As you may have heard, there is the slim possibility of a new iPhone being released by those really nice people over at Apple.
Well, it appears as though some new evidence has emerged suggesting
that Apple’s forthcoming iPhone will include a biometric fingerprint
sensor (and we all hope it will!).
The information has come via a London programmer named as Hamza Sood, who has found some relevant support folders and documentation whilst investigating the beta release of iOS 7. As you no doubt know, developers are given early access to unreleased operating systems in order to assess it and adapt their software to new features and rules. Sood found a folder named ‘BiometricKitUI’ which was an embedded line of text in code that referenced “Photo of a person holding an iPhone in their right hand while touching the Home Button” and then “A fingerprint that changes colour during the setup process.” These snippets are most likely captions accompanying illustrations to help users to setup their new iPhone device.
The colour-changing fingerprint suggests that the iPhone has a new home button that will incorporate a biometric sensor. This new sensor could be used for unlocking the phone but also for authorizing payments and even passwords online, if we are to believe the hype. If an API was made available for the sensor then third-party apps must be keen to build on this hardware.
Banking, financial and purchasing apps could make their systems more secure and log-ins credentials could be replaced by a biometric finger sensor. Rumours of a built-in fingerprint sensor for iPhones have been around ever since Apple bought the security company AuthenTec last July for $356 million. The deal included many of the company’s patents and security technologies, as well as its developments in fingerprint sensors.
The new model iPhone is expected to be released around this coming september and will be followed by a cheaper, plastic iPhone, possibly called the iPhone 5C. This model is also expected to come in a range of colours and could, we think, retail for as little as $99.
The information has come via a London programmer named as Hamza Sood, who has found some relevant support folders and documentation whilst investigating the beta release of iOS 7. As you no doubt know, developers are given early access to unreleased operating systems in order to assess it and adapt their software to new features and rules. Sood found a folder named ‘BiometricKitUI’ which was an embedded line of text in code that referenced “Photo of a person holding an iPhone in their right hand while touching the Home Button” and then “A fingerprint that changes colour during the setup process.” These snippets are most likely captions accompanying illustrations to help users to setup their new iPhone device.
The colour-changing fingerprint suggests that the iPhone has a new home button that will incorporate a biometric sensor. This new sensor could be used for unlocking the phone but also for authorizing payments and even passwords online, if we are to believe the hype. If an API was made available for the sensor then third-party apps must be keen to build on this hardware.
Banking, financial and purchasing apps could make their systems more secure and log-ins credentials could be replaced by a biometric finger sensor. Rumours of a built-in fingerprint sensor for iPhones have been around ever since Apple bought the security company AuthenTec last July for $356 million. The deal included many of the company’s patents and security technologies, as well as its developments in fingerprint sensors.
The new model iPhone is expected to be released around this coming september and will be followed by a cheaper, plastic iPhone, possibly called the iPhone 5C. This model is also expected to come in a range of colours and could, we think, retail for as little as $99.
