Touch ID Might Not Make a Return on iPhone Despite Rumors

A recent Power On newsletter suggests that Apple is unlikely to bring Touch ID back to the iPhone despite testing it. 

Apple first introduced Face ID in September 2017 on the iPhone X. It’s a facial recognition system to let users securely unlock the iPhone X, authenticate purchases, and sign into apps. 

Since then, several rumors have suggested that the Cupertino-based tech giant could bring Touch ID back to the iPhone.

In June 2021, analyst Ming-Chi Kuo speculated that Apple would use an ender-display fingerprint scanner to bring back Touch ID in 2023. Shortly after the report, rumors of Apple getting a patent allowing the company to add in-display Touch ID to future iPhones surfaced on the internet. 

But that may not be the case. 

A Bloomberg report says that Apple is unlikely to return fingerprint technology to the iPhone anytime soon — despite testing the technology. 

In his latest Power On newsletter, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman claims that Apple has experimented with the two typical smartphone fingerprint sensor implementations. These include embedding an in-screen Touch ID in iPhones or adding the sensor to the power button, similar to the iPad mini and iPad Air. 

Touch ID May Not Return to Flagship iPhones

Despite these tests, Gurman believes we’re unlikely to see the two fingerprint options on the iPhone soon. “At this point, I believe Face ID is here to stay and Touch ID won’t be returning to flagship iPhones—at least anytime in the foreseeable future,” the Bloomberg journalist wrote. 

Gurman’s claim buttresses a March 2022 report from Ming-Chi Kuo. At the time, the analyst said that Apple won’t use a fingerprint sensor in the 2023 iPhone 15 and 2024 iPhone 16 models.

However, Apple may not do away with the technology altogether. 

Gurman speculated that the power button of lower-end iPhones — such as the iPhone SE — could still have a fingerprint sensor in the future. However, the Bloomberg journalist quickly notes that he hasn’t “heard anything about that actually being in the pipeline.”

In other words, Face ID is here to stay.