Two much-rumored pieces of information regarding upcoming Apple products were apparently confirmed today. The first bit of information is that iOS 7 will have a fingerprint sensor in the home button. Many analysts have speculated that this option was in the cards for this fall. The fingerprint sensor would allow for increase security options for iOS devices. No smartphone on the market has a fingerprint sensor. Getting the technology to market first would be a nice coup for Apple. The fingerprint scanning technology was tipped due to code discovered in the most recent beta release of iOS 7.
The second piece of news is a confirmation that Apple will offer a plastic iPhone this fall – likely the iPhone 5S. A plastic casing would significantly lower the price of an iPhone, and would also allow Apple to market more colors to consumers. The downside to the revelation was the source – a New York-based labor rights organization. The group, China Labor Watch, specifically mentioned workers putting together plastic iPhones that are not yet in production. China Labor Watch has accused Apple suppliers of labor violations – an issue that Apple has dealt with in the past – and will likely continue to be forced to address in the future.
The lower-cost iPhone 5S is expected to be released in late September.