Samsung Electronics is close to scrapping its fingerprint reading technology that it planned to implement into the Galaxy Note 8, industry sources said earlier this week, adding that the solution developed by the company has problematic circuitry, with the module itself being opaque. As a non-transparent sensor would prevent consumers from fully utilizing the screen of the Galaxy Note 8, the Seoul-based tech giant may soon give up on trying to solve the issue in time for the mass production of its upcoming flagship, insiders claim. The original equipment manufacturer (OEM) is also said to be struggling with yield rates of the existing solution and those issues may become even more pronounced if the company manages to make its optical fingerprint scanner transparent, thus further pushing the limits of its technology and its viability in the context of flow production.
The latest report comes shortly after another insider said that Samsung is experiencing screen brightness imbalance issues with its fingerprint tech, citing that problem as the main reason why the Galaxy Note 8 won’t feature an on-screen sensor. While those two claims aren’t mutually exclusive, the exact specifics of Samsung’s supposed technical difficulties are unlikely to be relevant to numerous consumers that have complained about the fingerprint reader placement on the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus, Samsung’s otherwise highly praised flagships which were released earlier this year. Reports of the company scrapping the idea of embedding a fingerprint scanner into the screen of the Galaxy Note 8 have been circulating the industry for weeks and most insiders believe that Samsung won’t be able to commercialize this technology before spring of 2018 and the launch of the Galaxy S9 lineup.
On-screen fingerprint readers have been in development by Samsung, Apple, and Vivo for at least several years, with the later two companies allegedly being close to implementing them into consumer-grade handsets. The Galaxy Note 8 itself is expected to make amends for last year’s Galaxy Note 7 fiasco that saw Samsung discontinue the phablet amidst numerous reports of the device catching fire, melting, and exploding. The firm’s next high-end smartphone is said to be revealed in mid to late August before becoming available for purchase at some point in September, so more details on the product should follow shortly.