iPhone 8 may come with iris-scanning technology

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Apple's next handset could put the "eye" in iPhone.
Photo: Bill Dickerson/Flickr

The iPhone 8 could include iris scanning technology, along with all its other new features, claims a report citing industry sources.

The in-built eye-scanning tech would join OLED displays and wireless charging as selling points for the next-gen handsets, scheduled for September 2017.

This latest report isn’t the first time we’ve heard the suggestion that a future iPhone may come with iris-scanning tech. Last year, a report suggested that Apple with planning to roll out a new iPhone with iris sensor — although not until 2018.

Provided it was implemented effectively, iris-scanning tech could be a definite positive. As a biometric security feature, Touch ID has been a big success for Apple, and has expanded its original use case beyond merely unlocking iPhones, to also verifying identity for Apple Pay.

Being able to string together different biometric security systems for added protection is something Apple has explored in a previous patent. Unlike Touch ID, the feature also wouldn’t be stymied by dirty or wet fingers — which would prove a boon for a company that’s focused on making its devices waterproof.

Will Apple actually add the technology in time for what already sounds like a feature-packed iPhone 8? Personally, I’d have thought we would have heard more about this feature were it to be implemented on the next-gen devices, but I’m very happy to be proven wrong.

Today’s report also claims that Apple suppliers are set to start delivering iPhone 8 parts and components to Apple in the first part of 2017. That’s considerably earlier than in previous years, suggesting that Apple is keen to build up a bigger stockpile of the handsets to meet demand.

Would you like to see an iris scanner on the next-gen iPhone? Leave your comments below.

Source: Digitimes

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