With the iPhone X now having been revealed to the world, many consumers are excited about what’s to come when the device launches, while some industry analysts remain fixated on what could have been – particularly with respect to Apple’s Touch ID system.
For a while, Apple was expected to integrate its flagship fingerprint scanning system into the display of the new iPhone, but reports soon emerged that the company’s partners were having difficulty with the project. Then there were reports of the threat of significant delays, and speculation that Apple would move Touch ID to the rear of the iPhone, or abandon it altogether.
It’s now clear that Apple has gone with the last option for the iPhone X, replacing fingerprint scanning with the new Face ID facial recognition system. (Though Touch ID remains alive and well on the iPhone 8.) But there is also now more evidence that the company was indeed trying to go with a rear-sensor approach. A video purporting to show an internal Foxconn presentation, posted on a Baidu social media site, shows slides discussing a “2017 iPhone” codenamed “Cyclops”, and featuring text referring to a “Cyclops – ID Rear Touch Relocation” and a “Mesa cutout relocation and water ingress blocking issue.” And, as AppleInsider notes, they also seem to refer to production delays.
It all suggests that Apple made an attempt late in the game to move Touch ID to the rear of the iPhone X, and that technical difficulties compelled the company to just give up on Touch ID completely. And that, in turn, suggests the company may be interested in reviving it on a future device, even if it does continue with Face ID – and maybe even in that device’s display.
Sources: AppleInsider, Übergizmo
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