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This is probably why the iPhone 12 has been delayed. Midway through the pandemic they realized this virus isn’t going anywhere and Face ID is a huge inconvenience; not to mention health risk since you sometimes have to remove it. Also, the dial pad doesn’t appear fast enough at times.

It’s wishful thinking, but I certainly hope it does make it in as a last minute improvement. Under the screen sonar ID is just not where it needs to be yet, plus a physical Touch ID could be used for 2fa.

Yes that's only the reason I switched back to iPhone 8 Plus from IPhone X
 
What courageous engineering! I bet it was hard for Apple to figure out how to get the sensor to work against gravity.
its easy to do the fingerprint on the side, like many androids have done. On the top its hard, because the antenna interfers mainly for cellular iPads. Find me an android where the finger print on the power button is located on the top.
 
It isn’t just because a fingerprint scanner works on the owner every time that it works, it’s precisely when it doesn’t work all or nearly all of the time with others’ fingers or other tricks that it “just” works. That’s just a question of false positives ratio and using a particular phone won’t tell you anything about it. Perhaps there are some but I don’t know of any website that tests for this.
 
Find me an android where the finger print on the power button is located on the top.

Have you considered the reason they aren't putting it at the top is because it's just a stupid place to put the reader? If you use the fingerprint reader to unlock your screen, or to authenticate an online payment purchase while you're using the phone, you're going to want it someplace you can activate it with the hand you are holding the phone in. On the back you can extend you index finger up under the device to the location. On the side, it's aligned with where you thumb will be (if you're right handed). But at the top you now have to be able to reach the top of the device at the same time you're holding it from the bottom quarter of it. Since phone makers these days seem to think Phablet is the new normal size and 16:9 isn't tall enough, very few people can actually reach that high without using two hands.
 
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First mobile phone to ever have a fingerprint scanner was Toshiba G500 and G900. Both of these phones were actually way ahead of their time. Both ran Microsoft Windows Phone OS, had 3G connectivity, had a secondary camera and also had fingerprint sensors. These were announced in 2007 but never launched to the consumer market.

The first publicly available device to have fingerprint sensor was the Motorola Atrix, which launched back in 2011.
 
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They just took Touch ID and moved it from one button to another. It’s cool and everything, but they’re really overselling it lol
I totally agree. I'm glad it's at least an option because I hate FaceID, but it reeks of desperation needing to call it out so much.
 
Assuming the decision to use Touch ID was made prior to coronavirus, why did they go to bother of "an incredible feat of engineering” to move it to the power button when they could have just used the existing Face ID from iPad Pro?
 
Hardware decisions were locked in last year. There’s a huge lead time on devices that have to be produced in the tens of millions per quarter.
I am sure as with everything, they likely prototyped Touch ID power button on the iPhone first, in fact, thats probably what they did, but internally went forward with Face ID because at the time, it just seemed like a better option.

They never saw that back in 2014 when they were working on the iPhone X that in 2020, there was gonna be a pandemic.

Its just like Apples multi-touch strategy started first with a Tablet in 2003, but plans switched and the iPhone came out first. Its a similar case that could apply to the iPhone 12. Even if it doesn't happen with this release, you can sure bet it will be on next years device.
 
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Have you considered the reason they aren't putting it at the top is because it's just a stupid place to put the reader? If you use the fingerprint reader to unlock your screen, or to authenticate an online payment purchase while you're using the phone, you're going to want it someplace you can activate it with the hand you are holding the phone in. On the back you can extend you index finger up under the device to the location. On the side, it's aligned with where you thumb will be (if you're right handed). But at the top you now have to be able to reach the top of the device at the same time you're holding it from the bottom quarter of it. Since phone makers these days seem to think Phablet is the new normal size and 16:9 isn't tall enough, very few people can actually reach that high without using two hands.

I’m right handed and I hold my phone with my left hand so I can do things with my right one. My medium size left hand comfortably touches the top left and right of my X. I can do it with my right too, although it feel weird, and I accidentally press the power button and lock the phone. My palm rests on the left side of the phone, at the level of the keyboard, and my pinky can easily raise the phone if I need to type something one handed. I see no issue with the top mounted button, but I wouldn’t want it on the side because it would be much easier to accidentally press it.
 
Not sure what it would compare, but Sony has done this from long time, even the latest Xperia still using this solution.
 
Why can't they do this on the iPhone? What is the problem Apple? It will solve a lot of problems... well maybe. As long as they allow both to work at the same time. if you have to turn one off to get the other to work that would suck.

It would be awesome if it came to the iPhone 12, but I'm sure we'd have heard about it by now. The reality is that the new phone is very underwhelming at this point.
Bigger screen = Great.
5G = good, but that wouldn't make me upgrade considering the fact that carriers where I live probably don't have it widespread and will make you pay even more per month.
New design = Who really cares at this point. The vast majority of people put them in cases and with that hideous camera config on the back and a notch on the front, it's never going to win any design awards.
 
Obviously with this interview and the promo materials already in stores, looks like the Airs may very well drop sometime this week.

I do hope the upcoming iPhone 12 line gets this updated Touch ID too.

And while on the wish list here, may the iPad Air and the phones also inherit the excellent antenna design from the iPad Pro (especially since my 7th gen iPad and 2020 SE are lagging there).
 
We have incredible cameras, why not Retina ID besides Face ID and Touch ID?
 
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