Vivo demos in-display fingerprint scanner at CES 2018

It’s the holy grail of mobile biometric authentication right now, and Chinese brand Vivo seems to have pulled it off first. At CES 2018, the company demonstrated an in-display fingerprint scanner, using a modified X20 Plus smartphone.

The in-display fingerprint scanner sits below the glass cover and OLED panel of the smartphone screen, but above the phone’s printed circuit board (PCB).

“This latest fingerprint scanning technology delivers a whole new mobile experience by enabling users to unlock their smartphone through one-touch fingerprint scanning directly on the smartphone display, while solving the industry’s challenge of providing a better and more convenient fingerprint authentication experience in future smartphones,” read a release on Vivo’s website.

It’s not the first time that Vivo has demonstrated an under-display fingerprint scanner either, having done so at MWC Shanghai late last year. However, Vivo has tapped Synaptics for the latest optical scanner, instead of Qualcomm’s ultrasonic scanning technology.

Yep, Vivo has indeed shown off a phone with an in-display fingerprint scanner

The Chinese brand also elaborated on how the tech works, saying that it would only be activated when needed.

“A graphical UI will show up on Vivo’s smartphone screen in any scenario that fingerprint recognition is required, such as when the screen is off, during software unlocking, or even mobile payment authentication,” the BBK-owned company explains.

“Users can press the fingerprint graphic on the screen to perform unlocking, payment and other operations. When fingerprint recognition is not required, the UI will be invisible and will not disrupt the overall visual experience.”

“We are very excited to make it available to consumers soon,” the firm’s Alex Feng noted. Vivo added that they’d announce availability of the first supported smartphone in early 2018.

And here we thought Synaptics was working with Samsung to bring the tech to market first…