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The iPhone 8 could unlock when you press the screen

There have been conflicting rumors about what will happen to the iPhone 8's fingerprint sensor, but a recent report says it's going in the display.

Gordon Gottsegen CNET contributor
Gordon Gottsegen is a tech writer who has experience working at publications like Wired. He loves testing out new gadgets and complaining about them. He is the ghost of all failed Kickstarters.
Gordon Gottsegen
Concepto de Martin Hajek / Computer Bild

We've suspected for a while that Apple will give the home button the boot on the iPhone 8, but that would mean Apple's fingerprint sensor would have to find a new home.

The potential workaround? Put the optical fingerprint scanner into the phone's display. That's what DigiTimes reports, citing China's Economic Daily News. (The source: Apple supplier Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, or TSMC, according to the report.)

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iPhone 8 renders imagine what the phone would look like sans home button.

Apple's 10th anniversary iPhone is expected to shake up the phone world with changes to its hardware and software. If the iPhone 8 (or whatever it'll be called) is the first to innovate this way, it's a sure bet every other phone maker will follow.

The iPhone 8's fingerprint sensor, which also controls TouchID pressure sensitivity, has been hotly contested in conflicting rumors. Some alleged factory renders show that Apple could move the sensor to the back of the phone, similar to what the Galaxy S8 did when it shrank its front bezels. Others believe that the sensor will be integrated into the display.

However, reports surfaced that Apple may have trouble making this happen because the technology might not be there yet.

In addition, the report claims that the iPhone 8 will get a screen ratio of 18.5:9, similar to other rumors. If true, this would give the next iPhone an almost 2:1 ratio, which means its dimensions could look a lot like the LG G6 or Galaxy S8.

Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.