Finger print biometric recognition is the next big trend in smartphones. Apple popularized it with the iPhone 5S, and now Samsung is hoping to make it a hit with theGalaxy S5, announced on Monday at MWC.
We take a hands-on look at how the scanner works. First of all, it's different from Apple's TouchID in that the user needs to slide his or her finger over the elongated button, rather than just holding a finger over Apple's circular home button.
Samsung demonstrates this feature using the index finger, but we found that it works with the thumb, which aided in usability when holding the phone in the most natural way.
The software supports three finger prints, so you can scan both your left and right hands for those times when you're left shorthanded. This also grants you the option of giving one of those fingerprint scans to a trusted individual without the need to share any complex lock patterns or passwords.
Once set up, the fingerprint software will allow the user to unlock the device, open private mode, and verify payments.
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