Just days after Synaptics announced that it had started mass production of its first optical In-Display Fingerprint Sensor, it has now been revealed China’s Vivo will bring the first device with the integrated sensor. A report from Forbes states that Vivo is the 'Top5' smartphone vendor which Synaptics is referring to.
In a post for Forbes, Analyst Patrick Moorhead detailed his experience with a pre-production Vivo smartphone equipped with Synaptics’ in-display fingerprint sensor called Clear ID. Moorhead described the sensor as “fast and simple” explaining the technology unlocked the screen after the user touches a fingerprint image illuminated at the bottom of the display.
Moorhead's comments come after the popular laptop touchpad maker Synaptics had said the in-fingerprint display tech was in mass production with a top 5 smartphone maker. Though it didn’t say much, speculation suggested Samsung, Huawei or Xiaomi rather than Oppo.
Moorhead further stated that in-display fingerprint sensors on smartphones weren’t available so far due to manufacturing issues. Synaptics now has confirmed that as many 70 million units of in-display sensors will be out on the market in 2018.
Previously Apple was slated to add the technology to their $999 iPhone X. However, the Cupertino giant instead opted for the Face ID since the technology was unavailable then. Moreover, Synaptics claimed their in-house tech is twice as fast as Apple’s Face ID.
With smartphones now opting for in-display sensors, it would let manufacturers bring more full-screen smartphones. It would also ease the makers for bringing inaccessible fingerprint sensors.
Synaptics isn’t the only company with an in-display fingerprint sensor. Previously Qualcomm announced its native under-display sensor that showcased through a Vivo prototype, but it was said to be quite slow. It is unclear whether Vivo would now continue to work with Qualcomm since Synaptics Clear ID is way simpler and faster. It is estimated that other smartphone makers might collaborate with Qualcomm to bring in the advanced fingerprint sensor.
