Norway-based NEXT Biometrics has unveiled its newest fingerprint sensor, the NB-1011-S. The company says that the serial interface sensor module has a range of potential applications, from physical access control to safety boxes to electronic voting machines.
The module sports a large sensor area (at 201 square millimeters) while maintaining an overall size comparable to most competing products. Moreover, it’s being offered at a low price. Speaking in a press release, NEXT CEO Tore Etholm-Idsøe said the design and price point “allows fast and cost efficient implementation of our module in already existing market devices.” He added that the module is able to scan fingers even when they are dirty, wet, or cold.
The question of price has been an important one for NEXT Biometrics in the last several months as the company has pursued a strategy focusing on low-cost applications. With the acquisition of new, high-capacity coating machine last fall, NEXT was able to greatly improve its production capacity, and that has helped the company to pursue its low-cost strategy, which in turn has paid off with orders from previously unexplored markets. The company has also benefited from what it has called ‘the Apple effect’, which has seen a huge uptick in interest in fingerprint scanning biometric technology from smartphone makers seeking to emulate the Apple iPhone’s TouchID system, and that interest seems unlikely to abate, especially when NEXT is able to offer low-cost modules like the NB-1011-S.
—
March 13, 2015 – by Alex Perala
Follow Us