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​Mid-end phones could get iris scanning later: Samsung mobile boss

Iris scanning will, in the long-run, not only arm flagship phones such as the Galaxy Note 7 but trickle down to mid-end phones, says Samsung mobile boss DJ Koh.
Written by Cho Mu-Hyun, Contributing Writer

Samsung has a long-term plan for iris scanning technology that went into the Galaxy Note 7 -- the first for a smartphone -- and its mid-end phones may get it later as well once costs are controllable, the company's mobile boss has said.

"We've invested over three years in the development of iris scanning technology," said DJ Koh, president of Samsung's mobile division, in a press conference at the sidelines of the Unpacked event in New York where the firm unveiled the Note 7. "In theory, out of all the biometric security systems, iris scanning is the most secure."

"We did not put iris scanning in the flagship model just to do 'unlock'. In the long run, through third parties and API, we want to connect it with apps. For mobile banking, we are thinking of applying iris scanning for large transactions, and are already talking with banks in some countries," he said. "We have a road map for the technology and moving accordingly.

"Through continued cost cutting, iris scanning can trickle down to mid-end models," he added. "There is a view that Android is weak in security compared to its competitor and we want to expand software security that can overcome this image."

DJ Koh said it was personally part of the development of the technology and that the iris scanning works even for people with glasses on.

Progressively, Samsung is strengthening security features for its flagship phones for the enterprise. Samsung developed its own mobile security platform Knox and has added fingerprint recognition since the S5.

The company posted its highest profits in two years for the second quarter of this year.

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