New iPhone 8 images show conflicting fingerprint scanner positions

Update: A new image shows an iPhone 8 case with a fingerprint scanner on the back, once again making us question Apple's placement. Full details and the image itself are below.

Some years Apple does a decent job of keeping its upcoming handsets secret, but this year isn’t one of them. We’ve had a steady stream of leaks and today there’s both a CAD image and shots of the iPhone 8 in a case, revealing that – as has been rumored – the fingerprint scanner will seemingly be built into the screen.

That’s worth emphasising, as some earlier leaks suggested the scanner might find its home on the back of the phone, and while leaked dummy units of the iPhone 8 show an absence of visible scanners, they were made based on diagrams which may not have had every marking in place, so left the possibility of a rear-mounted scanner open.

These leaks though leave less in doubt. The CAD image was shared by Benjamin Geskin, who’s been leaking a lot of iPhone 8 stuff. The design here shows an all-screen front, albeit with a cut-out at the top for the front-facing camera, while on the back there’s that vertically aligned dual-lens camera that we’ve seen so much of.

Circles aren't scanners

There’s also a circle, which you might reasonably think is the fingerprint scanner, but according to Geskin it’s simply the location of the Apple logo.

And backing that up, Slashleaks has posted images of a dummy iPhone 8 unit in a case – with no fingerprint scanner cut-out on the back.

However, shortly after these leaks another picture emerged, this time from Techtastic, showing an iPhone 8 case which does have a fingerprint scanner on the back.

Credit: Techtastic

Credit: Techtastic

This is also based on a CAD drawing - quite possibly the same one, but in that case it's likely that the case maker misinterpreted the purpose of the circle, so we're skeptical of its accuracy.

For now, we still can’t totally rule out the possibility of a rear-mounted scanner, or a return of the home button below the screen. But, while an under-screen scanner once seemed unlikely, it’s now looking like the most probable outcome.

  • A more affordable iPhone 7S might also be on the way

James is a freelance phones, tablets and wearables writer and sub-editor at TechRadar. He has a love for everything ‘smart’, from watches to lights, and can often be found arguing with AI assistants or drowning in the latest apps. James also contributes to 3G.co.uk, 4G.co.uk and 5G.co.uk and has written for T3, Digital Camera World, Clarity Media and others, with work on the web, in print and on TV.

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