14 DAY TRIAL // Samsung has finally unveiled its Galaxy Note 7 flagship, and the smartphone is truly impressive. It comes with more advanced specs compared to its predecessor, a design that's similar to the Galaxy S7 edge, and some features that were never before seen in the Note series.
Aside from IP68 certification and other powerful features on the smartphone, the Note 7 also sports an iris scanner for user authentication and phone unlocking. This is not the first time Samsung implements the technology for biometric authentication, as the company also released the Galaxy Tab Iris earlier this year, which featured an iris scanner designed for the banking sector and government officials.
The Galaxy Note 7 is more accessible to the broader public, which is why Samsung spent so much time perfecting the technology. Samsung Mobile President D.J. Koh has spoken briefly about the company's plans for the iris scanning technology, following the Unpacked event where the Note 7 was introduced.
The iris scanner could be implemented in mid-range Samsung smartphones
Mr. Koh has stated that Samsung spent three years researching and perfecting the iris scanning technology, and he has added that iris scanning is the most secure biometric technology, in theory. According to ZD Net, the South Korean giant is planning to allow third-party developers to use the scanner with an API, and the company might partner with banks and financial institutions in order to let users authorize transactions.
Samsung representatives also stated during the launch event that the iris scanner would allow users to authorize Samsung Pay transactions.
Samsung could also implement the iris scanner on lower-tier smartphone models, which would boost Android's security capabilities and make the technology accessible to even more people. However, it's unclear at this point whether and when this would actually happen.
The iris scanner on the Galaxy Note 7 is aimed at increasing the security level on the smartphone, together with the fingerprint scanner and other common phone unlocking options, like a password or PIN. In addition, the iris scanner can be used for unlocking Secure Folders and accessing content stored on the phone. The Note 7 also comes with Samsung's own mobile security platform Knox.