iPhone 14 — analyst just shot down the one upgrade I wanted

The iPhone 14 is tipped for a number of great upgrades. For starters, Apple is reportedly ditching the iPhone mini in favor of a new 6.7-inch iPhone 14 Max. So you likely won't have to spend more than $1,000 to get a big-screen iPhone. 

Meanwhile, the iPhone 14 vs iPhone 14 Pro comparison could see the biggest differences in years, with the iPhone 14 Pro model tipped to feature a faster A16 Bionic chip with more RAM, possible USB-connectivity and no notch at the top of the display. Plus, the iPhone 14 Pro series could sport a sharper 48MP camera. 

But what about Touch ID? Early iPhone 14 rumors pointed to the possibility of an under-display Touch ID sensor on the iPhone 14, but those have now been shot down but Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

In a tweet, Kuo says: "I previously predicted iPhones would support under-display fingerprint sensing/Touch ID in 2023 at the earliest. But the latest survey indicates new iPhones in 2023 & 2024 may not adopt under-display Touch ID. Face ID with a mask on iPhone is already a great biometrics solution."

Note that Kuo says that Apple may not adopt under-display Touch ID until 2023 or 2024. That doesn't mean that Apple couldn't embed a Touch ID sensor into the power button for the iPhone 14, just as it does for the latest iPad Air and iPad mini tablets. But Apple doesn't seem keen on doing that for one simple reason.

With the release of iOS 15.4, Face ID is now designed to work when you're wearing a mask, which was one of the complaints that we had about iPhones during the past couple of years. Still, it would be nice to have the option to use Touch ID, especially if the feature could be embedded in the display.

I've found that unlocking the Galaxy S22 Ultra is faster with its ultrasonic fingerprint sensor than using Face ID on the iPhone 13 Pro Max. And even though Face ID works well under most lighting conditions, sometimes it can have trouble in the dark. Plus, unlike the Google Pixel 6 Pro's in-display fingerprint sensor, Samsung's is much more responsive and returns far fewer false negatives. 

So while it would be great to have in-display Touch ID functionality on an iPhone 15 or later device, I'd much rather have it this year.

Up Next: iPhone 14 Pro — 5 biggest rumored upgrades