Next year, Apple will reportedly use new under-display Face ID technology in its iPhone 15 Pro models. Samsung is developing the latest tech.
Next year, Apple will reportedly use new under-display Face ID technology in its iPhone 15 Pro models. Apple’s Face ID uses a ‘TrueDepth’ camera system which consists of an infrared camera, the Flood Illuminator, and the Dot Projector. The technology was initially introduced in iPhone X in 2017 before being included in several new iPhone and iPad Pro models.
The iPhone 14 is still months away from its official launch, but rumors about its successor have already started trickling in over the past several weeks. Apple is expected to launch the iPhone 15 in 2023 as the successor to its iPhone 14, slated to be announced this fall. The latest rumors now seem to have revealed a few key pieces of information about the iPhone 15 lineup.
Samsung Display is reportedly working on new technology that Apple will use for under-display Face ID in select iPhone models next year. According to South Korean publication TheElec, the latest technology will only be used in the iPhone 15 ‘Pro’ models, while the standard iPhone 15 models might still stick with the current technology. The iPhone 14 is said to ditch the notch in favor of a pill and punch-hole design this year, but if the report is correct, the iPhone 15 Pro will ditch the pill entirely for a cleaner all-screen design resembling modern Android devices.
Under-Display Face ID Will Come To Samsung Phones First
The report also claims that the iPhone 15 Pro might not be the first smartphone to utilize Samsung’s new under-display Face ID technology. Next year, that honor will reportedly go to Samsung’s foldable lineup, which means the Z Fold 5 and the Z Flip 5 might offer that technology. According to the report, the under-panel Face ID technology will work similarly to the under-display camera technology that Samsung already uses in the Galaxy Z Fold 3. Samsung is said to be working with Canada’s OTI Luminotics on the under-display technology, which includes a “metal patterning layer that uses cathode mask materials.”
It is worth noting that different analysts and observers have different opinions on when Apple will switch to under-display tech for its Face ID hardware. In April 2021, TF International Securities analyst and renowned Apple tipster Ming Chi-Kuo claimed that Apple would introduce an under-display Face ID technology in 2023. Those claims align with the latest report, although not everybody seems to agree. For example, Display Supply Chain Consultants CEO Ross Young directly contradicts the newest info and just reiterated his earlier claims that Apple would only switch to the under-display technology in 2024 and not 2023.
We reconfirmed again that there is not expected to be under panel IR for iPhones until 2024, iPhone 16. Gotta start the development and start submitting samples now though.
— Ross Young (@DSCCRoss) March 23, 2022
Source: TheElec, Ross Young/Twitter
