vivo launched a new smartphone model , X20 Plus UD, in Beijing yesterday.

As the name suggests, the new model is the upgrade version of X20 Plus, vivo’s flagship device that hit the market couple months ago. The major difference between these two models is that X20 Plus HD comes with an embedded fingerprint sensor from Synaptics behind the display, making it the world’s first phone with such technology and starting for a new era in fingerprint sensor positioning.

We tried the prototype of the X20 Plus UD during CES 2018. The solution is still notably slower compared to regular scanners. It takes roughly 0.7 seconds to verify the user when compared to 0.2 seconds with regular fingerprint sensor. In addition, optical technology is not as secure as the most used electric capacitive fingerprint technology in mainstream smartphones, because the former can be easily fooled by a simple 2D image.

However, as we pointed out in our latest report CES 2018 Review: Smartphone and Hot Technologies, the benefits of the under-display fingerprint sensor would outweigh the above-mentioned disadvantages. Being able to position fingerprint sensor to the front with 18:9 full-front display is a huge leap forward. We expect it would become one of the key trends for 2018 and it will penetrate to premium devices first, given its requirement on OLED display and on the new solution. Other Chinese OEMs, such as OPPO, Huawei and Xiaomi would follow quickly this year, making the differentiation window would be short for vivo.