Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) is expected to reveal its latest iPhones during an event at its headquarters in Cupertino, California tomorrow, September 10. According to analysts and experts in the technology industry, the tech giant’s new flagship iPhone rumored to be called iPhone 5S will be integrated with a fingerprint authentication technology.
According to reports, the iPhone 5S is faster than its predecessor, it might be equipped with a better camera, more storage, and a longer battery life. Apple is also expected to reveal is less expensive iPhone 5C during the event.
Maynard Um, senior analyst at Wells Fargo Securities Equity Research said, “Everyone is looking at what this new phone can do, and one of the key things is fingerprint authentication. People are underestimating what this technology can do.”
According to Um, a reliable authentication solution may become a necessity as consumers become increasingly dependent on mobile devices to store their personal information and make transactions at stores. He projected that a fingerprint scanner will drive sales in the enterprise market because companies will likely see the benefits of a strong security measures.
“Enterprises want to know devices are in the right hands, and this pretty much guarantees it. This addresses enterprise security issues for Apple and will open up that market to the company more,” said Um.
Um increased his price target for the stock of Apple at $525 to $575 per share from $485 to $525 per share due in part to the potential integration of a fingerprint scanner on the iPhone 5S.
Apple submitted a patent application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for finger sensor technology that will scan and store the image or unique characteristics of a fingerprint image to determine the proper identification of a person. The tech giant indicated in the patent application that the finger sensor may be integrated in an electronic portable device such as the mobile phone with a touch screen.
Given its patent application, there is a great possibility that Apple will indeed release its new iPhone integrated with a fingerprint authentication technology thereby eliminating the need to swipe and enter a four-digit pin to unlock the device.
According to Sebastien Taveau, chief technology officers at Validity Sensors, “The swipe and PIN was one of the things Steve Jobs hated. It was in the way of the user experience.” Validity Sensors is an independent fingerprint authentication company backed by Intel Corporation (NASDAQ:INTC) and Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM).
In 2012, Apple acquired AuthenTec ,another independent fingerprint authentication company for $356 million. The tech giant sold some of the technologies of AutheTec, but retained the fingerprint sensor technology.
David Marcus, president of PayPal opined, “Within the next two years the vast majority of high-end smartphones will have biometrics and mainly fingerprint logins. It’s going to be very useful for payments.” PayPal together with Google (NASDAQ:GOOG), BlackBerry (NASDAQ:BBRY) (TSE:BB) and Validity Sensors are members of the Fast Identity Online (FIDO) alliance, a group dedicated in developing common and open standards to use fingerprints and other biometrics as identity for users.
