A few days ago, a patent filed with KIPRIS emerged suggesting that Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ could debut with a front-mounted fingerprint scanner.

Since switching to a rear-mounted fingerprint scanner on the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy Note 8, Samsung has received lots of criticisms from unhappy fans who have loved the front-mounted sensor for years. Apparently, Samsung chose this direction due to the lack of enough time to work on a front-mounted sensor – a feature that was expected to appear under the display screen.

As if quashing away reports of the return of a front-mounted sensor with the Galaxy S9, a Chinese tipster by the name Ice Universe came out just yesterday with claims that the company will stick to a rear-mounted scanner with respect to the S9. Unlike the previous report, the tipster had no backing other than their word.

Now, in a new twist, it appears that the in-display fingerprint scanner camp is getting stronger. A new patent has just been discovered suggesting that the Galaxy S9 could, after all, come with a front-mounted fingerprint scanner that lives under the edge screen. The patent was filed in March and published today and according to the company, having a fingerprint scanner placed anywhere else other than the screen will be suboptimal for Galaxy S9 users.

According to the patent, the South Korean tech giant will combine fingerprint and pressure-sensitive sensors in a bid to better differentiate between the “normal” screen actions and a specific fingerprint scanning request.

Note that this is only one of the many patents that Samsung files every now and then. It may or may not materialize, which means the Galaxy S9 may still keep the rear-mounted sensor. In fact, word on the street has it that this feature could, perhaps, make its debut with the Galaxy Note 9 in the second half of 2018.

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