operating at 2,560 x 1,440, a quad-core Snapgradon chip or octa-core Exynos SoC depending on region, 3GB and up to 128GB of internal storage.

We’ll know more come February 24 as Samsung reveals their next flagship in Barcelona.

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Am I the only one? I love my S4 and the PPI are insanely sharp... But how sharp do we need in a similarly sized screen? It simply becomes harder to drive the graphics and requires more battery power. Even existing 1080 displays might be overkill already in that regard. Where is the line?
 
Bet the NSA financed this haha, I would say a good real fingerprint reader would make the Galaxy more secure and easier to unlock.
 
Wait, I thought us Android fans thought Apple and the fingerprint thing was stupid... do we think its cool now? Please let me know, I am so confused....
 
Yeah, I'm gonna go ahead and stick with the pattern unlock thanks. I have yet to encounter a consumer print scanner that doesn't flake out constantly.
 
"Wait, I thought us Android fans thought Apple and the fingerprint thing was stupid... do we think its cool now? Please let me know, I am so confused...."


Lmao! Made my day with that comment!
 
Android set standard for fingerprint scanner smartphone with Atrix in 2011, iPhone bought Authentec (company that made scanner for Atrix) and released their version of scanner (which blows btw). There are countless apps in the android market that mimic the full screen finger functionality and now Samsung is bringing the idea to fruition.
 
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