The all-new Hyundai
Santa Fe can be unlocked and started with a simple fingerprint. The only
caveat? The feature will only be available in China. During a recent event in
the country, the South Korean automaker detailed the feature to the Korea
Herald. While only the Chinese will be able to enjoy the feature, it is
entirely possible the technology will be implemented into future Hyundai models
sold around the world.
Chinese-bound
Hyundai Sante Fe models come shipped with fingerprint readers on both the door
handle and ignition button. The car is able to support multiple encrypted
fingerprints and depending on which user is operating the vehicle, the seats
and angle of the wing mirror will be automatically adjusted to their tastes.
According to
Hyundai, a future software update could also allow the biometric system to add
personalized temperature, humidity, and steering settings. Hyundai’s
fingerprint sensors use human capacitance to function by differentiating
between the electricity levels in various parts of the finger. This prevents
hacking and faked fingerprints being used to fool the system. The automaker
says the system has an error rate of 1 in 50,000, the same as Apple’s Touch ID
technology.
Although buyers of
the new Santa Fe in the United States won’t be offered a fingerprint sensor,
they can buy the SUV in a number of configurations, starting from a very
reasonable US$ 25,500. Among the key standard features for select Santa Fes in the
U.S. is the Hyundai SmartSense suite of driver assistance systems, 8-way power
adjustable driver’s seat, dual-zone automatic climate control, and a color
head-up display.
