The S Is For Scanner? Why The Next iPhone May Be More Than Another Iteration

The “S” in iPhone models since the iPhone 3GS has stood for something unique: the “S” in the 3GS model stood for “speed,” according to Apple’s Senior Vice President Phil Schiller; the “S” in iPhone 4S stood for “Siri,” Apple’s digital voice assistant, according to Apple CEO Tim Cook. Now, with the iPhone 5S becoming the favored nomenclature of the next-generation iPhone, many have simply accepted the idea that the “S” in “5S” will stand for the next iteration. Talk to most individuals you know and it doesn’t seem to matter whether the “S” stands for something or nothing at all.

As for me, I hoped the new iPhone would not be dubbed the iPhone 5S. I wrote articles at the time that basically stated my dislike for the new nomenclature. What would the “S” stand for? “Nothing at all,” I thought. Why give a label to one of the most important smartphones in the world if the label has little (if any) meaning attached? I am pleased to report that the “S” will stand for something: “scanner,” since the seventh-generation iPhone may incorporate a fingerprint scanner in its iOS software.
While this meaning of the “S” is significant (see? there’s another “s” word!), the “S” may have a double meaning in that it will stand for security as well. Facebook and Google +, as top social networking sites, have been looking for ways to incorporate increased security into log-ins with typical usernames and passwords. Google has a two-step authentication process that is tighter in its security than most other sites, but even two-step authentications can be hacked into (as former Wired tech writer Matt Honan discovered some months ago).

Google and Facebook want us to log in to many other sites on the web with our usernames and passwords from their social sites, eliminating the chances that someone will hack into our accounts. Unfortunately, such a scheme leaves us open to the possibility of losing not just one, but ultimately all our online accounts. It is a “catch 22″ of sorts. With the new fingerprint scan technology, there will no longer be a lingering “what if” over the heads of innocent consumers — and no more loopholes that hackers can work around.
When the iPhone 5S emerges this September, the “S” might have a double meaning: “scanner” and “security.” The iPhone 5S, once a nomenclature I despised, is one I now cherish. I couldn’t be more proud.

Source: Cult of Mac,
culled from: Phonebuff.com