The Galaxy S24 series, including the S24, S24+, and S24 Ultra, features a newer and faster 3D Sonic ultrasonic fingerprint reader, as revealed in a teardown and review video. The new sensor, identified as QFS4008, appears to unlock the phone faster than its predecessor, the QBT2608 used in the Galaxy S23 Ultra. While Qualcomm's 3D Sonic Max fingerprint reader has been available for a few years, Samsung has yet to incorporate it into its phones, leaving room for potential use in the upcoming Galaxy S25 series.
The face unlock feature on the Pixel 8 Pro is a significant improvement over the in-display fingerprint reader, which can be slow and prone to misreads. The face unlock not only allows users to unlock their phones but also provides access to secure areas like banking apps and password managers. It is fast and convenient, often outperforming the fingerprint reader. Users can enable face unlock in the device settings and add their face alongside fingerprints for added security.
Biofire Tech, a Colorado-based company, is taking orders for a smart gun that uses facial recognition technology and can also be enabled by a fingerprint reader. The gun is designed to avoid accidental shootings by children, reduce suicides, protect police from gun grabs, or render lost and stolen guns useless. However, during a demonstration, the prototype failed to fire twice, but the company founder said the software and electronics have been fully tested, and the failure was related to the mechanical gun. The first consumer-ready versions of the 9mm handgun could be shipped to customers who pre-ordered as soon as the fourth quarter of this year.
