Vivo Might Be The First To Release A Smartphone With Fingerprint Sensor In Display

Samsung and Apple are both developing an in-display fingerprint sensor for their line of smartphones, but it looks like a Chinese brand might beat them to the punch. A new report claims that the Chinese phone maker Vivo might be the first to release a smartphone with that kind of technology.

This is according to Jiutang Pan, a Chinese analyst that has a reputation for tracking the Chinese mobile supply chain. Pan says that Vivo could release a smartphone with a fingerprint sensor embedded right in the device’s display in the next few months, according to Android Authority.

Pan also shared a video on his Weibo page showing the technology working on one of Vivo’s prototype smartphones. The four-second clip shows him unlocking the phone by simply placing his thumb on the bottom part of the display.

The video shows that he places his thumb on the part of the screen where a fingerprint logo is seen. It wasn’t made clear if the in-display fingerprint sensor will only work on one part of the Vivo device’s display, or if it could be customized.

The analyst also said that Vivo will be launching a new phone on June 28, and it’s possible that it will be the first smartphone to feature the embedded fingerprint scanner, according to GSM Arena. If Pan's analysis is true, the Vivo would be the first phone maker to commercialize the new technology that everyone initially thought that Samsung or Apple would accomplish first.

IBT reported just last week that Samsung won’t be adding this kind of tech for the Galaxy Note 8. An anonymous Samsung official said that the company decided not to include it because of “technical limitations such as security.”

Samsung also failed to fully develop the embedded fingerprint sensor for the Galaxy S8, which shipped back in April with a rear-mounted sensor. In March, an anonymous source said that Samsung decided to place the fingerprint sensor on the back of the Galaxy S8 “at the last minute.” The source also claimed that Samsung poured its resources in the tech’s development, only to be met with “frustrating” results.

As for Apple, the company has already been granted patents for a phone with a bezel-less design and an embedded Touch ID sensor on the display. Majority of fans already believe that Apple’s iPhone 8 will have an in-display fingerprint sensor when it’s revealed this September. Pan himself also believes the same thing, claiming that Apple will be the first foreign (outside China) manufacturer to accomplish this tech, according to Mashable.

Vivo might not be as popular as Apple or Samsung, but the company is selling a lot of phones. Gartner’s research from last month did show that Vivo is the fifth largest manufacturer of smartphones in terms of global shipments. Vivo was able to sell 26 million units just during the first quarter of 2017.

Aside from Vivo, other Chinese manufacturers appear to be stepping up their game as well. ETNews claims in a separate report that Xiaomi and Huawei are both trying to apply the in-display fingerprint scanner tech on their phones as well. Huawei might include it next year for the Huawei P11.