After the news that the Galaxy Note 9’s biggest upgrade has been cancelled, Samsung may be delving into even hotter water with their latest decision to slash a major feature in the Galaxy S10.
The Bell, a reliable Korean publication, reports that Samsung will remove the iris scanner from the Galaxy S10. This is a core component of its ‘Intelligent Scan’ facial unlock. The reason behind this is that Samsung is very close to perfecting a 3D face-scanning module which is far more accurate, and advanced enough to compete with Apple’s Face ID.
The report claims that Apple has been working with the Israeli firm Mantis and that it is close for mass production. However, if production deadlines are missed the iris scanner will go ahead.
However, the biggest feature cut from the Galaxy Note 9 and the highlight of the S10 will be an in-display fingerprint reader. Samsung is under pressure from rival Asian brands Vivo and Oppo and 2019 is the year that they must catch up.
The size of the S10 will stay the same, with 5.8-inch and 6.3-inch display sizes. That said, the physical size of both phones expected to reduce slightly as Samsung are choosing to cut down the top and bottom bezels while still fighting the industry trend of adding a top notch.
This presents a huge opportunity for the Galaxy brand. If Samsung can match Apple’s accuracy of Face ID while delivering the in-display reader that Apple wanted for the iPhone X, the S10 should be a big hit with consumers.
The Galaxy X smartphone, however, is still expected to be the headline feature at a staggering $2,000.