Google is set to add full fingerprint support for Android operating system, Buzzfeed News reports. The feature will allow users to log in to their phones with biometric finger scan, thus eliminating the need to set a password.
Google is expected to announce this new feature at their annual Google I/O conference next week, in San Francisco. This new feature will be included with Android M, Google’s newest mobile operating system.
Unfortunately, Google has declined to comment on the fingerprint support.
The reports on Buzzfeed did not give any details on how the feature is going to be implemented on the new Android M. It suggested that this fingerprint support will give opportunity for developers to utilise this feature for their Android applications.
This move by Google is most likely their effort to catch up with TouchID, Apple’s security fingerprint scan for iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 plus. While not just used to unlock phones, TouchID enables users to pay digital content with a single touch, and it allows developers to integrate TouchID into third-party apps.
Although Android devices such Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge already has a fingerprint sensor, however its uses are limited. Its primary and only function is to unlock the device with a finger touch on the home button.
As cited by Cnet, it was reported that Google had design a fingerprint sensor for Nexus 6, one of Motorola’s flagship handset, which runs on Android 5.0 Lollipop. Unfortunately, the feature was removed at the final stage of development process, because the software interface that runs the fingerprint sensor is not yet ready.
Are you looking forward for this new Android feature, set to be announced next week? let us know in the comment section below.
