There was a time when an in-display fingerprint sensor feature was only available in premium smartphones, but nowadays, it is also available in mid-range smartphones. Usually, this feature was provided for OLED displays as LCD panels cannot transmit light. However, in most cases, OLED display panels are installed in high-end premium smartphones and very few mid-range smartphones. To overcome this challenge, a Chinese firm named Fortsense has announced the development of an in-display fingerprint sensor for LCD panels.
MarketsandMarkets™ View Point:
Abhijit Ankalkote : Senior Research Analyst : Semiconductor and Electronics Research at MarketsandMarkets™, shares his point of view as mentioned below:
In recent years, there has been a rise in the adoption of OLED displays in smartphones, thereby boosting the overall display panel market growth. OLED display panels are mostly installed in premium smartphones, thereby decreasing the share of LCD panels in the global display panel market. To overcome this challenge, Fortsense announced the implementation of in-display fingerprint sensors in LCD panels. These displays can now be implemented in various low-range and mid-range smartphones. Therefore, LCD panels are likely to witness an increase in demand from smartphone manufacturers due to their lower cost than that of OLED display panels.
Fig: – Penetration of Display Panels in Smartphones, 2018 vs. 2024
Source: – Company Annual Reports, Investors Presentations, Industry Journals & Magazines, Expert Interviews, and MarketsandMarkets™ Analysis
Impact of the Launch
LCD panels have dominated the smartphone display market in the past; however, their market share has rapidly been declined in the past 3 years due to the rapid adoption of OLED display panels by various smartphone manufacturers, especially Samsung and Apple. Major factors boosting the adoption of OLED displays in smartphones include their energy efficiency, sunlight readability, vivid color and picture quality, and easy recyclability than LCDs. The in-display fingerprint sensor feature has been widely used in various smartphones. In-display fingerprint sensor technology uses a light source to capture a high-resolution photograph of a user’s fingerprint and uses algorithms to identify unique patterns. This technology requires light source to capture the high-resolution image, but usually, LCD panels cannot transmit light. The light source can be achieved using the deep learning neural network technology, and the recognition of fingerprints can be made available on LCD panels. The R&D team of the company has claimed that the continuous modification and improvement of the LCD backlight panel was done to revise and improve the fingerprint optical path. The use of LCD panels is much more than the overall adoption of OLED display panels. The development of in-display fingerprint technology in LCD panels is likely to ensure that most of the smartphones having an in-display fingerprint feature will be manufactured soon. An added layer of security to the low-priced and mid-range smartphones would be ensured with the launch and adoption of in-display fingerprint sensors for LCD panels.
Conclusion
Till today, high-range smartphones were equipped with in-display fingerprint sensors using OLED displays. Under-the-display sensor technology was available in OLED displays; however, now, it will also be available in LCD. The development of Fortsense can be seen as a revolutionary one for the further adoption and existence of LCD panels. If this turns out to be a success, we would witness a development of a budget smartphone with in-display fingerprint sensors in the next couple of years if the commercialization happens soon. Also, it would be interesting to see if the new technology by Fortsense provides a good quality recognition with a low implementation cost.