Qualcomm's under-screen fingerprint scanner is not up to the mark: Analyst

Last week, Chinese smartphone manufacturer Vivo along with Qualcomm unveiled the next-generation ultrasonic fingerprint solution which brings new and enhanced features to the previous generation Sense ID fingerprint technology.

The companies demonstrated the new Fingerprint Sensors for display and metal using modified versions of the Vivo XPlay 6 smartphone. The modified smartphone was fitted with Qualcomm's under-display fingerprint scanner and the company also mentioned that the solution doesn't require a physical button for the scanner. However, well-known Chinese analyst Ming-Chi Kuo thinks that Qualcomm's under-screen fingerprint scanner is not up to the mark.

According to him, Qualcomm's in-screen fingerprint scanning technology has many drawbacks that would make it quite impossible for manufacturers to employ it in their smartphones. Key speed and accuracy are said to be the main issues faced by the technology at this moment. As per the claims made by the analyst, the scanner is not fast and accurate enough for providing a smooth experience to end users.

The analyst further believes the technology needs to be modified to make it more practical. For example, it cannot work without a thinner cover glass and a flexible OLED panel. However, only a few manufacturers have the resources to utilize the OLED display on their handsets. So, truth to be told, Qualcomm's in-screen fingerprint scanning technology looks good only on paper. At least for now.

Contrary to what Qualcomm claims, the analyst has said that the fingerprint scanner would not be ready to use for quite a long time. So there is a huge possibility that Apple may launch the iPhone 8 with the under-display fingerprint scanner before that.