AuthenTec (News - Alert) announced today their fingerprint authentication sensor; AES1510 will be included as a standard feature on Hitachi, Ltd.'s new "win" series phone, the W51H.

 

Not only will the inclusion of fingerprint biometrics provide enhanced security like other offerings, but it will also feature a unique ability to utilize the sensor for "primary control device for core user input functions such as scrolling and menu navigation," the company announced.

 

Biometric cell phones are a popular choice for mobile commerce (M-commerce) like online banking in Asia. These same features and functionalities offered by biometric technologies are also sought after by many eager US cell phone users.

 

According to the news release, "Each AuthenTec sensor is based on the company's patented TruePrint technology, the only solution in production that reads below the surface of the skin to the live layer, where the true fingerprint resides."

 

The sensor will be mounted below the phones high resolution display and will be able to be utilized for near field communication transactions like mobile ticketing and check-in as well as Internet commerce payments.

 

The W51H from Hitachi (News - Alert) will be the first phone in Japan to feature biometrics for display control navigation and will be available to KDDI customers later this month for approximately $150 with a contract.