Apple’s dream (ours too) of an all-screen iPhone may have taken a huge step closer to reality following news of a new patent.
As Patently Apple recently observed, a patent has just been granted to Apple for a new implementation of its Face ID facial authentication system.
While Apple has steadily reduced the size of its Face ID system, from unsightly ‘widow’s peak’ notch to lozenge-shaped Dynamic Island, the screen is still essentially interrupted by Apple’s brilliant biometric system. We’ve heard several reports over the years that the company is looking to solve this issue, but with no practical application as yet.
This latest patented system would potentially solve all of that. It concerns a new way to place the Face ID sensors under the display.
The method works by removing select sub-pixels from in front of the sensors, thus allowing infrared light to pass through the gaps. By deactivating only sub-pixels that are immediately adjacent to another of the same colour, it shouldn’t be easily discernible to the naked eye.
By intelligently removing these sub-pixels, you’ll also be taking a bunch of wiring out of the equation, further expanding the area through which infrared light can pass.
Add (or rather subtract) some of the conductive touch sensor mesh over the relevant section, and you have a pretty clear space for Face ID to work its magic.
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Of course, this doesn’t address the matter of the front camera. We’ve seen under-display selfie cameras before, most recently in the likes of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 and the RedMagic 10 Pro. However, they invariably result in terrible image quality from said cameras, which isn’t something we can imagine Apple being willing to accept.
Still, this technique would take a further step towards an all-screen iPhone, even if it results in a small hole punch selfie camera like current Android flagships. With Apple seemingly preparing a so-called iPhone 17 Air, the company is clearly looking to trim all of the fat from its sleek smartphone.
