Samsung planning to one-up Apple's Touch ID with iris scanner in Galaxy S5
South Korean tech giant Samsung is considering the inclusion of iris recognition technology in its upcoming Galaxy S5 handset as the company attempts to counter Apple's popular Touch ID fingerprint scanner.
"Many people are fanatical about iris recognition technology," Samsung mobile executive Lee Young Hee said during a recent interview with Bloomberg. "We are studying the possibility but can't really say whether we will have it or not on the S5."
The revelation comes as rival smartphone makers race to reach feature parity with Apple's flagship iPhone 5s, which caught many of the company's competitors by surprise with the industry's first 64-bit mobile application processor and the handset's Touch ID system, acquired when Apple purchased biometric sensor maker AuthenTec last year.
Samsung has previously been rumored to be working on a fingerprint scanner of its own, but those plans are said to have been shelved, apparently in favor of the new optical scanning technology. Fellow South Korean manufacturer LG is also reportedly developing a fingerprint-sensing feature for its so-called "G3" handset.
In addition to the biometric capabilities, Samsung's still-unannounced Galaxy S5 is expected to receive an all-new industrial design in an attempt to differentiate it from its predecessors. Samsung believes its Galaxy S4 faced lackluster sales because it did not appear markedly different from the company's S3.
"When we moved to S4 from S3, it's partly true that consumers couldn't really feel much difference between the two products from the physical perspective, so the market reaction wasn't as big," Lee told the publication, adding that the company would go "back to the basics" with the S5.
Lee said the Galaxy S5 is targeted for release "around March and April" and would be joined by an updated version of the company's Galaxy Gear smart watch with new health-sensing capabilities. The device's official announcement will likely come next month at the annual Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.
"Many people are fanatical about iris recognition technology," Samsung mobile executive Lee Young Hee said during a recent interview with Bloomberg. "We are studying the possibility but can't really say whether we will have it or not on the S5."
The revelation comes as rival smartphone makers race to reach feature parity with Apple's flagship iPhone 5s, which caught many of the company's competitors by surprise with the industry's first 64-bit mobile application processor and the handset's Touch ID system, acquired when Apple purchased biometric sensor maker AuthenTec last year.
Samsung has previously been rumored to be working on a fingerprint scanner of its own, but those plans are said to have been shelved, apparently in favor of the new optical scanning technology. Fellow South Korean manufacturer LG is also reportedly developing a fingerprint-sensing feature for its so-called "G3" handset.
In addition to the biometric capabilities, Samsung's still-unannounced Galaxy S5 is expected to receive an all-new industrial design in an attempt to differentiate it from its predecessors. Samsung believes its Galaxy S4 faced lackluster sales because it did not appear markedly different from the company's S3.
"When we moved to S4 from S3, it's partly true that consumers couldn't really feel much difference between the two products from the physical perspective, so the market reaction wasn't as big," Lee told the publication, adding that the company would go "back to the basics" with the S5.
Lee said the Galaxy S5 is targeted for release "around March and April" and would be joined by an updated version of the company's Galaxy Gear smart watch with new health-sensing capabilities. The device's official announcement will likely come next month at the annual Mobile World Congress in Barcelona.
Comments
So I have to aim the phone at my eye?
Yeah, this sounds more convenient than a fingerprint sensor on a button you would normally push when operating a phone.
Can't wait to see it
I do like the sound of them changing their design to look different, perhaps they are finally moving away from copying the look of others? Or they've selected a different target to copy, I guess we'll have to wait and see.
How silly will people look holding their phones up to their face?
I was about to say the same thing, what apple did is very passive, it does not requirement you to do anything special or extra, you do not need to look at the phone for it to recognize you and unlock the phone. The best technologies are the one that work and you do not know that it doing it for you.
When Apple wanted a fingerprint scanner... they bought a couple companies who dealt with fingerprint scanning. Those companies were probably the best in that field, too. Fingerprint scanning isn't new anyway... it's been around for a while and is very mature at this point.
Is Samsung developing iris scanning technology themselves... or are they buying companies that already do this? I can't find anything that talks about this kind of technology... especially an iris scanner that would fit inside a phone.
And then there's the whole accuracy thing. It's gotta work damn near 100% of the time... or else it will be turned off and forgotten. Sadly... a lot of Samsung "features" end up in that category.
My iPhone 5S rarely gives me any trouble. I can probably count on one hand how many times I've seen the "Try Again" prompt. At most we're talking about a few times out of thousands of operations.
Then again... scanning a fingerprint with direct touch is probably a lot easier than scanning an eyeball from some distance away.
Apple's fingerprint scanner is the best implementation of that technology I've ever seen. And it's so simple... it's built into the button you already press. If Samsung plans to one-up that with an iris scanner... they better make sure it's damn good. Bring it!
It'll be as good as Samsung's face ID unlock.
Exactly this. If they can't successfully recognise a large face, what chance do they have with a small iris?
This is silly unless it can scan from a about a foot away or so. People won't be holding it to their face.
Imagine how many random play store purchases people could make if the authentication for purchasing things was looking at the screen....Great idea! :P
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Apple fan: It's has bigger screen !
Samung Fan: This has an even bigger one.
A: This has an 64 bit processor !
S: This has an octa core processor.
A: You can unlock it with an fingerprint !
( touch ID plus finger, the iPhone refuses to unlock few times then the A have to type in the password)
S: Oh it doesn't work properly, it isn't even secure like everyone can get to your fingerprints.
A: But you don't have anything like that or ?
S: I can unlock it with my Eye, wach this ! (S looks at their phone, it unlocks instantly)
A: wow that is incredible what is that ?
S: It's the galaxy S5... From SAMSUNG
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The bext big thing is already here, the samsung galaxy S5.
The thing with Apple is they take their shot and they hit the mark nearly every time. It takes how many products for Samsung to try to reach Apple's level of success? Follow the profit.