HTC’s next flagship phone is expected to take a cue from the Apple iPhone 5S.
The HTC One Max, scheduled to be unveiled in a global launch Oct. 15, will feature a fingerprint sensor, The Wall Street Journal reported Oct. 8.
On Sept. 10, Apple introduced the iPhone 5S with Touch ID technology in the Home button, along with fingerprint readers—a technology that until then was the stuff of unexciting laptops and niche vertical markets.
Apple called Touch ID, which takes a high-resolution image of a fingerprint and analyzes it, an “innovative way to simply and securely unlock your iPhone,” as well as a “secure way to approve purchases from the iTunes Store, App Store or iBooks Store.”
The Journal quoted HSBC analyst Jenny Lai, who called the uses for fingerprint sensors “still pretty narrow.”
“To do something like wireless payments, it requires a whole system to be built up, not just the hardware. There are basically two companies that could possibly do this kind of integration,” she added, “Apple and Google.”
The Max One will certainly run Google’s Android operating system—The Journal expects it to be a larger version of the HTC One, featuring a 5.9-inch display and an Ultrapixel camera. If Google does get on board with the technology and builds out a “system,” as Lai said is necessary, consumers can expect to have a variety of fingerprint sensor–equipped smartphones from which to choose.
Imitation Is the Greatest Flattery
Apple also knows how to take a tip from its peers. After five generations of 3.5-inch displays, Apple finally relented and grew the iPhone 5’s display to 4 inches. With the iPhone 6, Jefferies analyst Peter Misek said Apple will offer a device able to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the devices of rivals HTC, Motorola and others.
Following a visit to Apple suppliers in Asia, Misek said in an Oct. 7 research note that the iPhone will feature a 4.8-inch display.
“We think the 85 [million] iPhones eligible for an upgrade when the iPhone 6 launches (we think Apple is targeting Sept. 2014) could be boosted by another 5-10 million from people who skipped the 5S/5C cycle,” Misek wrote, according to Cnet.
Misek’s report follows similar reports released through August and September, of Apple testing screens ranging “as high as 6 inches,” as The Wall Street Journal reported Sept. 5, citing people familiar with the matter.
According to component suppliers, the report said, “Apple has been particularly interested in recent tests for a 4.8-inch screen.”
The HTC One features a 4.7-inch display; the Samsung Galaxy S III has a 4.8-inch display; the Galaxy S 4 has a 5-incher; and the LG G2, nearing phablet territory, features a 5.2-inch display.
DisplaySearch analyst David Hsieh has added to the rumors, announcing that Apple plans to test “both a 4.7-inch panel with 1,280 by 720-pixel resolution and a 5.7-inch display with full-HD 1080p resolution,” Boy Genius Report reported Oct. 8.
Hsieh’s report added that consumers can also expect an iWatch with a flexible active-matrix organic LED (AMOLED) display with a 320- by 320-pixel resolution.