What Does Samsung’s Newest Innovation Falling Flat on its Face Reveal?

It is no secret that the smartphone industry is struggling to lift itself out of a slump. Markedly, consumers no longer feel compelled to upgrade every 18 months to a new smartphone. Manufacturers are increasingly turning to gimmicks and gizmos to lure us into wanting tech that we don’t need.

The problem is that each new device seldom offers anything other than upgraded RAM, processing power, pixel quality, or battery life.

It is telling that on the iPhone’s 10th anniversary many will struggle to differentiate between two 5.8-inch edge-to-edge bezel-less OLED screens. Tech innovation today is a quest for style over substance. Our tech solutions address few to no problems.

Amidst the existential crisis, companies and consumers alike are turning away from smartphone purchases and looking for something… more. This may be the main reason that tech titans moved from smartphones to IoT.

A past flame, however, is never extinguished. There is always the possibility of a rekindling. The impending Samsung Galaxy S8 release on April 21, girded with biometric authentication and an array of innovative features could reignite the flame. (It may also help the South Korean firm put the exploding Galaxy Note 7 behind them.) Or not.

According to recent reports, one of the phone’s promising features—facial recognition—is already faltering. Reportedly the facial-scanning feature can be gamed with a photograph. If online videos are to be believed, hackers can display the owner's Facebook profile photo to unlock the smartphone.

Predictably, Apple partisans highlighted the problems with apparent delight at the usual waterholes. A Samsung spokesperson quickly responded to Ars Technica with the following statement:

 " The Galaxy S8 provides various levels of biometric authentication, with the highest level of authentication from the iris scanner and fingerprint reader. In addition, the Galaxy S8 provides users with multiple options to unlock their phones through both biometric security options, and convenient options such as swipe and facial recognition. It is important to reiterate that facial recognition, while convenient, can only be used for opening your Galaxy S8 and currently cannot be used to authenticate access to Samsung Pay or Secure Folder."

The reply is an early admission that facial recognition technologies are not a secure method that is ready to replace passwords just yet. Directing potential customers to use traditional PIN or passwords in conjunction with iris scanners and fingerprint readers does not bode well for this “value add”.

At a point when cybersecurity is under attack by governments and hackers alike, any weak spots are unacceptable. The smartphone represents a virtual front door, instant access to every aspect of our lives. Our banking, emails, flight boarding passes and tickets. Security is paramount.

Samsung has a few weeks to recover from humiliation and to make a case for how facial recognition constitutes a security upgrade rather than a gimmick.

Frankly, the industry as a whole needs to make a case.

Nokia 3310 received much attention because it attempts to resolve a problem: longer battery life over larger screens; higher security over hype gimmicks.

So, will you be upgrading to the Samsung Galaxy S8 or will you wait for the release of the iPhone 8?

 Please share your thoughts and insights by commenting below.