Apple is dead set on moving Touch ID into your iPhone screen

OK Apple, we get it: You really want to move our TouchIDs straight into our iPhones' displays.

The US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) granted Apple yet another patent Tuesday that focuses on new potential designs to embed fingerprint reading tech directly into a phone's screen. It's just the latest speculative method Apple could someday use to accomplish the job -- the company was granted a similar patent earlier this month.

The design described in this latest filing, which was spotted by 9to5Mac, wouldn't just move the sensor directly into the screen for the same old Touch ID experience -- it might also enable near instantaneous user authentication, making transactions and other ID-sensitive tasks much more seamless.

The functionality makes sense: If your phone screen can read your fingerprints without needing any additional hardware, like the current home button, why gum up the authentication process with an extra step?

While this particular design is just speculative, as the patent was only just granted, rumors from reliable sources indicate that an embedded thumbprint sensor or function area might be included in the deluxe iPhone 8. There's also word of a new curved OLED display, some type of new 3D sensor system, wireless charging, improved battery life and other new features that could drive the price up to $1,000.