Google is unveiling the Pixel 9 family on August 13, which is about two months earlier than usual. We previously speculated that this could be a strategy to prevent leaks, but over the past few days we’ve already seen two hands-on videos, so that clearly isn’t working.
Anyway, a new report today claims that the Pixel 9, Pixel 9 Pro, and Pixel 9 Pro XL will all have ultrasonic in-display fingerprint sensors. So far, all Pixels used optical in-display scanners, and now they’re apparently switching to the exact same sensor model that Samsung is using in its Galaxy S24 series.
The 3D Sonic Gen 2 (QFS4008) sensor is made by Qualcomm. Ultrasonic sensors don’t need to light up the part of the display that your finger touches in order to scan your print, and they’re also generally faster and more reliable than optical ones, so this is a good step forward – oh, and ultrasonic sensors also work if your finger is wet.
The Pixel 9 Pro Fold will stick with a side-mounted capacitive sensor embedded into its power button, according to the same report.