Though the iPhone 5S release date on September 10 is all but confirmed, new leaked photos of the alleged fingerprint sensor and altered home button have Apple loyalists on edge. Like the release date, the fingerprint sensor has been viewed from nearly every angle but an official confirmation from Apple has yet to be made. Interestingly, though, the new recognition technology could have a profound effect on how users engage with the home button.
Leaked photos published by foreign fan site Nowhereelse.fr show how Apple’s engineers have redesigned the home button. More specifically “the metal spacer cushion that supports the home button features a new look,” says Apple Insider.
A fingerprint sensor has been stuck in the Apple rumor mill for quite some time with conflicting reports having emerged that either blamed the new feature for Apple’s purported low yields on iPhone 5S shipments or touted it as being one of Apple’s best original innovations in recent memory, though it’s important to note that Apple purchased the technology’s original creator AuthenTec for roughly $356 million.
The sensor is expected to alter the original design of the home button, but not in a way that will deter users from engaging with Apple’s flagship smartphone. Ming Chi Kuo of KGI Securities says Apple’s signature concave home button will be reversed to convex in order to properly carry the recognition technology without compromising any internal storage space. Whether the redesign with affect the device’s user-friendliness is still up in the air.
It’s primary function will likely be to provide an extra layer of security and authentication. This is surely an understatement, though, as the amount of hype surrounding the sensor coupled with Apple’s penchant for showmanship and blazing new trails for making the user feel as if the device in hand is intuitive and not technical. For this reason, I’m thinking that the fingerprint sensor will work across all password and security fields, rendering the need to sign in with a password to, say, iTunes or the developers center redundant. Should this hold true, it wouldn’t be a stretch to consider Apple somehow applying this principle in a type of cross-syncing across iOS and OS X devices, though there’s no evidence or rumors to back it up at this point.
Apple’s iPhone 5S is unofficially scheduled to be released on September 10 alongside the low-cost iPhone 5C and iOS 7, though there’s no word on price for any of those yet. Until that time, let us know what you think about the iPhone 5S and the Cupertino company’s upcoming line of gadgets.
