Vivo X21 brings out conceptual design into reality with its in-display fingerprint reader

Smartphones have become an important part of our daily life routine. With technological advancements in last one decade, they have graduallymanaged to replace our PCs, music players, gaming consoles, and even high-end cameras to some extent. However; in last two or three years, the smartphone market has startedshowing early signs of saturation. Even the most premium handsets, flagships as the world call them have largely failed to excite us.

In the name of innovation, the top smartphone makers have given us taller displays with very thin bezels, quick charging, dual-lens camera setups, and AR stickers. The new flagship smartphone by Vivo is set to change this ongoing uninspiring trend. The company has just announced Vivo X21, which is the world's first commercial smartphone with the futuristic in-display fingerprint scanner. The technology was first showcased in Mobile World Congress (MWC 2017) where Vivo gave this world the very first glimpse of exciting new biometrics standard.

Vivo stole the show by showcasing the first ever working model of the under-glass fingerprint sensing technology with the X20 Plus UD handset. With some fine-tuning, Vivo has managed to introduce the X21, the first mass-market smartphone with such futuristic technology, and without a shadow of doubt, more handset makers will soon join the league.

Vivo X21 incorporates the SynapticsClearIDFS9500optical sensor, which is carefully installed under the surface of X21's AMOLED screen. It is a tedious task and involves sophisticated engineering where the margin of error is very less or almost null. Apple and Samsung tried their hands on the new technology but were unable to deliver a working model on time.

The Synaptics Clear ID FS9500 fingerprint sensor is basically a tiny CMOS sensor that works on the principles of optics. It is placed three layers down the top glass of Vivo X21 and as per Synaptics, captures the reflected fingerprint between and through the OLED pixels. Sounds interesting; wait until you use it and experience the magic yourself. Theoretically, the fingerprint reader works faster than facial recognition and can be used in any environment, including dark rooms, and under direct sunlight. We have tried it on Vivo X21 and it's the most innovative and futuristic mobile feature we have used lately.

The optical sensor is placed 1 cm above the chin of Vivo X21, which is a very comfortable spot for your thumb to land naturally.The moment you touch the designated area on the X21's AMOLED screen, it emits light to illuminate your finger's footprint. The light photons then reflected and are captured by the sensor rooted below the screen. A slight pressure is also required for the better functioning of the sensor.

The Vivo X21 also offers a snappy face unlock feature which is based on infrared-based face recognition technology and unlocks the handset in the blink of an eye. Combined with the new in-display fingerprint scanner, the dual security feature ensures the paramount security of your data stored on the device.

Besides the bleeding edge technology, Vivo X21 also offers a massive 6.28-inch AMOLED display with 19:9 aspect ratio and extremely thin bezels. The impressive 90.3% screen-to-body ratio makes Vivo the best-in-class smartphone for multimedia consumption.

The list of exciting features does not end here. Vivo X21 also sports a capable dual-lens camera setup that works on 'Dual Pixel' sensor technology. The dual pixel technology improves low-light camera performance byensuring faster-focusing speeds. The smartphone also supports 4K video recording and sports a 12MP selfie camera with AI backed software algorithms.

Vivo X21 review

All these features are worth talking but our favorite remains the innovative in-display fingerprint scanner. With Vivo X21, the company has given a new direction to the dated biometric standards followed by smartphone makers across the globe. The in-display fingerprint is indeed the future and Vivo has successfully become the torch bearer for other smartphone makers.