Samsung Galaxy Note 9 will skip the in-display fingerprint sensor...

Redmi 4 (Gold, 32GB)... 8999

In-display fingerprint sensor may have been all the rage at both CES and MWC this year, thanks to Vivo and Synaptics, but it’s unlikely that you will be see the tech in the upcoming Samsung Galaxy Note 9. Contrary to previous reports, Samsung will skip the in-display fingerprint sensor in the Galaxy Note 9.

According to KGI Securities Analyst, Ming-Chi Kuo, the technology is still in its infancy and isn’t refined enough to be used on the flagship device.

“While we previously predicted that Samsung’s new flagship Galaxy Note 9, due out in 3Q18, will come equipped with an under-display fingerprint recognition function, we now believe Samsung will cancel this feature on Note 9 because both ultrasonic (provided by Qualcomm) and optical (provided by Samsung, LSI, Goodix, Egis and Synaptics) solutions cannot meet Samsung’s technical requirements.”

The noted analyst believes the in-display fingerprint recognition technology has a lot of drawbacks. There are issues like incompatibility with screen protectors, power-consumption and more that could keep Samsung away from adopting the technology.

There’s also the question of cost.

“Also, as under-display fingerprint recognition module has a unit price 4-6 times that of a capacitive fingerprint module (or higher), we think once the former module goes into mass production, the contribution to supplier’s sales and profits will be significant,” Kuo noted.

While this won’t stop other manufacturers to be one of the first to offer the tech to consumers, Samsung will want to sit and wait it out till its perfected. Rear-mounted capacitive sensors are reliable nonetheless. They may not be at the cutting edge of technology, but they are absolutely reliable.