The Galaxy Note 8 is new to the market, being announced under two months ago, but the tech wheel stops for no one. As one phone is announced, OEMs and customers embrace the future. The Galaxy Note 8 will soon become a thing of the past with the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ possibly arriving earlier than expected in 2018.
A new report out of KGI Securities, specifically from renown analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, says that Samsung is working on an under-display optical fingerprint sensor for the Galaxy Note 9. The under-display optical fingerprint sensor has been one of the industry’s most anticipated features of 2017 smartphones, though the most exciting high-end smartphones (Samsung’s Galaxy S8, Galaxy S8+, Galaxy Note 8, and Apple’s iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus) were unable to offer the feature on their smartphones this year. Samsung had brightness imbalance issues with the display as a result of the optical sensor and decided against it in the Galaxy Note 8.
The under-display sensor would allow users to no longer express frustration over the back-mounted fingerprint sensor, what some devoted Samsung faithful consider to be one of the worst features of the new Galaxy lineup.
Some buyers have said that the relocation of the fingerprint sensor to the middle back of the phone instead of at the very top near the camera (or dual rear cameras, in the case of the Galaxy Note 8) would provide some ergonomic relief.
Samsung’s upcoming under-display sensor would put an end to the controversial sensor on current Samsung Galaxy smartphones. This matches what we’ve heard about the back-mounted fingerprint sensor returning to the upcoming Galaxy S9 lineup, so the Galaxy Note 9 would be the first “Galaxy” to feature the new tech.
As for companies behind the production of the optical fingerprint sensor, Ming-Chi Kuo says that Samsung’s own subsidiary Samsung LSI, as well as Korean company BeyondEyes and Egis (the manufacturer of standard Samsung fingerprint sensors) are the most likely candidates to be charged with the new sensor creation.
Synaptics is likely out of the running due to its affiliation with Samsung’s truest rival. Samsung LSI is known for its ISOCELL cameras on the Galaxy S5 and Galaxy Note Edge in 2014, and on some Galaxy smartphones over the last 3 years. Samsung LSI and BeyondEyes have already shipped optical fingerprint sensor samples to the Korean giant.
Qualcomm is a possible choice for optical sensor production, as Samsung already manufactures Qualcomm SoCs with its own 10-nm FinFET architecture.
While the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+ are the next big thing on the horizon for Samsung’s “Galaxy,” the Galaxy Note 9 has been rumored to feature a 6.3-inch display (matching the Galaxy Note 8 display size), along with the same 12MP dual rear camera setup Samsung debuted in its lineup on the Galaxy Note 8 and a 1000fps camera sensor that is expected to first debut on the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9+.
IP68 water and dust resistance, along with the 256GB microSD card slot and water-resistant “intelligent” S Pen are also expected to return on the most anticipated “Galaxy” of 2018.
