Apple is expected to launch a new iPhone this year with a fingerprint sensor hidden beneath the home button an intuitive design that could be difficult for competing Android and Windows Phone devices to copy.



From Apple Insider:

Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of KGI Securities expects Apple's acquisition of AuthenTec to pay off this year with the so-called "iPhone 5S," the company's anticipated next-generation handset. He believes Apple will find a way to integrate the fingerprint sensor into the home button, allowing Apple to keep its "minimalist design."

In contrast, many Android and Windows Phone devices have more than one button below the display, and those buttons frequently lack the mechanical push of Apple's home button. As a result, attempts to integrate fingerprint scanning on competing devices would be less intuitive, and could frustrate users, Kuo said.

  Home button fingerprint sensor in 'iPhone 5S' would give Apple a new leg up on the competition