As rumors intensify that Apple’s iPhone 8 will be delayed thanks to its ambitious scale, the rumor mill has also found a culprit: The fingerprint sensor needed for Touch ID. Apple may find itself choosing between a fancy screen and its fingerprint sensor.
The problem is that the fancy, edge to edge curved screen Apple has ordered isn’t playing nice with their Touch ID technology. The rumor mill has Apple considering two solutions. The first is a rather awkward idea of putting the sensor on the back. The other, and more likely, solution is to simply chuck the sensor altogether.
From an engineering perspective, cutting the sensor altogether probably makes the most sense. For Apple, the question is whether it wants to admit two failures in a row. Touch ID’s main function is to operate Apple Pay. But, well, nobody really uses Apple Pay in the first place as mobile payments continue to be a niche market at best.
That said, in a company where design is king, it’s difficult to see Apple resorting to such a clumsy solution, especially when the idea is to offer a sleek, futuristic phone. The iPhone 8 is already being called a Samsung Galaxy 8 clone by some in the tech press, and Apple doesn’t enjoy being seen as following the pack.
Folks have pointed out Apple could just essentially give up and create a dongle for the minority of users, and let the rest of the world quietly ignore their service. That may be what happens, in the end. The reality is that everybody uses the iPhone’s screen, but Touch ID most can take or leave.
(via Business Insider